Mister Universo A Film by Tizza Covi and Rainer Frimmel with Tairo Caroli Wendy Weber Arthur Robin THE NEW FILM BY TIZZA COVI & RAINER FRIMMEL ENTERS THE FORCE FIELD BETWEEN A LION TAMER AND A FORMER MR UNIVERSE. MISTER UNIVERSO IS A FILMIC JOURNEY GUIDED BY IRON MUSCLES AND LUCKY CHARMS. SYNOPSIS The young lion tamer Tairo is unhappy with his life. He uses the loss of his good luck charm as an excuse to travel across Italy looking for Arthur Robin, a former Mr Universe, who gave it to him a long time ago. A movie about rational and irrational forces. DIRECTORS’ BIO production company Vento Film to produce their films independently. They won several awards for their documentaries, including the Wolfgang Staudte Award at the Berlinale for Babooska. La Pivellina, their first feature, was awarded the Tizza Covi was born in Bolzano, Europa Cinemas Label at the Italy, in 1971. She lived in Paris Quinzaine des Réalisateurs and Berlin before studying in Cannes and was Austria`s photography in Vienna. Rainer offical entry for the Oscars Frimmel was born in Vienna, 2011. Their second feature film Austria, in 1971. He studied The Shine of Day premiered in photography in Vienna. Since the international competition 1996 Tizza Covi and Rainer in Locarno 2012 and won the Frimmel are working together Silver Leopard for Best Actor. in photography, theatre, movie projects. In 2002 they founded their own film INTERVIEW We have encountered Tairo Caroli suddenly bursts into the life of An animal trainer and a before, in La Pivellina (2009). a busy actor. Now it’s a talisman bodybuilder – both require quite At the time you expressed the that is mislaid. How do you find particular strengths – Tairo as a desire to film a story with him. the impulses which trigger the lion tamer, physical as well as What was it that Tairo conveyed filmic journeys? mental. The theme of strength, to you at the age of 14 which physical and mental, rational made you want to make a film TIZZA COVI: Our stories always come and irrational forces, appears to with him? How had he developed across as very simple, but there is a great deal be central for you. When did you when you re-established contact of mental work behind them. In retrospect become aware of that? with him? it seems quite logical that we have written this story for Tairo and Arthur Robin. Arthur TIZZA COVI: I became aware of that TIZZA COVI: Even then it was apparent Robin is a former Mr Universe we met 18 during the writing process, when we explored that Tairo had the talent to do the wrong years ago, and we have wanted to work with the subject of superstition as an irrational thing at the right time. That has a great him for a very long time. In the early days he force more and more. Wendy Weber, our deal of comic potential but also embodies had lots of film offers, but he turned them all female protagonist, plays an important role, sadness and secures him a particular kind of down because he had commitments in the since she is herself very superstitious. Thanks sympathy. He unites within himself a number circus. Working on a film like ours also meant to Wendy, a lot of things became intertwined of facets that make him a very ambivalent leaving his protected space. So he thought there. character. about it for a long time before deciding he wanted to try it, at the age of 88. RAINER FRIMMEL: The bending of the RAINER FRIMMEL: We haven’t lost iron bar enabled us to represent in a very track of Tairo since filmingLa Pivellina, and RAINER FRIMMEL: One of the concrete manner the multi-faceted subject of we talked to him frequently about working on challenges we always set ourselves is to strength in all its forms. But a lot of things a new film project together. In a sense he had link fundamentally different people in a that seem to be absolutely key might well been expecting it. So it wasn’t that we saw story that is as simple as possible. Different have simply come up during the work by the him again after a long break. characters we want to feature in the film have force of chance. to be brought into a relationship by plausible In La Pivellina it’s a child alone sequences of events that really could take in a playground, in The Shine place. of Day an unknown uncle who TIZZA COVI: Arthur took his fate into its TIZZA COVI: We met him in the late TIZZA COVI: Our work preserves many training, and the action in the own hands even as a young man. He only had 1990s. At that time he was still working in the things that will not exist in the same form in circus ring was excluded. Now one aim in life, and that was to become Mr circus, and we went there to watch his show. future. It won’t be long before there are no in Mister Universo it’s different. Universe. And he succeeded by means of hard He bent an iron bar for us and gave it to us more lion and tiger trainers – and in principle We see both Tairo and Wendy work. Today Arthur is a happy person. But it’s as a present. We still have it 18 years later; it that’s a good thing. They are professions putting on their performances. easier to believe that his fate is determined means a great deal to us. We found out about that are dying out. Professions that you can Why is it important this time by other forces, such as a talisman. his life story and also met his wife, Lilly. The criticize a lot, but they have a great deal to do to show them appearing in the enthusiasm the two of them have for each with human nature, not only for the people circus ring as well? RAINER FRIMMEL: And that’s exactly other, and the way they take charge of their who do those jobs but also for the people who what Tairo believes; he’s got it into his head lives, has always fascinated us. Today Arthur want to see them. It’s very important for us to TIZZA COVI: We definitely didn’t want that Arthur will bend a new iron bar for him, and Lilly live in a safari park. Lilly takes care preserve that without judging. perfect footage of Tairo as a lion tamer. We a lucky charm, and then he’ll be able to get of the sound of a daily circus show. Arthur limited ourselves to casual shots of the circus his life back on track. That’s why he sets off checks the tickets, but he also does that with In Babooska and also La Pivellina ring. The act is intended to be part of the in search of Arthur, without knowing whether dignity and precision. And I thought it was we mainly saw circus artists story without being blown up in the film to he’ll find him or what will happen then. It was very beautiful that he emphasizes on camera lovely to see that the encounter with “Mister what good fortune it was for him to have met Universo” really was significant for Tairo. Not Lilly. That’s what makes Arthur Robin the because Arthur taught him how to bend an man he is. iron bar or how to increase his strength, but What’s the story about the curious RAINER FRIMMEL: Many people claim because something happened on a mental Your narratives are always stories place where it appears that the that supernatural forces are at work here. It’s level. And Arthur in turn also benefited from that are as close as possible force of gravity is reversed? a matter of subjective perceptions that could this encounter. He’s a very dignified person to life as reality. The travelling be explained very simply, but then the magic who lives very much according to rituals; professions of circus people are TIZZA COVI: That place is to the south of would be lost. everything always has to be ordered. And by definition connected with Rome, not far from Castel Gandolfo, where the suddenly Tairo bursts into his life and turns movement, transience, volatility. Pope has his summer residence. One element The title, Mister Universo, his world upside down. It could have gone By virtue of the fact that you have that was particularly important to us in this represents Arthur and the man terribly wrong. But he liked him a lot. now depicted this environment in film is counter movement, swimming against who was celebrated in his youth four works, your narratives are the stream, being different. The road where as the strongest man in the This is the first time we have also about the transience of life. everything rolls uphill instead of downhill world because of his muscle encountered Arthur in one of As if the same starting point had provides a very fine illustration of this. power. Doesn’t that also involve your films. How did you meet gained momentum, transformed the question of who or what him? your work into something determines our fate? different. something spectacular. This view from behind we were shown the room where the negative So will you stick to the the scenes is a counterpoint to the excitement cutters used to sit.