Matteo Garrone

“[Translated] Here's one of my great icons, Buster Keaton, The Cameraman. Definitely one of the directors I love the most... For his courage, his vision, his instincts and purity. I couldn't find this anywhere, and here it is.”

“[Translated] Then, I also saw Andrei Rublev... Which is right here! Tarkovsky is another one of my favorite directors, and this is definitely a film that's been very important in my career, because in every artist's career there are moments when things are going well, and others when they go badly, moments when you feel more insecure, when you question your own talent. And in those moments I revisit this film. It's a profound reflection on the meaning of art, on the purpose of the artist. It's a film I recommend to everyone, at any moment in life, but especially for those going through a rough period. So let's also put this masterpiece in the bag. I know you must be envious of this, I'm sorry.”

“[Translated] here's Mizoguchi. Mizoguchi is another director I love very much, Especially Ugetsu, but here I have A Story from Chikamatsu and The Story of the Last Chrysanthemum— two films of his I don't know. So I'm taking the opportunity to put them in my bag, hoping they won't stop me. I'm taking a lot! But Mizoguchi is another director I've loved forever, for his poetry, his ability to penetrate the human soul, always finding original, visual approaches. One of my favorites.”

“[Translated] here's Mizoguchi. Mizoguchi is another director I love very much, Especially Ugetsu, but here I have A Story from Chikamatsu and The Story of the Last Chrysanthemum— two films of his I don't know. So I'm taking the opportunity to put them in my bag, hoping they won't stop me. I'm taking a lot! But Mizoguchi is another director I've loved forever, for his poetry, his ability to penetrate the human soul, always finding original, visual approaches. One of my favorites.”

“[Translated] And at this point we should see if I can find any David Lynch. Fantastic! Mulholland Dr. Is one of my favorite films. Here we enter a type of cinema that goes straight into the subconscious. It really seems like he's staging Antonin Artaud's philosophy: a cinema which aims to arrive at an experience, and to let the public live that experience. One linked to emotion rather than linear narrative. So it gets right to the raw emotion.”

“[Translated] Here is one of my fathers. Being from Italy, I was lucky enough to grow up with artistic fathers who were among the most important directors in the world. Because the Italian cinema of the '50s and '60s represents one of the most important cinematic bodies of work in the world. And Rossellini was of great importance to my formation - and still is. And Gomorrah, which is here somewhere. There it is. I have the honor of being part of the collection too. That film is connected to a masterpiece of Rossellini's, Paisà. So Rossellini is definitely a foundational director in my formation, to whom I owe a lot. And surely the goal for Italian directors— if I may also speak for my colleagues— is to make films that in some way serve as a bridge to the great masters of the past. So I'm happy to also put the great Rossellini in the bag.”