TOMMASO is the story of an American artist (Willem Dafoe) living in Rome with his young European wife Nikki and their 3-year-old daughter, Dee Dee. A work concerning imagination.Written and Directed by Abel Ferrara
Starring Willem Defoe, Cristina Chiriac, and Anna Ferrara.
Release Date - June 5, 2020
Abel Ferrara's 'Tommaso,' 'The Projectionist' Land at Kino Lorber
via The Hollywood Reporter
Willem Dafoe's Rome-set drama and Ferrara's ode to indie impresario Nicolas "Nick" Nicolaou are set for spring 2020 theatrical releases.
Kino Lorber has picked up the North American rights to two upcoming films by cult filmmaker Abel Ferrara, including Tommaso, a Rome-set drama starring Willem Dafoe that bowed in Cannes.
Kino Lorber also nabbed The Projectionist — Ferrara's documentary about a Greek Cypriot immigrant, Nicolas "Nick" Nicolaou, trying to keep New York City art house cinemas open in competition with the multiplex — which bowed at Tribeca.
The autobiographical drama Tommaso about a director and recovering addict recalls Ferrara's life in Rome. Ferrara's real-life daughter Anna Ferrara and wife Cristina Chiriac also star in the drama.
Tommaso is the latest collaboration between Rome-based Ferrara and Dafoe after earlier films like Pasolini, 4:44 Last Day on Earth, Go Go Tales and New Rose Hotel.
Both Tommaso and The Projectionist are set to open in theaters this spring.
"Following our outing last year with his Pasolini, we're thrilled to be working ever more closely with Abel on two new and equally exceptional films. His creativity and passion shines through his Cannes sensation Tommaso with the indomitable Willem Dafoe, as well as his love letter to cinema in the profile of a true original, Nick known as The Projectionist," Kino Lorber CEO and president Richard Lorber said in a statement.
Ferrara is known for early indie films like The Driller Killer, the gangster drama King of New York and Bad Lieutenant. His more recent projects include Welcome to New York, starring Gerard Depardieu and Jacqueline Bisset.
Ferrara is currently preparing his next feature, Siberia, with Dafoe set to star.
The distribution deals for Tommaso and The Projectionist were negotiated by Kino Lorber head Lorber and Match Factory.
If they just keep working together, film after film, yunno, I'd be cool with that.
Will be available VOD June 5, 2020 through
Lincoln Center's virtual screening room (https://www.kinolorber.com/film/tommaso)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fx3XAWffJ88
Chat + Lag spikes are awkward but the talk is worth it to hear Cristina Chiriac relay her experience of the set and call Dafoe 'padrino,' to see Ferrara's Rome view. Cristina + Abel's body language are their own tell, so grateful that Abel Ferrara's career exists.
Something interesting to me iz that Sean Baker's obviously entrenched in 'hybrid-filmmaking' as he calls it, inspired by its history - Abelz been honing a form of this for decades. But there's a difference in the space they share here and it's clear in the pictures as well as in this talk. Sean iz focused on the 'reality' or 'autobiography' and Ferrara in how artifice - or rather, the work and its subsequent environment/process - morphs the moments, or evolves the themes.
Blu-ray (https://www.blu-ray.com/movies/Tommaso-Blu-ray/269719/) on September 15th
This reminded me of one of those recent Malick joints minus all the extra fat, really good aside from the final few minutes which fumble a bit. Abel's work this past decade has been the best stretch of his career.