FRANCESCA

Gold Eurobest Award
TitleFRANCESCA
BrandDIESEL
Product/ServiceDIESEL
Category A03. Casting
Entrant PUBLICIS ITALY Milan, ITALY
Idea Creation PUBLICIS ITALY Milan, ITALY
Production DIVISION Paris, FRANCE
Production 2 SIZZER AMSTERDAM, THE NETHERLANDS
Post Production MIKROS IMAGE Paris, FRANCE
Credits
Name Company Position
Bruno Bertelli Publicis Italy Global CCO Publicis WW
Cristiana Boccassini Publicis Italy CCO Publicis Italy
Mihnea Gheorghiu Publicis Italy Global Executive Creative Director Publicis Italy
Thiago Cruz Publicis Italy Global Creative Director
Mattia Mingardo Publicis Italy Art Director Publicis Italy
Silvia Serreli Publicis Italy Copywriter Publicis Italy
Monica Radulescu Publicis Italy Strategic Planner Publicis Italy
Filippo D’Andrea Publicis Italy Account Director Publicis italy
Ilaria Castiglioni Publicis Italy Group Account Director Publicis Italy
Mirko De Martini Publicis Italy Account Manager Publicis Italy
Francesca Zazzera Publicis Italy Head of TV Production Publicis Italy
Anna Sica Publicis Italy Producer Publicis Italy
Saraluna Micciche Publicis Italy Social Media Manager Publicis Italy
Alessandro Bochicchio Publicis Italy Head of Social Client Services and Strategy Publicis Italy
Kim Piquet MSL Group MSL Group Director
François Rousselet Division Director
Matias Boucard Division Director Of Photography
Aymeric Colas Division Steadycam
Nicolas Larrouquere Division Editor
Alexis Fonvieille Division Line producer
Sébastien Noyon Mikrosimage Vfx producer
Michael Bertoldini Sizzer Music Supervisor
Seppl Kretz Sizzer Music Producer

Write a short summary of what happens in the film

Francesca is a film about a young girl transitioning through life. Day by day we see her body change, while she becomes increasingly aware of herself and her new identity, which will lead her to fulfill her life's dream in an unexpected way. The final scenes reveal her entering a nunnery, swapping her Diesel denim for a habit, achieving both her own intentions and the pursuit of her faith.

Cultural / Context information for the jury

The Catholic Church has a long history of rejecting and isolating people they don’t see fit. In recent years however, they showed a more progressive approach towards inclusion. As a supporter of inclusion and individual expression, Diesel thinks that Christianity and gender representation shouldn’t exclude each other. After all, there are many Christian-oriented LGBTQI* groups active around the world. Inspired by the true story of Tia Pesando, the woman who’s still waiting on the approval of the Catholic Church to become a nun, in Francesca we go a step further and paint the natural image of a woman happy with finally fulfilling her life-long dream of dedicating her life to God.

Tell the jury about the casting process.

We approached 12 transgender women, having a positive feedback from all. Although they loved the story, 8 of them didn't feel comfortable playing the part of the film in which they were still portrayed as men. Out of the remaining 4, we decided to give the role to Harlow Monroe, who - she said - has always been vocal about her own journey of transitioning, as well as the trials and tribulations surrounding her identity. Our choice reflects the identity of our heroine because she was perfect for empathizing with the character and being aware of the role.