Today we’d like to introduce you to Carlo Carere.
Hi Carlo, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
Long story short, I was born in the Italian town where pizza was also born… just a few years later: Napoli. Here I spent my childhood. I was still a teenager when I joined the “Carabinieri” – not to be confused with “carbonara” (some Americans do, I swear) – the major Italian law enforcement agency. I gave 12 years of service and rose to the rank of Captain, heading investigations on organized crime, terrorism and homicides. I also served in a couple of peace-keeping missions abroad before serving tables as a fledgling actor. Because it was at this point in my life that I went for my shot in the dark, or stroke of madness as my parents labeled it: leave a prestigious and safe career behind for the perils of the unknown. I moved to LA to fulfill my dream of being an artist; to write, act, and produce films. And here I am now, a few years later, enjoying every aspect of it. The good, the bad and the ugly.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
Well, I have to confess that even what I deemed to be very hard in my previous line of work pales in comparison to how difficult this new endeavor of mine was. It was really tough to leave my home for a new one on the other side of the pond and immerse myself in a whole new culture. I had to work 10 times harder than artists who were born and raised here in order to catch up, language and culture-wise. Succeeding as a screenwriter is impossible enough as a native speaker – with several hundreds of thousands of scripts written every year and only a handful produced – let alone for someone who just moved here. But tough challenges have always fascinated me. So I studied, rehearsed, grew and gave all I had to get where I am now. In the process, I won and placed in over 100 screenwriting awards, and I was – and still am – featured as a top writer in “The Red List.” Also, I was able to star for a legendary director, Francis Ford Coppola, which makes me proud. And aware that I still have a long way to go.
As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
My wife and I have been partners in crime and life for a while. More in crime though, since we never really stop robbing banks… ahem… I mean, creating. And yes, we’re still happily married. Let’s say that our projects are our babies for now. We recently produced and starred in a web series rom-com pilot, “Spy v Spia,” featuring two international rival spies getting into a bunch of goofy situations. It got into dozens of festivals, won quite a few and we were both awarded as best actors. We also shot a 32-minute thriller, “Near Death,” which is now available on The Roku Channel, Tubi and Plex among others. And a sci-fi feature script of ours, “Reverse,” was acquired by Citizen Skull Productions which is now shopping it around. Also, another script, a thriller, “Time Zero,” is currently in pre-production with producer/director Damon Jamal of in Yo Face Filmworks, who managed to attach a great distribution company. These two features mentioned above are very ambitious projects with multiple award-winning scripts, and we’re super excited about what’ll come next. Last but not least, we’re now ourselves in pre-production on another feature thriller, ShutEye. Wish us luck.
What sort of changes are you expecting over the next 5-10 years?
A lot is changing in the ever-evolving TV and movie industry. The elephant in the room is that streaming is replacing the traditional movie theater experience and, along with the internet, has globalized the script market. Today anyone with a computer can submit her story from anywhere in the world at any time. This is making our business all the more competitive, diverse and fascinating. I’m excited to be part of it.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.carlocarere.com
- Instagram: https://www.
instagram.com/carlo.carere/ - Facebook: https://www.
facebook.com/carlocarer/ - Twitter: https://twitter.com/
carlocarere - Youtube: https://www.youtube.
com/user/CarereCarlo
