He had to say it and he said it. With the bloodless Venice red carpet, Adam Driver’s presence on Thursday seemed more than just noticeable. The man is tall, he has a deep voice and, most importantly, he has no competition. He is alone. Or almost. So it was to speak at the press conference of ‘Ferrari‘, by Michael Mann, in which he is the protagonist and to vent: “I am happy to be here to support this film, but also I am very proud to represent a production that is not part of the AMPTP (Alliance of Film and Television Producers) and to promote the leadership of the Sag (Film Actors Union)”.
And with that said, he asked himself and, by the way, everyone else what at this point seems like the million dollar question: “Why if a smaller distribution company like Neon and STX International (those responsible for ‘Ferrari‘) can sign to satisfy the demands of the union, and the big companies like Netflix or Amazon can’t?”. He failed to add “or they don’t want to”, but as if yes. Remember that what is being discussed is wages, image rights and the uncertain future of an industry threatened by the irruption of Artificial Intelligence.
To situate ourselves, ‘Ferrari‘ He goes to Venice with the whole team to have an exemption from the union, which is like a papal bull so as not to be labeled a scab, not a heretic. The producers of the film have promised to comply with what the strikers are requesting and, hence, the waiver. On Wednesday in the presentation of the jury, the director of the Mostra, Alberto Barbera, quantified the damages of the union strike and ended up acknowledging that, in the end, the furniture has been saved. Beyond the withdrawal of the film set for the opening, the latest work by Luca Guadagnino with Zendaya as the protagonist, the original program has been maintained and the absence of the stars has been saved with the punctual presence of actors such as Adam Driver or Jessica Chastain, who will also attend.
Driver insisted that his film deal with SAG once again exposes the big shots: “It’s becoming increasingly obvious who are willing to comply and who are refusing to support the people they work with.” His words sounded somewhat harsh, if not surprising, considering that we are talking about an actor who has not had any qualms about working with Netflix. Without going any further, his previous films passed through Venice: ‘Story of a marriage’ (2019) and ‘Background noise’ (2022). Both directed by Noah Baumbach. “It’s important to show up here,” he went on with what sounded more like justification than attack, “to show that it’s the people who make the movies.” Not the AI.
Beside him, Michael Mann agreed with him and dared to try to make a connection between his film and what he was commenting on at that moment in the press room: “This film has been made at the cost of giving up part of the salary. Which Adam and I have done. Here there is no money from large producers. The people who worked at Ferrari did something similar.”