From Uvil Zajmi

It's been a while since I did this interview. But time and commitments often leave something behind that remains unpublished, as happens in many cases.

I received the encouragement to return to it, and to publish it, after an invitation a few days ago, when I saw "The Unfinished Portrait" again, a film with a story that we will get to know, and which refers to a love story from the '80s, how the protagonists, the time, the people conveyed it. With the actors, the director, the working group, the success that accompanied it, the awards with which it was appreciated.

It was “Echoes of Memory”, the producers, “Konrad Adenauer Stiftung”, the Ministry of Tourism, Culture and Sports, and the National Museum of Wiretapping – “House with Leaves”, that had organized this event, which would be re-enacted not in a cinema, but in the evening, at the end of July, in an improvised environment, like a modest summer cinema, reminding me of those of that time, and which is related to the event in the film. Again a “live” experience

Of those years, of that reality, when everything was limited, censored and forbidden, with serious consequences, that struck and followed that passionate love. Silence, no comment, until the end of the film, emotion, and departure, a wordless separation.

Ernest Tushe, a boy from Tirana, in the 80s, basketball player, the acquaintance with Karla Sferlazo, the daughter of the Italian ambassador to Albania will be accidental. Playing tennis, in the environment once next to the University gym at the end of the boulevard. Then the attendance, the meetings, a very special event for the time. How it continued and how it ended. A little differently in the film, Artur Erzeni, a student at the Higher Institute of Arts, who promised to become a painter. After painting a landscape, while walking with his friends on bicycles, they accidentally bump into a girl, who is the daughter of the Italian ambassador.

A “colpo di fulmine” is born, a spark of love, which continues with several meetings. This love affair begins to develop between the two young people, but without escaping the State Security. They call Artur to tell him the most unexpected thing about him. “We will allow this acquaintance to continue, to move forward. Don't be afraid, go out with him normally, because even the Party allows this

relationship, since it is not a political problem”. He was surprised because he did not expect it. And this is identified with the real event, because at that time Ernesti went out on the streets of Tirana, they rode around together with the ambassador's wife, wearing clothes, T-shirts, jeans, and a bicycle with "vogka" wheels, which at the time attracted attention. A strategy that the Security had elaborated, which is also referred to in the film: Leaving this love, intentionally, to recruit and make Artur a collaborator, asking him to place some eavesdroppers in the ambassador's studio so that they could listen to his communications.

Artur refuses and ultimately, we sentence him to prison. As the story really is. In 2010, 30 years have passed, after he was released from prison, Artur opens an exhibition in Rome, where there is also the portrait of Clara that he had started to do but left half as a result of the broken love, interrupted in the middle. Invited Clara comes to the exhibition and sees her portrait. This is where the film begins, telling the whole story of their love. To close it in Rome, when she, married to an architect, invites Artur to her house, for a dinner with the intention of showing his paintings to friends.

He doesn't promise her, although he still continues to admire her, even though the years have passed and she has started her own family. He decides not to go to dinner, but sends her a package with a courier. She opens it and sees her portrait, now finished with the dedication: "In memory of the good times". And the film ends with Artur flying them home, accompanied by the song they once listened to together.

Namik Ajazi: "A film related to a true event"

"It was important that all the characters, both Albanian and Italian, were played by well-known actors," says the renowned director.

Mr. Ajazi, how did the idea to make such a film come about?

In the preliminary research conducted in the System Archive (the former archive of the Ministry of Internal Affairs), it turned out that there were 7 files, with such events, of relationships, of loves of Albanian boys, girls with foreigners. But we referred to what we had in the project. I talked to my friend, the well-known Ruzhdi Pulaha, offering him all the materials I had. A story that he had also heard, of the Albanian boy with the daughter of the Italian ambassador. And on this principle we started to build the script.

It is required that the script be as close to the real event as possible. In order for it to be realized as well as possible, with the casting director, Alfred Trebicka, I met Ernest Tushe. Jokingly telling him my idea, I said: "Nesti, we will bring your story to a film. But we will make an agreement: Without identifying ourselves, that it is your story. Because the film will be a reference, for those generations, with whom I want to make known, sufferings similar to yours". We agreed.

The preparatory phase for the film begins with the actors

With Trebicka, we first sought to determine who the possible, suitable actors would be. What I wanted, although the budget remained a problem, was for the real Italian characters to be played by well-known Italian actors. The first one we had in the project was Remo Xhirone, “Tano Karridi” in “La Piovra”, a potential actor.

Is there a promise that will serve you later?

I met Remo Xhirone in 1994, then in 1997, when I interviewed him. When in 2012, he was the special guest in Tirana, at the film festival awards ceremony, at the press conference, a journalist asked him: “Mr. Xhirone, if you were invited to make an Albanian film, would you accept it”? “Yes,” he replied, “a film with Namiku with pleasure.” I was confused, I laughed, even though we had no project, and had never talked about anything like that. But I appreciated his approval, his public statement.

Getting back to the film, how did the work go?

