Catch-22, George Clooney’s new TV series, is proving to be an all-Italian affair. And we’re not just talking about the choice of Italian locations as settings, but the media interest and economic benefit that has been and continues to be generated by filming, thanks to the people involved and the various occurrences that have heightened its fame.
First off there’s the fact that Clooney’s entire family, complete with Amal and the twins, came over to Sardinia, where filming took place for over a month in the municipalities of Santa Severa and Olbia and the old Venafiorita airport. Then there was Clooney’s motorbike accident, and last but not least, the most recent episode: the dispute between the famous Hollywood actor and Vittorio Sgarbi, mayor of Sutri.
It is to this very picturesque town in the province of Viterbo that the set for the series has moved in recent weeks. The move was celebrated as a sign of appreciation of the local area and a big promotion opportunity, until controversy arose with the mayor of the town, Vittorio Sgarbi, who, in a press release, accused Clooney and his production team of leaving the town in a terrible state. The dispute, covered by the media, was allegedly caused by red dust left behind in the central piazza and streets in the town centre, after a clay surface was created in keeping with the historical period represented in the TV series.
The mayor also allegedly complained of the relatively meagre contribution (€5,000) received by the municipality compared to those received by other municipalities from large-scale productions. This point was clarified by Enzo Sisti from Lotus Production, who maintained that the contribution received by the town actually amounted to over €65,000 paid to citizens and businesses to make up for the inconvenience caused during filming. This of course draws our attention to how arbitrary and unregulated the issue of rates for the use of Italy’s public and cultural heritage is. The situation as it stands does not allow for a balanced acknowledgement of value or an appropriate reinvestment of profits in promoting and protecting heritage. Furthermore, according to Sisti, a specialised company was hired to clean the set and put the relevant areas of the town back to the way they were before filming took place, without any of Sutri’s citizens getting involved or protesting. The matter is still being covered by the press but has not entered the court system, at least not yet.
The whole thing could be put to bed by Sgarbi, who isn’t excluding the possibility of naming George Clooney an honorary citizen just because of this episode.