About Me — Giulia
That’s who I am… or shall I rather say, who I am not.
As a first piece here on Medium, it felt natural to think about an introductory one, to present myself and my background.
I could start as I usually do, defining myself as an artist, a filmmaker, a storyteller, maybe throwing also a “globetrotter” in there; shall I use “Italian”? — Why do we define ourselves with nationalities as if we’d want to be associated with clichés?
Introvert, anxiously hyperactive, pragmatic, plant nerd, determined, old soul, organization freak, fascinated about linguistics… Those are some of the adjectives I would use to better describe myself.
I studied foreign languages and literature, and then films and animation.
I come from a big family, and many of my uncles and aunts are painters, but I never heard them call themselves so. They come from a generation where “artist” was not an acceptable title. They are all differently talented and overly modest about their artworks; they worked office jobs all their life, keeping their colorful and incredible worlds locked in a drawer, and barely calling it a “hobby”, or “just a thing”.
May I dare say, I am the first in my family to step into the artist’s role, choosing that wobbly career and path, and own this space and name? Probably.
At the point that I decided to move to one of the most expensive countries on Earth and try to live as a full-time artist.
Very brave or very dumb, you decide.
Italian… that’s what my passport says.
But such an atypical one, I do not even drink coffee, and I know nothing about football. As a student, I was always attracted to the Nordic countries of Europe, spending there my summer breaks, listening spellbound to their tongues, exploring and imagining potential futures.
Now, when I go back home to visit family, my mother — who used to be a school teacher — loves correcting me, when I cannot find the right Italian word and I go for an Anglicism.
In Switzerland, where I am based now, I am “the Italian”. In Italy, in my little hometown, I am “the Swiss”, the strange one that moved abroad.
In this limbo, I question my own identity and the concept of identity itself.
How hard it becomes to introduce yourself, even more so when this task is relegated to one short sentence, to answer the reductive, outdated, silly question “Where are you from?”?
Some years ago in Toronto, Canada, I got my first taste of a truly multicultural city: I loved it! My eyes were wide open, and for the first time, my brain was trying to compute the size of skyscrapers and the amount of people roaming the streets. During one of my weekend explorations, I discovered Kensington Market, which captivated me right away: the colors dancing with so many fragrances, the music, and delicacies from all over the world.
There I met Chacha: he was wearing sunglasses, a colorful tank top, and chopping a coconut in the middle of the street with a big knife; Chatty and friendly, he asked, “What’s your background?”.
That simple question blew me away. It was that simple, not to get caught in the awkward “Where are you from?”
Not long later, I stumbled upon the TED talk by Tayie Selasi “Don’t ask where I am from, ask where I am a local”, which also resonated a lot with me and those thoughts.
The one-sentence presentation might be the issue.
Labeling, and most of the time auto-labeling, for convenience and time-saving practices.
Hopefully, you will get to know me as I speak and write, and share more multifaceted sides of my person.
In the meantime, let me pour a little more of my personality into this page.
I like music, but not just to listen to it. My body needs to dance, and my mouth to sing. In all ways, my being needs to perform, and tell stories: if it’s not through a written page or a moving image, it must be through some dance steps or a melody.
I am charmed by theatre, acrobatics, and interactive art, I like it when art has a real visible impact in the present moment.
I worship good food, its preparation, and the power of conviviality.
Some folks might say I have a so-called “green thumb”, and the truth is that I like spending time surrounded by flora, and I filled my apartment to the brim with pots and plants.
Turns out that sometimes it’s easier to define something with negative sentences.
Adjectives can be constrictive and can put you in a box, or rather a cage. Ideally, I’d want to let each person decide and define what Giulia is, without preconception and expectation. Here I am: I am.
Well, nice to meet you!
I am Giulia, and I am not a typical Italian, not a saint, and not a robot; I am not Swiss (yet), I am not something to put in a box, I am not your Barbie girl. I am not (only) a director for children's animation, not a boomer, not even a zoomer. I am not a fan of shopping, and not okay with the abuse of power.
I hope here on Medium to be able to share glimpses of what I love doing, open doors, start conversations, and manage to share some of the wonders I get to experience.
Welcome to this corner of the Internet.