After the script was finished, translated into Italian, I went to Rome, met Girona. “You made a promise to be part of a cast in one of my films,” I said. “I have the script with me, read it, you will have the character of the Italian ambassador.” He laughed, did not promise, “I will read it, if I liked it, I will tell you.” That's how we parted ways.

The long-awaited approval is coming, were you expecting it?

Two months later, a friend of mine, Nino Celeste, with whom I had made my first film “Amaneti”, called me from Rome and said: “Niko, I’m with Remo, who has read the script, liked it, and would be happy to be part of the film”. I was amazed. I spoke to him and thanked him. Our attempt, one of the most important, had been realized.

But…, there is a surprising disappointment?

In 2015, we presented the completed script to the Project Evaluation Commission at the National Center of Cinematography, to its board. But, surprisingly and unfortunately, the script did not pass, they did not approve it, they burned it. Although it was a great disappointment, I decided to continue the battle. I communicated with the Italian group, and together we presented the project to the Italian Ministry of Culture (MIBACT). After evaluating the film invested in it, after two months, they invited me, and informed me that they had approved it.

Are we getting to the completion of the cast of actors?

Things were constantly problematic in the solution. While following the work in parallel, what I was worried about, together with Fredi, was that the Italian characters, who were four, should be Italian, because not infrequently, my colleagues were forced, in the impossibility, even for limited budgets and other factors, to hire Albanian actors to play foreigners. This would not make sense to me, especially for such an event.

Do we need the other three Italian actors?

I contacted the late Remo Girone and Fredi and I went, we stayed four days in Rome. The Italian casting director, Ghusi Marrone, had chosen well-known female actresses, mainly for the role of Clara. There were some who were in "pole position" for what they had played in Italian films. About 50 girls, when in a moment Beatrice Aielo enters. With curly, solar, beautiful, I looked Fredi in the eye. An action that had not happened to any of our predecessors.

“This is not bad”- he tells me. “Yes” I answer, “there is something, a shadow from afar, like Silva Turdiu”. We looked at it very carefully, holding it a little longer. In conclusion, I say to the director; “will you bring me Beatrice again, since we had our eyes on her”? Marrone hesitated a little, “Niko, we have actresses who have much better CVs than Beatrice”. – “I don’t care, for me she is the one I found,” I answer. Then we had a second meeting, it was decided that she would play the role of Clara.

Do you need another close friend for Clara?

At the suggestion of a producer friend of mine who proposed to us for the other role, Marta Gastini, a well-known actress in Italian cinematography with several filmings, productions in Hollywood. Acceptable. Here we ended with the Italian casting: Remo Girone and Vitoria Zinny his wife, the ambassador couple with the wife in the film, Beatrice Aielon in the role of Clara, the protagonist, and Marta Gastini, her close friend, as well as Antonela Ponziani.

Let's talk a little about Albanian actors?

After we calmed down from this part, the next problem was the solution of the main Albanian character, and his young friends, who were four. Ismail Shino was one of Berti's proposals, and I think he was right, because in the first two meetings and in the placement in front of the cameras he was among the best. So we decided on Ismail.

In search of "Arturi", a classic type of that time?

I needed a guy from the 80s, well-read with a kind of passion, talent because in the film he was also a painter. It was a long ordeal, difficult to find. We had contacted about 60 students, former students, some of whom convinced me, but not the rest. In the director's perception there were two elements: A handsome boy and a handsome girl. There had to be some kind of excitement and what was first, the appearance remained. Beatrice fulfilled this.

Does it seem difficult to find the character?

We were drinking coffee, desperate, I asked Fred, what are we going to do? Suddenly he told me: "In the short film, I had a son, Anton Koldrinaj from Shkodra. Educated in Florence," he told me.

some photos. It wasn't bad. "Shall we get on the phone sometime?" They communicated, he spoke in the Shkodran dialect, which held me back a little. However, we invited him to come. "I'm in Canada," he informed us. But, he came, and after we did two or three rehearsals, we decided to entrust Antoni with the role of "Artur Erzeni".

Is there a directorial "condition" for Antonin?

It was the end of April 2018, "Anton I tell him, - I will introduce you to the partner boys, your colleagues, who are Tirana, whose duty it was to take you out, walk every day to cafes, bars, etc." And so it was. From May to October, when we started filming, Antoni stayed in Tirana to break the language, the dialect. With his choice, the group of friends was completed.

But are there still characters, actors that the film needs?

For the mother we had decided on the well-known Rajmonda Bulku, and for the father, we took the late Gulielm Radoje. A good, caring father, a warm portrait, a perfect actor like Gulielmi. Olta Dako was “Dolorezi”, the operator, and Fred Trebicka, in the role of Sokol, the Deputy Minister of Internal Affairs. Mehdi Malkaj was also hired, in the role of the pursuer. The actors, Kliti Roshi, Alesja Xhemalaj, and for “Gjergji”, we took Ismail Shino. I had also invited the well-known set designer Fatbardh Marku, who continued his work at the “Skampa” Theater in Elbasan. Gerta Oparaku, Mauro Bonanini, Elidor Markja, The producer was also Anxhelo Basi. Gerta Oparaku, Mauro Bonanini, Elidor Markja,

Another Italian, but for the photos?

