The Art of Joy, the Sky Original series adapted by Valeria Golino from Goliarda Sapienza’s scandalous posthumous novel, long rejected by Italian publishing houses and now a literary phenomenon, is coming to Sky and Now from February 28. A female story that goes beyond archetypes; female depictions that are uncomfortable, defective, decidedly alive and immoral- in the sense of not conforming to current morality. The series was presented at Cannes and distributed in theatres in two parts, from May 30 and June 13, 2024.
“All the female characters in the book are very complicated, they sit outside the archetypes in a book that plays with archetypes continuously”, notes Valeria Golino “Modesta is unique in Italian literature. She was beyond modernity; she was already ahead of us even now. Guided by her instinct, she fought a battle alone in the early 1900s, that women are still fighting many years later. Her battle is first and foremost for a growing awareness of the role of women, guided by an insatiable thirst for freedom. Her strength of character derives not only from her drive for self-determination, but also from her ability to explore her own desires regardless of the perceived morality of society, of the prejudices and blackmail that constantly put her to the test. She did so by breaking every barrier and reshaping the society around her".
The Art of Joy tells the story of Modesta, a young girl from Sicily in the early 1900s, who is born into a poor family in an even poorer land. Animated by an insatiable desire for knowledge, love and freedom, she is willing even as a child to do all it takes to pursue her happiness, without bending to the rules of the oppressive and patriarchal society which seems predestined. After a tragic accident tears her family from her, she is welcomed into a convent where, her intelligence and stubbornness make her the protégé of the Mother Superior. Her path then leads to the villa of Princess Brandiforti, where she makes herself indispensable, obtaining more and more power in the estate. Her continual drive for emancipation runs alongside a path of personal and sexual maturation, which takes her to the limit between legal and illegal as she seizes her right to pleasure and joy, day after day.
"I liked being able to outline a female character that possesses all the great defects attributed to men. The great defects of the antiheroes, which are always the most memorable attributes of the character. For example, the fact that Modesta has absolutely no sense of guilt", notes Valeria Golino. Regarding the representation of the female body on the screen, a much-debated topic in recent times, she adds: "There is no right or wrong way to portray the female body, the point is whether that way is right in the context in which it is being told".
Valeria Golino, who has won multiple awards including David di Donatello, Nastro d’Argento, Globo d’oro, Ciak d’Oro and the Colpa Volpi at the Venice International Film Festival, not only directed the series but also wrote the screenplay with Luca Infascelli, Francesca Marciano, Valia Santella and Stefano Sardo. Episode 5 is directed by Nicolangelo Gelormini (Fortuna, Lucio Amelio, Napoli 24).
“I had a different relationship with the book every time I picked it up,” said Valeria Golino. “The first time, I was disturbed by its roughness, I had a totally emotional approach. I was reacting to a whole series of events defined by eros, morbid at times, and rough. I liked it but I was also disturbed, I didn’t feel it was similar to me. Then I read it a second time and once again when Viola Prestieri got the rights and suggested it to me. I first thought about making it a film, for six months we tried to concentrate everything that happens in the book. But we kept falling short, we realised that we would lose too much, so we decided to make a series, which is still only the first part of what happens in the book".
The Sky Original series was presented at Cannes, in the official selection, in the centenary year of the birth of the Sicilian writer, whom Valeria Golino actually met on the set of Citto Maselli’s Storia d’amore: “I worked with Goliarda on Maselli’s film, she was my language and diction coach. I was really young at the time, only 18, and we had a very sweet relationship because she was affectionate with me and I reciprocated, but I was too young and distracted to understand who she really was. I spent time with her for two or three months, and I know she really helped me in my work. I should have been more interested in her, if only I had known that she was such an original and beautiful mind… I missed an opportunity!”
Filmed mostly in Catania (location list here), the cast includes Tecla Insolia (La bambina che non voleva cantare, 5 minuti prima) who plays young Modesta, an unscrupulous, sensual and courageous protagonist, who reveals a symbiotic relationship in talking about her experience on the set with Valeria Golino. "I saw a lot of Valeria in Modesta, I let myself be completely guided. Modesta is a tabula rasa, she knows nothing, and so, unaware of the limit, she doesn't set limits".
Jasmine Trinca is Leonora, Mother Superior of the convent where Modesta is taken in as a child. She notes how her character serves as a reflection of the lead character: "Mother Leonora is the mirror to Modesta, as Modesta is to her. I hope this film shows men another way, another horizon, and gives women my age and older the opportunity to note how Leonora considers the impossibility of not allowing herself to cede to Modesta's desire".
Guido Caprino plays Carmine, who manages the Brandiforti estate: "On set he was almost always in a bad mood”, says Valeria Golino, “but then he gives the results he gives. He has a very strong intuitive intelligence, there was never any need to correct him".
The cast also includes Alma Noce as Beatrice, the youngest member of the Brandiforti family, led by Princess Gaia, played by Valeria Bruni Tedeschi, “a thoroughbred,” as Valeria Golino defines her. “Her incredible unpredictability is unpredictable. While we were writing the dialogues, we always thought of her. But when we finished, I wasn’t sure anymore, I thought she seemed too young and too in her body for the character. But she insisted and wanted to audition at all costs, and she was perfect.”
The Art of Joy was made with the support of the Regione Siciliana - Assessorato del Turismo, Sport e Spettacolo - Sicilia Film Commission e del Ministero della Cultura – Direzione Generale Cinema e Audiovisivo.