The Italian Files: Recent Episodes
FILL Productions
The Italian Files is the second podcast production of FILL Productions and the Italian Cultural Institute London
Italy’s longest river twists for more than 400 miles, from the mountains near Turin to the Venetian laguna. The Po has countless stories to tell about the country’s past, present, and precarious future. But are we listening hard enough? Tobias Jones, a journalist and writer known for his explorations of the murkier aspects of Italian life, takes us on a journey along the riverbanks.
Guest: Tobias Jones
Visit theitalianfiles.com for full transcript and episode notes.
In 1935, after a brutal campaign, Italy claimed Ethiopia as its own. How do Ethiopians remember those dark days? And Italians? Maaza Mengiste, whose acclaimed novel The Shadow King is set during the invasion, discusses the legacy of brutality and the multifaceted art of telling forgotten stories.
Guest: Maaza Mengiste
Visit theitalianfiles.com for full transcript and episode notes.
In 1978, Franco Basaglia reformed the Italian mental health system, closing the asylums. Who was he, where did he get his ideas, and what is the legacy of his ground-breaking decisions? Writer and historian John Foot brings us up to speed.
Guest: John Foot
Visit theitalianfiles.com for full transcript and episode notes.
This week we consider the life and legacy of the long-forgotten and misunderstood queer feminist writer Goliarda Sapienza. Why do her novels speak to us so powerfully today, in Italy and abroad?
Alberica Bazzoni, author of Writing for Freedom: Body, Identity and Power in Goliarda Sapienza’s Narrative, takes us through Sapienza’s radically transgressive work, in which life and art refuse to be separated.
Guest: Alberica Bazzoni
Visit theitalianfiles.com for full transcript and episode notes.
Writer and music critic Giulia Cavaliere will unveil the origins of the Sanremo Festival and its impact on Italian contemporary culture. First staged in 1958, the most famous Italian song contest contributed to shaping the Eurovision format.
Guest speaker: Giulia Cavaliere
Visit theitalianfiles.com for full transcript and episode notes.
What is the state of women's sport in Italy today? What does this tell us about Italian society? Giorgia Bernardini, writer and author of the newsletter Zarina, dedicated to women sports, sheds some light.
Guest: Giorgia Bernardini
Visit theitalianfiles.com for full transcript and episode notes.
Lorenza Mazzetti’s work as filmmaker and writer has explored personal traumas and society through the eyes of an outsider. The episode will explore her work with Brighid Lowe and Henry K. Miller, makers of the documentary Together with Lorenza Mazzetti. Guest speakers: Brighid Lowe; Henry K. Miller.
Visit theitalianfiles.com for full transcript and episode notes.
The trailer of The Italian Files, a new podcast by Fill Productions. The first episode is going live on the 9th of January.