- Title: ITALY: Al Pacino honoured as Rome film festival starts
- Date: 26th October 2008
- Summary: AL PACINO ENTERING INTO THE ROME FESTIVAL ROOM INTERIOR OF ROOM MEDIUM OF AL PACINO WALKING ON STAGE AND BLOWING KISS TO THE AUDIENCE AL PACINO THANKING AND GREETING/ BOWING / BLOWING KISSES AL PACINO COLLECTING HIS AWARD (AUDIO OF APPLAUSE/CHEERS) AL PACINO SHOWING HIS AWARD
- Embargoed: 10th November 2008 12:00
- Keywords:
- Location: Italy
- Country: Italy
- Reuters ID: LVA7AGZC3MVOOTV7DLHHAYK1U9XE
- Story Text: Oscar-winning actor Al Pacino has won a career award as the Rome film festival officially opens.
A career award for Oscar-winning actor Al Pacino kicked off Rome film festival on Wednesday (October 22), bringing a Hollywood veteran to the movie showcase which this year has a markedly European flavour.
Pacino received the award on behalf of the New York's Actors Studio and at a news conference before the official award ceremony spoke of what the award meant to him.
"I am very honoured to be here at this Rome Film Festival which to me is a really great opportunity to show the films and in this mecca of Italy which is a great home of the greatest films we've had, and so it's wonderful to see this, I hope it continues because it's what all of us need," said Pacino.
The 68-year old, who comes from an Italian family that emigrated to America, was nominated for an Oscar several times for films like "The Godfather", "Serpico" and "Dog Day Afternoon," before winning for "Scent of A Woman" in 1992.
"One of the major things I think that happens is you're able to divide and later go by learning that there are others things while you're acting that you should go to, like others people, like family, to pull you out of that. When I was younger - I found that it did take hold of me in a way - and I remember going back after I played "Dog Day Afternoon," one of my earlier movies, and we had go to a re-shoot afterward, and I went back and I had to do something over again and the character I so wanted to let that guy guy go, that I couldn't get him back and it was like a sort of, someone had said that they sort of felt that a spirit left me when we had our last day of shooting, and I said whoa,
"I am not doing anything anymore" and sure enough two months later I had to go back and do something. So that was tough,"
said Pacino when asked what was the most difficult thing he's been called on to do as an actor.
Currently he is on the big screen with "Righteous Kill", where he and Robert De Niro play two veteran cops on the trail of a serial killer.
Looking at his long and beautiful career, Pacino said:
"Well, the music playing (The Godfather) is really . . . the timing of that, I look at my career as something that is very surprising to me, I'm in a position that is very surprising . . . but you know one foot in front of the other. These things remind me that I have a career. Usually I am thinking about a lot of others things, so I look at my career and I look at something and I say: 'how did I get through it?' That's all and I like to do it."
Waiting for the special guests coming on the red carpet, a few of young people burst on the Rome Film festival open-air scene by protesting against Rome's new right-wing mayor, Gianni Alemanno, who supported the decision to close some community centres.
The opening film of the Rome festival, which runs through Oct. 31, is "L'Uomo Che Ama" (The Man Who Loves), an Italian love drama starring Monica Bellucci premiering on Thursday. - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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