The dream of becoming an actor
It was 2004. I was a young man from a small Calabrian town: restless, creative and deeply passionate about art and acting. I knew exactly what I wanted to become—an actor. I lived in Rizziconi, in the province of Reggio Calabria, surrounded by everything that mattered to me: my family, my friends and a land I loved. I had always felt a strong bond with Calabria, and I hoped to study acting at the only institution then operating in the area, the Academy of Dramatic Art in Palmi, just a few kilometres from home.
Then, unexpectedly, I came up against an obstacle: the Academy was about to close, and there were no other options nearby. My goal suddenly seemed much further away. To pursue it, I would have to leave Calabria, pack my dreams and take them with me to Rome.
From Rizziconi to the Centro Sperimentale di Cinematografia
Rome was a different world. Competition was fierce, there were many acting schools, and choosing the right one was difficult; earning a place was harder still. A far more experienced colleague advised me not to audition for the Centro Sperimentale di Cinematografia. The selection process, he said, would be almost impossible to pass.
But determination got the better of me. I ignored the advice and made my way to Via Tuscolana to take part in the official auditions. Until then, I had never heard of that historic school. When I arrived, around a thousand candidates stood between me and the same ambition. I was second to last on the list: that day, candidates were called alphabetically by first name rather than surname, and mine began with a W. I waited patiently and, after ten seemingly endless hours, my turn finally came.
I walked into the audition nervous and emotional, but determined to make an impression. A few weeks later, I learned that the young man from Rizziconi had passed the selection process and been admitted to the regular programme of Italy’s National Film School. The three years that followed were demanding and inspiring. They required sacrifice and hard work, but gave me the foundation I needed for the career ahead and for the many ideas beginning to take shape. Five years after graduating from the CSC, in April 2016, I returned to Calabria to perform a one-man show about the life of Saint Francis of Paola.
Returning to Calabria and founding SRC
One evening at sunset, I was sitting by the sea at Tonnara di Palmi, looking towards the horizon. My thoughts returned to the disappointment I had felt years earlier when I learned that the Academy was closing. Anyone born in Southern Italy and faced with a daily lack of opportunity will recognise that feeling. It is difficult to accept that a land so beautiful and full of passion can offer so few prospects to its young people. Too often, we have to leave in order to pursue what we feel called to do, leaving a piece of our heart at home—perhaps for a while, perhaps for ever. Out of that frustration, but also out of pride, I began to ask what I could do to change things and give something back to my region.
The answer came a few days later: Calabria lacked a structured, continuous programme of professional actor training. It was time to create one from the ground up.
I began to write the project, giving it an identity, its colours and a name. On Sunday 15 May 2016, SRC—Calabria Acting School—was born. There were countless challenges, but persistence carried the project forward as I searched for teachers and collaborators. Step by step, the school took shape. On 21 January 2017, SRC was officially inaugurated at the “Francesco Vinci” Community Centre for Legality, made available by the Municipality of Cittanova. Representatives of local and regional institutions attended alongside the first team, faculty members and students. Giorgio Colangeli was also by my side. He would soon become the School’s Academic Coordinator—an extraordinary actor and person whom I deeply admire.
A former prison becomes a school
Today, SRC is both a dream fulfilled and a starting point for other young dreamers: a school for everyone, founded on the belief that every person, from north to south, should have the freedom to choose, study, grow and learn to understand themselves through their relationship with others.
SRC is now based in Cittanova’s former prison, built in 1904 and returned to the community as a place of training, inclusion and freedom. A prison has become a school; a cell has become a classroom. Through art, bars and grilles have taken on an entirely new meaning.