About SFO-FCO-SFO
Press Release
by Enza Sebastiani
SFO-FCO-SFO
Following the expiration of the contract between RAI, the Italian PBS and KTSF, Channel 26, at the end of the nineties, and the closing of the Alitalia offices in San Francisco and Los Angeles, in 2002, the Bay Area has lost an important Italian presence, which is really surprising, considering the wealth of art, culture, science and history of both cultures. The bridge between them is lost.
There are more than 2.5 million Italians and Italian Americans living on the West Coast of the United States, who keep close links with their country of origin. They also want to be informed on the socio-political and cultural news of Italy.
The local networks are not airing international news as often as the Generation X would like to see. As a result, very little is shared as far as what is happening in Italy, or other countries for that matter, from a social and political standpoint, but also from an environmental and cultural one.
On both sides of the planet, in Italy and here, in the States, there is an increasing number of people, primarily younger people, eager to discover different cultures via the net, hence the idea of utilizing electronic media, such as vlogs or video podcasting and blogs capable to reach a wider audience worldwide, with the power multimedia.
The concept
SFO-FCO-SFO (the locators for the San Francisco and the Rome airports), is a vlog (or video podcast), concentrating on upcoming trends in thought, the environment, writing, filmmaking, photography, all the expressions of art, science, politics and philosophy.
The vlog
Through a series of documentaries and interviews with American and Italian environmentalists, intellectuals, artists, and scientists, SFO-FCO-SFO aims to show the reality of these 2 cultures, apparently different, yet closely intertwined and cross pollinated.
In other words a two way connection link, not a value judgement between two different microcosms, both of them rich in history and continuously expanding due to the diverse ethnic influences shaping them.
We look at the life and work of environmentalists, writers, artists, visionaries, scientists, researchers and entrepreneurs, both in Italy and the U.S., having in common a complex urban reality.
Production is based in San Francisco and Rome, at the moment, with the possibility of expanding to the US east coast.
The goal is to distribute an American and an Italian version of the SFO-FCO-SFO vlog.
The target
The program aims at a target population of upper middle class, between the ages of 20 and 45, but the reality is the internet reaches a wider audience, primarily youth.
The segments
Currently, SFO-FCO-SFO hosts trailers of three documentaries I self produced and available on DVD:
1. LONG LIVE THE BALD EAGLE
The Trailer
The trailer is a 2’20” video introduction to a 17-minute segment on the release of 6 juvenile bald eagles, that found their new home on Santa Cruz Island on May 25, 2006.
The documentary
With the aid of the National Park Service, we sailed to Santa Cruz Island, in the southern Californian Channel Islands, along with 6 juvenile bald eagles, biologists, experts and representatives of the media from different parts of the US.
The San Francisco role with this mission is explained by Kathy Hobson, Aviculturist at the Avian Conservation Program of the San Francisco Zoological Society.
Peter Sharpe, PhD Wildlife Biologist at the Institute for Wildlife Studies has been responsible for the release of over 48 bald eagles in California.
Milena Viljoen, Outreach Coordinator with the Montrose Settlements Restoration Program shared with us the history behind MRSP and the effects of DDT on the bald eagles and wildlife in general.
* * * * * *
2. NINFA A ROMAN OASIS
The Trailer
With the increasing danger of global warming and pollution, Ninfa comes across as a shell of shimmering energy, a witness to the harmony between man and nature.
The documentary
Ninfa is the closest place I've ever seen, but mostly felt as Heaven on Earth, just one hour drive from Rome.
This natural park is a unique and balanced mixture of the wild and the cultivated, the mysterious and the sacred, where water springs lead the way to the purest streams and transparent lakes.
The interview with Lauro Marchetti, Director of Ninfa enlighten us on how the Roffredo Caetani Foundation and its dedicated staff worked during the past 40 years to preserve the wildlife, and this beautiful park.
Through the hard work of the Caetani Family and the Foundation, Ninfa grew from the original 19 acres of the mid 60's to the 5000 acres of today.
Lauro will take us for an enchanting walk through the gracious elegance, the romantic beauty of the garden, and the medieval ruins of the park, but mostly he will focus on the importance of preserving Nature.
* * * * *
3. A NANOTECH STORY
The Trailer
An introduction to Dr. Luisa D. Bozano, inventor, researcher, PhD in Physics - IBM Almaden Research Center, CA.
The documentary
Dr. Luisa D. Bozano has been a research scientist at IBM’s Almaden Research Center (San Jose, California) since 2000. In her research, she is discovering and developing methods for making self-assembling molecular electronics, such as memories, aimed at being significantly cheaper than today’s silicon-based devices.
A native of Genova (Genoa), Italy, Dr. Bozano received a Laurea Degree (equivalent to a master of science degree) in physics at the University of Genova in 1996. After graduation, she came to the U.S. to continue her collaboration with Brookhaven National Laboratory (Upton, New York) on spin polarization of protons beams. In 1997, she moved to California, where she worked for a small company and joined the University of California-Santa Cruz as a researcher. In 1998 she entered the graduate program and earned her Ph.D. in physics in 2001.
Dr. Bozano joined IBM Almaden during the last year of her doctoral coursework on a curricular practical training program to study the conduction properties of new materials for organic light emitting diodes. Her contribution was to measure the electron mobility in red-emitting polymers.
Dr. Bozano is author of several technical papers on organic materials and co-inventor of a new class of bistable organic memory devices for which a patent is pending. She is also a mentor for high school students and is active in encouraging women and diversity groups to pursue education and careers in science, engineering and physics.
Enza's Bio
Enza Sebastiani is an independent filmmaker and multimedia artist with a passion for nature, cinematography, theater, music, traveling and photography. She produces documentaries, music videos and corporate videos in the United States and in Europe.
Her latest project, SFO-FCO-SFO is a cultural program and vlog soon to be featured on her website www.sfofcosfo.com.
A talented and energetic artist, born and raised in Rome, Italy, Enza is based in San Mateo, a 20 minute drive south of San Francisco, California.
Enza founded a web based creative artists network, 1000 Hearts (www.onethousandhearts.com), with the purpose of giving exposure to talented and unknown artists from all over the world.
She has great experience in both realms -- art of filmmaking and technical knowledge of digital video and how the two can be combined.
Enza is a former employee of Apple Computers and AutoDesk-discreet. She also worked as an independent contractor for other companies in the Silicon Valley. She was called "the one woman studio" by Apple co-workers and executives, as she produced videos for Apple CEO's keynotes and many other Apple events worldwide.
Her passion for storytelling drives Enza to write, direct and edit beautiful documentaries, short fiction movies and public service announcements, some of them hosted on her homepage
As always, if you have any questions or concerns, please feel free to contact me.
Best regards,
Enza Sebastiani
Founder/Independent Filmmaker
1000 Hearts, Creative Artists Network
