Alberto Barbera has often found himself witnessing film history. During his two tenures as artistic director of the Venice film festival, he has rubbed shoulders with A-listers and witnessed their career triumphs – as well as a few major disappointments.
“I remember the world premiere of A Star Is Born [in 2018], when Bradley Cooper and Lady Gaga were on the red carpet in the rain,” he says from his office on the Lido, the small island in the Venetian lagoon that has been the festival’s home since 1932.
“Lady Gaga refused to get into the theatre because she wanted to keep signing autographs for her fans. When she came to my office to dry and redo her makeup, she was shaking. I said: ‘But you must be used to it, you have huge concerts with thousands of people.’ And she said: ‘Yes, but this is my first time as an actress, and I feel like a debutante.’ I put my arm around her shoulders and took her into the theatre. At the end of the film, she was crying.”
In 2013, Barbera had to rush to Scarlett Johansson’s aid after her new film, Under the Skin, received a surprisingly visceral response. “It was one of the worst screenings I’ve attended; it was the only time the audience booed a film,” he recalls. “Scarlett was almost in tears. I tried to say to her: ‘Don’t worry, in time the film will be recognised.’ And that’s exactly what happened. It’s now a cult movie.” (It was named the best British film of the 21st century in a poll of critics).
Next week, the festival opens during an unprecedented period of crisis for the industry: Hollywood strikes mean actors are unable to promote their films and a number of major releases have been delayed. The red carpets will be pared back this year and the daily press conferences will be limited. But for a while, the entire lineup was at risk.
“I’d already closed the selection for the festival when we got the news about the strikes,” Barbera says. “We spent a few days concerned that we could lose all the films from the US. It was an extremely difficult weekend.”
Luckily, he soon received confirmation from major studios and independent production companies that they wanted to premiere at the festival, even if the talent could not attend.
“So far the only film-maker who definitely won’t be in Venice is Bradley Cooper, because he’s also the leading actor [he directs and stars in the upcoming Netflix drama Maestro, based on the life of Leonard Bernstein]. He called me and said he desperately wanted the film to be in Venice, that it was his dream come true, but he doesn’t want to come against the strike. I understand, of course.”
Barbera’s lack of reticence says much about his reputation as someone who is not shy of making his presence – as well as his opinions – known. For attenders, photographs of him on the red carpet have become as much a staple of Venice as the taxi boats transporting glamorous celebrities to the theatres.
Maestro is one of a number of films slated as potential Oscar contenders from this year’s bill, alongside Sofia Coppola’s Priscilla, David Fincher’s The Killer, Ava DuVernay’s Origin, Yorgos Lanthimos’s Poor Things and Michael Mann’s Ferrari.
The perception that Venice is a launchpad for the Oscar season is testament to Barbera’s efforts after returning as artistic director in 2012 aiming to coax back the Americans.
“The American studios had simply stopped coming, preferring to go to Toronto because it was easier and cheaper,” he says. “The risk for Venice to become a second-rate film festival compared to Cannes, Toronto or Telluride was very strong.”
Barbera started going to LA on outreach missions, and in 2013 the festival opened with Alfonso Cuarón’s Gravity, which went on to win seven Oscars. “That was the beginning. The following year we had Birdman, which again won at the Oscars. Then Spotlight, La La Land, Shape of Water, Joker. We began gaining a reputation.”
This year’s lineup has sparked controversy due to the inclusion of films by Roman Polanski, Woody Allen and Luc Besson, despite sexual misconduct allegations against the three men.
Polanski fled the US in 1978 after pleading guilty to the statutory rape of a 13-year-old girl and has recently faced accusations of sexual assault from five other women, which he denies.
“Polanski is one of the last great masters of European cinema,” Barbera says of the decision to include the director, whose previous film also premiered at Venice, in 2019. “He made huge mistakes 50 years ago. He recognised that he was guilty [in the case involving the 13-year-old]. He asked to be forgiven by the victim, and the victim gave her forgiveness. I’m not a judge who is asked to make a judgment about the bad behaviour of someone. I’m a film critic, my job is judging the quality of his films. But of course, it’s a very difficult situation.”
Barbera stresses that distinctions must be made “between the man and the artist”. He says the entire history of art is full of cases of artists who were problematic or even criminal. “Yet we still admire their work. I’m pretty sure in some decades’ time, everyone will have forgotten about the history of the rape from Polanski, but they will still admire his films.”
He says Allen’s position is “completely different” from Polanski’s. The film-maker was accused of sexually assaulting his adoptive daughter, he has never been charged, and he has always maintained his innocence. He was subject to two investigations by a child sexual abuse clinic as well as social services, which found no credible evidence of wrongdoing. “After almost 25 years, why should we keep on banning his films? It’s impossible to release his films in the US now, which is absolutely unbelievable,” Barbera says.
Similarly, he says the fact that a rape inquiry against Besson was dropped by French prosecutors means there is little justification for blacklisting him. “For which reason should we ban a film from [Allen and Besson] when they’re not guilty in the face of justice? Why should we be more strict against them? We need to have faith in the justice system.”
Was he expecting a backlash to these choices? “Of course. I discussed the issue with all my collaborators and colleagues. We knew that we would face attacks and insults. But this is the moment we’re living in, there is a special kind of sensibility about these issues.” He adds that he “totally agrees” there is a “fair and right fight” against unacceptable behaviours by men against women as highlighted by the #MeToo movement.
Barbera is adamant that festivals reflect wider movements and moods. “Festivals are not a ghetto. We are a window to all contemporary events, issues and concerns,” he says. Last year, for example, Venice spotlighted films by Iranian and Ukrainian film-makers, and it will continue to raise awareness this year.
“We need to take positions and make statements,” he says. “We cannot stay closed in our small garden of beautiful films.”
