Abel Ferrara writes a book about “all the crazy shit in this business”

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EXCLUSIVE: In addition to shooting his next film, veteran filmmaker Abel Ferrara is working on a book, he tells Deadline. sceneFerrara doesn’t exactly categorize it as a memoir, saying, “I try to focus more on the people I met and all the crazy shit in and around this business than on myself. I’ve definitely had some crazy shit happen to me.”

scene is due to be published in Italy and the USA in the middle of next year. Ferrara did not want to reveal who the American publisher is, but said: “I can hardly believe that I actually got a (book contract).”

Ferrara should have plenty of entertaining material to talk about. Known for his provocative, neo-noir and often controversial content, the versatile indie star has directed the following films: The Drill Killer, King of New York, Bad Lieutenant, The funerala remake of The Body Snatchersand biopic Pasolini.

In the meantime, the director is also preparing for filming American Nails starring Willem Dafoe and Asia Argento. Ferrara calls it a “gangster film” that is a modernized version of the Greek mythology story of Phaedra. Argento will play the character Phaedra. Filming will begin in September in the southern Italian city of Bari.

Ferrara spoke to Deadline at the Taormina Film Festival in Sicily, where he was watching the Italian dubbing of his Padre Pio which had its world premiere in Venice in 2022. The film is scheduled to be released in Italy later this week.

The American filmmaker explained that with the exception of the title character, played by Shia LaBeouf, all the actors were Italian but originally spoke English. In this version, it’s “the perfect storm… the kids have acted in English, they get to see the film in Venice, they get to see it with an audience, they get the film, they understand what they have to do, then they go to the studio and dub it in their own language, so they bring a little bit more.”

Ferrara also used artificial intelligence for the Italian dubbing: “It looks like I directed in Italian, which is very cool.”

So no aversion to the controversial technology? “Not yet,” Ferrara said. “It’s a step forward… It’s like anything else, why would you assume it’s going to be used to destroy you? What kind of paranoid attitude is that? It’s like the Internet – if you use it in a positive way, it’s great. If you’re gaming all night and looking at pornography, it’s a disaster.” He added: “I don’t know, maybe it’s the end of the world, but I’m not that kind of guy, I have to see it to believe it.”

In general, Ferrara says of today’s technology: “You have to let the crap work for you. You have the telephone, you have the computer, you have the Internet – you’re on your own now.”

He said of today’s young filmmakers: “Take this modern shit and don’t let anyone control you. These kids who come up with YouTube and TikTok have all the power. You have the world in your MacBook, you don’t have to go to studios and beg people, just do it.”

Overall, says the filmmaker, who turns 73 this week, he is not slowing down. “I have no choice. In this business, you die with the boots on your feet. I’m still functional and I’m grateful for that.”