Daniele and the “ship of madmen” resume their journey. From Thursday 26 September, the episodes of the second season of “Everything asks for salvation” will be available on Netflix. 5 in all, to tell new stories, to present new characters, to bring viewers not only inside the psychiatric ward (set in the military long-term care clinic in Anzio) but also outside. The series resumes two years later, loosely based on the novel of the same name by Daniele Mencarelli, winner of the Premio Strega Giovani 2020. But, evidently, there was still a lot to tell, as Federico Cesari himself, protagonist of Everything asks for salvation 1 and 2, in Daniele’s shoes, he told RomaToday.
A new chapter opens for “Everything asks for salvation”. What do you expect and what do you hope the audience will think when they watch the second season that has just been released?
“I’m very anxious, like every time a new project that sees me involved comes out, I really want to see the public’s reception, I’m honestly anxious. The series was filmed about a year ago and I’ve been waiting for this moment for a long time.”
How did you live this experience, what will you take away?
“In general I can say that I am very happy, regardless of how the ratings go and I feel grateful to have been able to take part in this second season. If the public likes it it will certainly be an extra gift.”
The second season catapults us two years later, with Daniele and Nina who have become parents and many new characters. What will happen?
“There will be new characters, new stories told, new paths to face. The dormitory has almost completely changed. There will be the character of Matilde (Drusilla Foer, ed.), that of Rachid (Samuel Di Napoli, ed.) and many others who they will present us with new ways of dealing with and understanding suffering.”
Daniele will return to the clinic where he was admitted in the first season but in a new role, as a trainee nurse…
“Exactly. And he will arrive with the expectation of finding a situation similar to the one he experienced as a patient, in that department, but he will find something completely different, an initial hostility that he did not expect and not a desire for openness and confrontation that , instead, it was exactly what he was looking for. Because it is true that the underlying experience is common, suffering, but everyone has their own way of examining things and for Daniele this will be a clearer aspect than ever in the second season.” .
And what have you learned about suffering?
“That there is no single way to deal with it. That sometimes a great love first passes through a great hatred, that there are many different ways to arrive at a feeling of communion and brotherhood”.
The second season of Everything asks for salvation leaves the corridors of the department. What is the objective of this choice?
“Yes, much of the series is filmed outside. In the first, there is a phrase said by Daniele, who states that true suffering, true madness is outside and the second season is born precisely with this desire. It leads us to see how being able to survive with psychological discomfort in our society, without that familiarity, that protective environment that existed within the department. In everyday life, relationships relax, conflicts increase, there are social roles”.
The cast is very rich, made up of many much loved actors in the world of serials, including Filippo Nigro, Ricky Memphis, but also Drusilla Foer who enters this second season in the role of Matilde. What was it like working with them? What atmosphere was created on set?
“On a Francesco Bruni set it is difficult not to bond with people, as he creates such a familiar and relaxed environment. An important bond was created with everyone who worked on the set.”
For you as an actor and as a man, how important was this experience?
“It was very important, one of the most important in my life in general. Such complex roles, for kids of my age, aren’t written every day and having had the opportunity to document myself, to be in close contact with people who live or have experienced these stories firsthand and who want you to understand what they went through, it was a beautiful human experience, first and foremost and then work-related.”
You have a degree in medicine, did you bring your knowledge and studies to the set in some way? Or, perhaps, has this series sparked a desire in you to return to a medical career?
“As for a medical career, I would say no. Simply because being a doctor I know what it means indirectly, my girlfriend is a doctor and I know how tiring it is. I can say that I have brought back a bit of awareness, perhaps a more objective look which confirmed me how everything I saw was real or plausible.”
How important is it to bring these stories, these delicate themes to the small screen and how much can it help the public who will watch “Everything Asks Salvation 2”?
“Personally I would say that this series makes you feel less alone, it allows you to ask yourself questions, to think about the suffering that affects all of us. Everything Asks for Salvation brings to television themes that are not yet talked about enough, for fear of stigmas, labels, because of that fear of recognizing ourselves as fallible. We always tend to separate the experience of suffering from us. I believe that TV, like cinema and art in general, should not give answers but raise questions, if those questions resonate in us. we feel less alone.”
