In a recent conversation with The Sopris Sun, filmmaking collaborators Stefano Da Frè (director) and Carbondale resident and Emmy-Award-winning editor Krysia Carter-Giez discussed the recent release of a crime docudrama and the editing process of another upcoming feature-length film.
The 46-minute docudrama, “Stolen Dough,” chronicles Anthony Mongiello’s $1 billion patent infringement suit — the largest ever in the restaurant industry — against Pizza Hut, the American multinational pizza chain and international franchise.
Funding for the film came from Disney and Anthony and Joe Russo, known in the film industry as the Russo brothers, who directed four films within the Marvel Cinematic Universe, including “Captain America: The Winter Soldier.”
The film had its world premiere in April 2023 at WorldFest-Houston International Film Festival, an Oscar-qualifying film festival, where the film received the Gold Remi Award. Its California premiere was on Feb. 3 at the Santa Monica Film Festival.
Da Frè explained that when Bob Iger returned to Disney as chief executive officer, a decision was made in January 2022 that Disney would no longer produce or distribute content geared toward adults. The company would instead primarily focus on family-friendly entertainment across its various platforms.
“Disney had told us that we would be on a shelf and that they were going to wait for a while before they were going to release it,” Da Frè said.
Da Frè was an actor on season two of HBO’s sketch comedy series, “That Damn Michael Che,” when one of the show’s producers, during a lunch break, mentioned that Da Frè was directing a film. Da Frè responded that the film was completed, “But, I don’t have anywhere to distribute it.”
They suggested Da Frè meet with an Apple TV executive, which led them to distribute the film domestically and internationally. The film has been exclusively available on Apple TV since January.
Current film project
Da Frè and Carter-Giez are currently busy working in Carbondale, editing their latest film project which is due to release later this year.
The film, titled “A Dream Beyond the Dark,” directed by Da Frè, also has him acting in the leading role as Daniel Lacroix. Clara McGregor, daughter of Scottish actor Ewan McGregor, plays LaCroix’s girlfriend who owns an art studio in New York City.
Based on the true story of a Belgian painter who lost his eyesight due to choroideremia, a rare degenerative eye disease that inevitably leads to blindness, Da Frè’s setting has the painter, born in Montreal, who later moves to New York City to pursue his dream of becoming an artist.
The film has been about eight years in the making, as film projects like “Stolen Dough” and others have garnered the precious time and attention needed to bring them to fruition.
Filming over several years creates its own challenges, Da Frè said.
“You need that time to pass to see if it holds up or it’s really as bad as you thought it was. It’s never as brilliant as you think it is in the moment. It’s also never as bad as you think, so you’re working with those two artistic biases,” Da Frè explained.
Da Frè’s filmmaking partner and co-owner in Rosso Films International (RFI), Laura Pellegrini, is listed as an executive director, writer and director of the film.
With dreams bigger than their network, the RFI founders envisioned their debut feature from the outset.
“When Laura and I started the company, the film was always intended to be our first feature. We didn’t see any opportunities because, at the time, we had no connections in Hollywood for anyone to give us a shot at our first feature,” he said.
The duo observed that their backgrounds — with Da Frè as an actor and a screenwriter focusing on narrative-style writing and a director with a cinematic eye, and Carter-Giez as a solidly credentialed award-winning documentarian — led to this venture of making a feature film.
“What’s interesting is that there’s this sort of blend that’s evolved out of the work that we do together, which is not just one thing or the other; it really is kind of both that sort of meld together. It’s an interesting way to put a film together,” Carter-Giez observed.
As the two continue their partnership, Da Frè and Carter-Giez are looking to take the show on the road, so to speak, for next year’s film festival circuit.
“Stolen Dough” is currently available on Apple TV and Amazon Prime Video.