Written by: Tedfuel
The ‘IL MORO’ short film explores the value of origins and belonging throughout history, giving voice and representation to Europeans of African descent.
‘Il Moro’ premiered at the 2021 Pan African Film Festival in Los Angeles, California, and has been received with great reception. The short film is the directorial debut of Daphne Di Cinto, Afro-Italian screenwriter, director and actor who played Sarah Basset in the Netflix series Bridgerton. Her involvement with the project has solidified her as a force within the film industry, both onscreen and behind the camera.
Erased from history books of the time, the film centers on Alessandro De’ Medici –The Black Italian Duke of Florence and brings his story to life. The 23-minute short chronicles De’ Medici, a mixed-race man, son of a woman of African descent and of Pope Clement VII. De’ Medici ruled over Florence as its first Duke from 1520 to 1537. Di Cinto’s interest in the project was born of her belief that sharing the history of Alessandro De’ Medici could contribute to a greater understanding of diversity throughout history, which oftentimes has gone largely unrecognised. She explains, “There is a global lack of consciousness of the Afro-European experience and of its history”. For Di Cinto, ‘Il Moro’ was about highlighting an important time in history that forms part of a larger exploration of black ancestries. In doing so, she wants ‘Il Moro’ to contribute to a positive perception of black identities, past and present.
Since its premiere, ‘Il Moro’ has seen great recognition and success. Named the winner of Best Italian Short Film at Fabrique du Cinéma Awards in late 2021, the short film went on to receive further accolades this year after winning Best Short Film at the 2022 Integrazione Film Festival in Bergamo, Italy.
More recently, ‘Il Moro’ was shown as part of the Cannes Film Festival’s ‘Short Film Corner ‘. The Cannes Film Festival Short Film Corner is dedicated to short filmmakers and aims to promote emerging talents and foster connections within the industry. Di Cinto also participated in a panel discussion as part of the ‘Cannes, Do Better: A Celebration of Black Women in Film’ at the film festival May 25th, 2022. There is no doubt her perspective is an important one in the landscape of diversity in the film industry. It’s also fitting given her short film, ‘Il Moro’, explores concepts around diversity and belonging. Di Cinto’s deep understanding and connection to the historical material has seen her praised for her ‘precise and conscious directorial style’.
The film stars Alberto Boubakar Malanchino as Alessandro de’ Medici, Paolo Sassanelli as Pope Clement, Balkissa Maiga as Alessandro’s mother and Andrea Melis as Ippolito de’ Medici.
Di Cinto has announced her plans to work on developing ‘Il Moro’ into a series to add further depth to the telling of Alessandro De’ Medici’s story. She also has projects involving other historical characters and a sci-fi short film in the works.
The positive response to ‘Il Moro’, not to mention its success in winning awards at some of Europe’s most renowned film events, is an encouraging sign that we will see more stories of diversity throughout history on our screens in the near future.
Produced by Greenlight Project and Onda Film, the movie stars Alberto Boubakar Malanchino (Alessandro de’ Medici), Paolo Sassanelli (Papa Clemente VII), and Andrea Melis (Ippolito de’ Medici). Producers include Daphne Di Cinto (executive producer), Yasmine Holness-Dove (co-producer), and Franklin Eugene, Taylor Re Lynn, L.A. Burgess and Jennifer R. McZier as associate producers.
To learn more about the short film, ‘Il Moro’ and director, Daphne Di Cinto, visit @ilmorofilm and @daphnedicinto
