An Interview With Maria Angelova
The only thing I would have liked to have been told when I started would have been: “Hey young guy I believe in you so much that I will finance any kind of project for you!” Unfortunately, it never happened so I cannot tell any anecdote about it. 😉
As a part of this series, I had the distinct pleasure of interviewing Lorenzo Tiberia.
Lorenzo Tiberia is an Italian director and screenwriter. He has an active presence on the web through his own group “Actual” of which he is the founder, author and director, creating web series that have reached 20 million views in just six months. He has produced commercials and branded content for large companies such as Tim, Mercedes, Poste Italiane and RedBull as well as creating promotional material for upcoming films and series on behalf of major film distribution companies such as Disney, Netflix, Vision Distribution, 20th Century, Fox, Warner Bros, Lucky Red, Notorius Pictures and Eagle Pictures.
Thank you so much for doing this interview with us! Before we dive in, our readers would love to get to know you a bit. Can you share your “backstory” that brought you to this career?
First of all, I want to thank you for this interview and to be here with you and the people who will read everything.
My name is Lorenzo Tiberia and I am an Italian director and screenwriter. I started studying acting in an academy here in Italy and I continued working as an actor in theatre and TV. Then my attention focused on writing and directing a web series on YouTube and Facebook as well as having an active presence even as an actor through my own channel called Actual, of which I am the founder. I created a web series that reached 20 million views in just six months, I produced commercials and branded content for large companies such as Tim, Mercedes, Poste Italiane and RedBull as well as creating promotional material for upcoming films and series on behalf of major film distribution companies such as Disney, Netflix, Vision Distribution, 20th Century, Fox, Warner Bros, Lucky Red, Notorious Pictures and Eagle Pictures.
Subsequently I dedicated myself to directing by shooting two short films. My first self-produced short film “The Queen falls asleep Where She Wants” (“La Regina si Addormenta Dove Vuole”) starring Elena Cotta (Coppa Volpi in Venice in 2013), which I wrote and directed. The film garnered 30 international film festival selections and 10 awards: seven for best film, one for best director, one for best screenplay and one for best soundtrack. The film received second place at the Giffoni Film Festival in the Parental Experience category, and it competed at the ECU — The European Independent Film Festival 2020, one of the most important European film festivals dedicated to short films.
My latest short film “Tutù,” produced by Prem1ere Film with the support of Mibac, Miur and Regione Puglia, had its world premiere at the last Rome Film Festival (2021) in selection at “Alice nella Città.” It won the Mediaset Infinity award and was acquired by Mediaset with a 5-years distribution contract on the platform. In a few months it won another 30 awards in international festivals including BAFF 2022; then it was selected by FICE among the six Italian short films that will be distributed in 450 Italian cinemas, and selected at the Italian Film Festival U.S.A with screening in 15 cities in the United States (Detroit, Indianapolis, Phoenix, Pittsburgh, Los Angeles, Memphis, Kansas City, St. Louis, Boulder, Cleveland, Chicago, Milwaukee, Boston, Salt Lake City and Portland) and soon in competition at “In The Palace” international qualifying festival for the Oscars 2023.
Now I’m working on the postproduction of my first feature film that will be released in theatres in Spring 2023. “Gli Attassati,” is produced by Lungta Film, Sicilia Social Star, Vision Distribution, in collaboration with Sky and Amazon Prime Video and distributed by Vision Distribution.
It has been said that our mistakes can be our greatest teachers. Can you share a story about the funniest mistake you made when you were first starting? Can you tell us what lesson you learned from that?
The funniest mistake I made at the beginning of my career was when I starred in a show for prisoners in a prison in Rome. On that occasion, we had been given a visitors pass to perform our show. During the show I had taken it off to better play my character and placed it inside a pants pocket. When the show was over, without changing my clothes, I forgot to put it back on my neck and a prison guard grabbed me by the arms to take me back to my cell believing I was an inmate trying to escape from prison.
Who are some of the most interesting people you have interacted with? What was that like? Do you have any stories?
A very interesting person I interacted with, was the protagonist of my first short film Elena Cotta.
She is a 91-year-old actress with a lot of experience, winner of the Volpi Cup in Venice in 2013, who despite the fact I was at my first short film, invited me to her home and we chatted about the character as if we had already made many films together.
