accompanying
the feature
doc DEAR JULIET
At last a documentary about love - and the greatest
love story of all time. A story which bridges every age, culture and
generation, those with love found or love lost, a story which is re-read,
re-written and re-lived time and time again in the hearts and minds
of lovers across the world, every day. That story, of course, is Romeo
and Juliet.
In the closing lines of Shakespeare's most famous work the Bard wrote;
"go hence, to have more talk of these sad
things.. for never was a story of more woe, Than this of Juliet and
her Romeo".
His words, recited in The Globe Theatre in the
1600s, have held more truth than even William Shakespeare might have
predicted. In a new globally-connected millenium, the story has taken
on a new meaning than simply as entertainment or wise words of warning.
"In fair Verona, where we lay our scene"
the entire city has become a symbolic shrine- and financially lucrative
tourist attraction for visitors from around the globe flocking to
pay homage to these legendary lovers.
And either "the stars" or "The Verona
tourist council" have since found a new life for the tragic Romeo
and Juliet; the two star crossed lovers live on today providing counsel
to the love-sick and the lonely, the heart-broken and the un-happily
married the world over under the guise of an extraordinary organisation
of 'agony aunts' aptly titled "The Juliet Club".
'From Verona With Love' is the first Australian documentary to profile
The Juliet Club of Verona and its volunteers, the letters written
to "Dear Juliet", and the sage words of wisdom written back.
It might just be enough to make even the heart-broken believe in love
again.
THE JULIET CLUB AND ITS VOLUNTEERS
The Juliet Club is a voluntary organisation with a team of eight secretaries
who handle all the mail received by the mythic Juliet. Over 5000 letters
are sent every year from all around the globe, asking for advice from
fair Juliet. Many are simply addressed to Juliet, Verona, Italy.
These unknown Juliet secretaries' then reply on
behalf of their boss, answering each and every letter with counsel
in Italian, English, Japanese, Spanish and German and other languages
with the help of other translators. The club has now received letters
and email in more than 20 languages.
The first letter addressed to 'Juliet, Verona' arrived in 1937, sparked
by the first Hollywood film about her. The then curator of Juliet's
tomb replied to it. But letters kept on coming and in 1990 the Juliet
Club organised by the city of Verona took over answering the mail
of its most famous daughter. The city pays the postage and the volunteers
work for free.
Every Valentine's Day the club reads out and awards the 'Cara Giulietta'
prize to the best love letter received that year.
Every day Walter the postman screams up on his motorbike to deliver
another clutch of Juliet's letters to the Club headquarters, based
in a converted garage. He doesn't mind lugging the bags of letters
back and forth from the Juliet club. "For me", he says,
"Its kind of like delivering mail to Santa Claus".
When the club started they asked a Turkish NATO commander and staff
from local Chinese restaurants to help with translations. A washing-machine
salesman helped with the Chinese and Japanese letters. He and Giulio
Tamassia, the club's president, have been the only men working in
the 'Club di Giulietta'- apart from the office cat, a tom called,
of course, Romeo. And he's been neutered.
"This is not work for me", says Tamassia. "This is
a passion". One volunteer at Club Juliet calls Tamassia "the
last great romantic of Verona".
His daughter, Giovanna Tamassia, has been Juliet's club secretary
full time since 1993. 'Its not important if Juliet is real or not.
What is important is that people believe in the power of the story.
The need to believe in love is perhaps the strongest thing in the
universe'.
Giulio Tamassia and his team see their chores as a civic duty. 'This
is a myth. Its bigger than truth', he says.
THEME
; (continued on page 2)
STYLE; IMAGERY and MUSIC
Romantic, whimsical, sensitive, passionate; the style of the letters
will be reflected in the style of the documentary.
The camera lingers longingly on a young couple's passionate embrace
an elderly husband and wife etch their names for eternity on the wall
of Juliet House, along with the graffiti of countless other lovers.
Young couples swap chewing gum then stick it on the walls, as a testimony
of their love. Some tourists sit in silence, while other tourists
cavort on Juliet's balcony.
Images of modern day Verona set the documentary scene. The townsfolk
go about their daily business almost obvlious to the rich artistic
heritage and beauty of their surrounds. This is juxtaposed against
the wonder and awe of the tourists photographing every vista, every
statue, trying to capture their own slice of sensuous Italian passion.
Dreamy words of poetry and love-letters poured from the pen of writers
seeking advice from 'Dear Juliet', are intertwined with a montage
of the fantasy of Carnivale. Masked figures seem to float across canals
in the mysterious mist of early morning Venice. Back in a humble house
in Verona, the unknown volunteers of The Juliet Club are unmasked
as they pen their replies, signing their names simply 'love, Juliet'.
'From Verona...' is filmed with colour and passion,
and sweetened with songs of love.
written, directed, filmed, produced, edited and distributed by Wendy
Dent;
FROM VERONA WITH LOVE
- a documentary to make even the broken hearted
believe in love again
DEAR JULIET:
Gold Special Jury Award winner; 38th Worldfest
Houston 2005
