Donkey flies (first feature)

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Donkey flies (Asino vola)

Donkey flies (Asino vola)

original title:

Asino vola

cinematography:

set design:

Bruno Melappioni

costume design:

Chiara Nobile

production:

country:

Italy

year:

2015

film run:

80'

format:

colour

festivals & awards:

Maurizio is a headstrong little boy, who grew up experiencing a thousand solitary adventures in the creek, amidst the carcasses of abandoned cars turned into shelters and countless objects of all kinds, more or less consumed by time. Moses, his donkey friend, who lives a stone's throw from the creek with the gypsy Mimi and her family, is the first being that Maurizio confides in about his passion for music. Unlike Angelina the hen, who mocks him for his passion, Moses the donkey is always there to counsel and encourage him.
Amongst the children who attend the classes in the neighbourhood band, Maurizio is the only one without an instrument. He clashes with his strict mother, who sees music as yet another whim of a naughty child, a luxury that the family simply can not afford . But for Maurizio, music is so much more: it is a chance to show the world that, if put in the same conditions as the others, he can do it; he can learn to play, he can be one of them, a musician who brings joy to the towns of the province.
It is his teacher, Angelo, who finds a solution to keeping Maurizio busy for at least the duration of the lesson, rather than leaving him to watch the others learn: an old drum kept as a relic in a mysterious trunk, in that museum-like space that is the storage of the music room. The mystery behind this drum alone, represents the last obstacle on Maurizio’s way to realizing his dream.

DIRECTORS’ NOTES DONKEY FLIES is the story of Maurizio, a seven year-old boy, who, kicking and fighting, asserts his right to exist in the world.
It is the story of his coming-of-age, overstepping the narrow confines of his family to discover the world that lies beyond.
A world in which he wishes to be recognised in his own right.
In telling this story we tried to immerse ourselves as deeply as possible in the subjective experience and perceptions of our ‘hero’; so that the world around him appears to exist, suspended, between imagination and reality. Hence the choice of talking animals, or the idea to give the same actor the role of Maurizio’s different teachers, to the decision to relive the events through the memory of Maurizio as an adult on his debut as conductor. The film is a step back in time, to a time where his love of music began. Answering the following questions: Where do I come from? What made me who I am today? Is life full of random events, or do we drive the events through will and determination?