Which people in history inspire you the most? Why?
Nikola Tesla, absolutely. To him we owe the electricity in the house, the radio, the wireless connection, and many other things involving electronics and electrical engineering. He also theorized about flying machines and apparently, he was one of the first to have picked up signals from space.
Let’s now shift to the main focus of our interview, how are you using your success to bring goodness to the world? Can you share with us the meaningful or exciting social impact causes you are working on right now?
I am using my success to bring to light social issues that need to be talked about. In my first short film I took to heart the violence suffered by the elderly in nursing homes, in the second (Tutu) I deal with the theme of anorexia.
Many of us have ideas, dreams, and passions, but never manifest it. But you did. Was there an “Aha Moment” that made you decide that you were actually going to step up and take action for this cause? What was that final trigger?
The “Aha moment” is always the idea. When you have an idea that you are convinced of, you do everything you can to make it happen; and for me it was like that. I felt a strong need to tell stories with my own point of view that, fortunately, differed from that of others and made my projects extremely personal.
Can you tell us a story about a particular individual who was impacted or helped by your cause?
There was not one particular person. Many people who watched my work and have had anorexia in the past have found similarities between my short film “Tutù” and their lives. They have thanked me deeply for dealing with this issue in such a sensitive and profound way.
Are there three things that individuals, society or the government can do to support you in this effort?
Try to support social cinema and spread it where it can help people. Screening audio-visual works, that have social themes, in schools to raise awareness of societal issues among young people. Give more funds to arts and culture so that more and more people, young and old, can make socially impactful film works.
What are your “5 things I wish someone told me when I first started” and why?
The only thing I would have liked to have been told when I started would have been: “Hey young guy I believe in you so much that I will finance any kind of project for you!” Unfortunately, it never happened so I cannot tell any anecdote about it. 😉
If you could tell other young people one thing about why they should consider making a positive impact on our environment or society, like you, what would you tell them?
Always try to listen to your deepest and truest nature and if you feel an urgent need to communicate something you really care about, do it.
We are very blessed that many other Social Impact Heroes read this column. Is there a person in the world, or in the US, whom you would like to collaborate with, and why? He or she might see this. 🙂
I would love to collaborate with Alfonso Cuaron because he is so talented and because, in addition to directing, he devotes himself completely with body and soul to perfect all aspects of his films starting from writing, going through directing and cinematography until ending with editing. And his being so multifaceted in all aspects of his work has strongly inspired me to never settle and to deepen all those aspects that can make my work better.
In my opinion, “a film is always written three times: the first time in the script, the second time on the set and the third time in editing.”
Can you please give us your favorite “Life Lesson Quote”? Can you share how that was relevant to you in your life?
Step by step you reach your goal. It was relevant because it sums up my career which is made up of so many small grains of sand that led me to have my own slice of the beach.
How can our readers follow you online?
Instagram: @lorenzotiberia
Facebook: Lorenzo Tiberia
Website: www.lorenzotiberia.it
This was very inspiring. Thank you so much for the time you spent on this. We wish you only continued success.
About The Interviewer: Maria Angelova, MBA is a disruptor, author, motivational speaker, body-mind expert, Pilates teacher and founder and CEO of Rebellious Intl. As a disruptor, Maria is on a mission to change the face of the wellness industry by shifting the self-care mindset for consumers and providers alike. As a mind-body coach, Maria’s superpower is alignment which helps clients create a strong body and a calm mind so they can live a life of freedom, happiness and fulfillment. Prior to founding Rebellious Intl, Maria was a Finance Director and a professional with 17+ years of progressive corporate experience in the Telecommunications, Finance, and Insurance industries. Born in Bulgaria, Maria moved to the United States in 1992. She graduated summa cum laude from both Georgia State University (MBA, Finance) and the University of Georgia (BBA, Finance). Maria’s favorite job is being a mom. Maria enjoys learning, coaching, creating authentic connections, working out, Latin dancing, traveling, and spending time with her tribe. To contact Maria, email her at angelova@rebellious-intl.com. To schedule a free consultation, click here.
Filmmakers Making A Social Impact: Why & How Lorenzo Tiberia Is Helping To Change Our World was originally published in Authority Magazine on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.