An Anthropological Television Myth
( Un Mito Antropologico Televiso )

Alessandro Gagliardo, Maria Helene Bertino, Dario Castelli
2011 - 56 min - S VHS - Couleur - Italie

"What could possibly be the connection between images of blood marks on the ground, a children’s choir, a trial, a TV game, demonstrations, a political address, etc.? The answer is all of them were produced by a local television company based in Catania, Sicily, between 1991 and 1994, a time preceding Berlusconi’s rise to power, and marked by Judges Falcone and Borsellino assassinations in 1992. The editing’s sharp cuts and unpredictable collages that link all the pieces together, following an absolute non-linear logic, are even more conclusive. Thus reorganised, the split rushes, derived from scraps of news coverage bound to be discarded, reveal a double action. They first question the history of the province and its inhabitants who form an isolated community. Then, they break up the representation terms involved in conventional television narratives, which – as we know – are less concerned with reporting events than shaping our opinion.
The anthropological myth advertised in the title is thus examined through the potential for beauty involved in these images. Once the ideological part is revealed, this very potential comes up as a surprising addition, emphasised by the furtive moments that constitute numerous holes in the narrative fabric they overflow. This is a tribute to the ever possible utopia of a media world that could unveil the bare evidence of a truly popular practice, at the very moment collective action is taking a very different turn." (Nicolas Féodoroff, FID 2012)