Campania In-Felix Teaser Trailer

This is probably the most important work I've ever done in my life and it's still under production.

Last summer, I, together with my dearest colleague photographer Matt Nager visited Naples, located in the southern region of Campania in Italy, to shoot the trailer of an important documentary, titled Campania In-Felix (unhappy country).

To give you a short synopsis of the film::

For nearly two decades, Campania, the southern region of Italy where Naples is located, has witnessed an ongoing practice of illegal toxic material dumping in rural and inhabited areas. The management of waste material in the region has been in the hands of the Camorra - a mafia organization with vast economic and political power .The film will explore the presumed connection between waste, health and environment in the area of the Triangle of Death between the towns of Acerra, Nola and Marigliano, recognized by local doctors as the most polluted area of the region.

The documentary will be entirely produced during the summer of 2010 and will have as main subjects, people who live in the triangle of death area and are affected by cancer and other illnesses because of the direct exposure to toxic substances.

As I said before, this is a very important work because it uncovers one of the most dramatic and urgent crises of Italy - the tight connection between waste, environment, health and the overwhelming power of the Camorra that fully manages the waste situation in southern Italy. It's an issue that needs to be discussed and exposed and I hope that for now you will enjoy this teaser trailer.

Roberto Saviano on the topic of Camorra

Someone I know has insisted I should update my blog. And I know she's right 100 percent. So here's something that aired on Italian TV last week.

Roberto Saviano, author of Gomorrah, was host of Che Tempo Che Fa, an Italian TV show. Saviano talked about the immense power of the Camorra and how the Italian media shapes, controls and manipulates information. Very scary reality that gave me a good dose of anxiety and anger.

I feel so bad for Saviano. He deserves a life. The problem is and remains that people's lack of response lets easily the Camorra gain power - a power that is, according to Saviano, far superior than the Italian government.

Here's Saviano talking on public television. It's all in Italian.

In media res

...in the middle of things/action. An expression I learned this past week and I hope I will never forget it. Reason why I wrote it down in this post.

Snow day without snow

This is Texas for you.

Classes at UNT have been canceled for inclement weather...in reality there is no snow, just a bit of ice on the roads. One day behind schedule, one day of reading and catching up....and maybe a movie or two later in the day.

Not so bad after all....

New Website launched

Yes, it's the new year. And with the new year, I am hoping to start a new phase of productivity and generally good work.

I have just put online my personal portfolio Web site...and it's really the first time for me launching a personal site. It's exciting. I'm hoping to use this site as a platform to show my media work. Right now, it shows the video work I have done during my time at The Dallas Morning News.

And I happily announce....my site:

www.ivanacorsale.com

History repeats itself

I've been following the political events in my own country, Italy, with mixed feelings of worry, disbelief and sadness.

In the last political election, one sign was clear to me. The left party disappeared and left the right wing with incommensurable power.

It seems to me that the concept of checks and balances totally disappeared, leaving the path open to extremists and political fanatics.

I don't know about my Italian folks but I'm kind of seeing a deja vu here. And my deja vu was even confirmed by this photo I saw today in the Italian newspaper La Repubblica. Romans were celebrating the victory of the new mayor of Rome, Alemanno, waving their hands with a fascist greeting. I don't know about you but images like this one make me think that Italians have forgotten about their past. And they really make me angry.


I think when I get into grad school, I will seriously think about doing a short documentary in Italy. It's definitely a good time to document a few things.

People on camera

I took this photo this weekend. I'm kind of proud of this picture....maybe because I never shoot photos of people. I find it a little intimidating and more difficult. But I really like this one and if Matt likes it, I like it even more :)