I entrusted the director of photography to the well-known Nino Celeste, who has been in 200 Italian films. It was a pleasure when Nino and Remo met again, this time in Tirana, after they had not shot together since the time of “La Piovra” by director Damiano Damiani, where Nino was the director of photography and Remo played the role of “Tano Karridi”. Nino and his three assistants, as well as the makeup and lighting foreman, came from Italy. On camera was Adi Grishaj, who studied in London, and was the first operator in the car. With costumes by Valentina Ciaralli and set design by Paolo Innocenzi. So an Italian-Albanian group.

Looking for a Tirana from 40 years ago?

Even this was not easy. The problem was finding the right filming locations that would bring back the Tirana of those years. But with an alienated city, without any connection to that of that time, it became a concern. With Mark and my first assistant Mateo Cungu, Edi Gjon, we would enter the alleys, laugh with each other because on more than a few occasions, in the old and well-known houses of Tirana, we would climb the walls to see the courtyards, some facades because the doors were closed, families had moved away and no one lived there, there were no more people.

Is there a train moment as part of the film?

We went to the old train station in Elbasan and found two or three carriages from those years, but with broken windows. We communicated with the General Directorate of Railways, we hired painters to remove the graffiti that people had done with spray paint. We equipped it with windows, two carriages as much as we needed and the train that would come from Elbasan to Durrës, where it would be filmed there, because the Tirana station did not exist. Using special effects (VKF), which we brought for the first time from Italy, where special visual effects were not possible, by setting up a Green Screen, based on photographs, we followed the continuity of the road, turning the train station in Tirana into a film.

Filming starts, is there a special moment?

They started the day after my birthday. The Italian Embassy was chosen as the house where the Bardha family lives today, which they gladly offered us. In Enver Hoxha's villa, we shot the interior atmosphere of the embassy, ​​and where the cinema where they watched and reviewed films used to be, we improvised the famous basement where these guys met. The rest of the film was shot on the streets of Tirana, Krujë, Lezhë, a fragment and in Durrës, at the train station.

To continue with the final scenes?

Who were in Italy, as we return to where the film begins with the exhibition of Artur Erzeni. For the character of Arthur the Great, after Anton Koldrinaj, we chose Artan Imami. It was a period, intensive work, filming that lasted six weeks between Italy and Albania. We had a great time. What I want to say was that the work of the Italian and Albanian actors merged very naturally with each other. And that's why this whole complex of actors worked perfectly, based on the characters and the requests I had. The film was finished in 2019, then Covidi, was released in 2022.

Film music, two renowned masters come into play?

I had trusted someone with it, but I didn't like it. I told Aleksandër Peçi. "We don't have time," he replied. "You'll do it," I insisted. And after a colossal amount of work, in two weeks, Peçi created the film's music, which is wonderful. Even for two or three songs that would be sung in the film, I had thought of one by Albano. It was Peçi who suggested to me that we not take a well-known song, but make a real one for Klara. And there are two songs that he composed, with lyrics by the master, Zhuljana Jorganxhi.

An intriguing title, "The Unfinished Portrait", why?

Because that portrait was not finished. The portrait of Klara, which appeared in the film, was worked on the photo of Beatrice, the work of the painter Ilir Pojani. The painting was taken by Beatrice, the actress, since she was not in that picture. The film received several awards, three of them at two different international festivals. And in the ceremonies held, I have said that with that event, I pay homage to all the Albanian boys and girls who dared to fall in love with foreigners, to create some kind of relationship with them.

Presentation in Italy, do you have "special" characters invited?

We did it in Rome, at "Casa-Villa Borgese". Apart from the staff, due to health problems, Ernest Tushe did not come, but his brother, Dr. Eduard Tushe, who passed away a short time ago, along with Adriana, his wife. As well as the ambassador's real daughter with her husband. After the film we had dinner, it was one of the most beautiful dinners.

Remo Girone, have you had the opportunity to get to know him closely?

I was coming from Munich, it was October of last year when I was informed that Xhirone had passed away. I was surprised, I was very sorry. I remember that in all the outings in the first days when he came to Tirana, he was with his wife, Vitor. Wherever we went to the bars, the waiters, the customers, they knew him, he still had the image of "Tano Karridi". He didn't slow down, he stopped, got up, took pictures with everyone, gave autographs. I had met him in 1994, and Xhifoni, in 1997, as I told you.

There was also Mikel Placido, both the "good" and the "bad" of "La Piovra". Although "Tano Karridi" was the face of the mafia, shrewd, on the contrary Remo was the most positive man, extremely kind, loving, approachable, he knew something about Albania, which also made us friends. The opposite of "Commissioner Katanin", who was Mikel Placido. Placido also came to Tirana invited by Pirro Milkani and when they shot the film "L'America" ​​with Amelion. / Memorie.al