Pirellifilm Set to Make an Impact

Pirellifilm is a unique new communication tool that intends to launch high quality short films through several media channels. The films will centre on stage and screen stars’ interpretations of the famous Pirelli claim – “Power is nothing without control” – in a different way each year. This extraordinary project, which has been in the planning for several years, is intended to support the Pirelli image and positioning and to maintain brand leadership.

Pirelli has chosen the Web as the main channel for these films. The Internet, with its endless possibilities, has evolved to become an entertainment channel and, in this case, also a movie theatre. As the long-term experience of the Calendar has shown, Pirelli has always been able to attract up-and-coming talents, to communicate in a more effective and original way, and to go beyond traditional advertising channels.

Pirelli has always expressed itself in a strong, controversial, and provocative way (such as the past advertising campaigns starring Carl Lewis and Ronaldo), and this new project also keeps expectations high. The Call (the title of the first film) is a breath-taking thriller with a dark Gothic feel about the eternal battle between Good and Evil. It stars John Malkovich and Naomi Campbell and was directed by Antoine Foquà (the director of “Training Day”, who received an Oscar nomination for “King Arthur”).

Before the filming began, the final script was shown to Father John, the Vatican liaison for relations with the movie industry. Father John (who was Mel Gibson’s consultant for “The Passion”) helped develop the idea and considered it very effective and not injurious to the Church, its rites and ceremonies. John Malkovich asked to personally meet with this extraordinary figure to better interpret his role, and he made several suggestions for parts of the dialogue and the liturgy that made the film even more realistic.
The film was shot in Rome last fall at the Santo Spirito Hospital and in an old abandoned industrial warehouse. Most of the filming, which took a week, was done at night, while the delicate post-production phase took three months to complete and was done entirely in the Hollywood studios.

Controversial, performance and international are said to be the keywords that define the characteristics of the Pirellifilm brand. Furthermore each script must respect these three commandments: it must represent a physical or mental performance; it must be an international idea; and it must shake up the audience for its controversial content. It must make an impact.
The first short film will make its debut at the end of March at www.pirellifilm.com.