Zoe Saldaña and Marco Perego ‘Dovecote’ Interview

In Dovecote, an atmospheric drama short film by Italian filmmaker and artesian Marco Perego, the camera fixates on society’s often unseen citizens: the women confined to a seaside prison in Venice. Filmed inside Giudecca’s working women’s prison on an island in the Venetian lagoon, the story centers around a woman (Zoe Saldaña) during her final moments before being released. The film was chosen at the 60th Venice Biennale as part of the Vatican Pavilion.

 Here, Deadline speaks to star Zoe Saldaña and catches up with Perego since our conversation with him about the short in August to discuss the importance of perception, women’s freedoms and collaboration.

DEADLINE: This Venetian women’s prison is a well-kept secret. Zoe, when did you find out about this location? 

ZOE SALDAÑA: It was very early on when Marco received the news that he accepted the invitation to be a part of the Vatican Pavilion on behalf of the Biennale. He spent a whole day thinking about the concept of what he would be creating. Once he knew that it was a short film, he knew very early on that he wanted to be in the prison with the women’s participation. He asked me if I wanted to be a part of it, and obviously, I was so honored that he asked me. Just because we’re life partners, I don’t always expect Marco to include me in his art, but when he does, and it’s aligned, I feel very honored. And when he told me what he wanted to do, he wanted us to go there and shoot in the prison with the women, and to me, it just felt like a wonderful adventure, and I felt it was going to be a great experience.

DEADLINE: What were the first thoughts going through your mind from the time you were ushered away down the canal to the prison? 

SALDAÑA: As you’re getting in your boat and traveling to La Giudecca, towards this facility, it’s so beautiful. Then, you enter a place where your senses are incredibly heightened, and you start to feel a little claustrophobic. Then, in anticipation of meeting the women, you get nervous because you just don’t know what to expect. We all have these preconceived notions of what these environments can look and feel like, but nothing ever prepares you to experience it in person. But then something really incredible happens where you get to see for yourself what the reality is in certain places, in certain of these places. And you get to meet these inmates, and it’s completely contrary to what you’re expecting. 

They’re approachable. They are excited to connect and very willing to be a part of something that represents them. They trust very easily. I don’t know if it’s because they honestly don’t have any other option or if they really have this desire to connect. Marco was very gracious, being as informative as possible and truthful as possible to make them feel comfortable. Because, in the end, it was never about being melodramatic. And I mean, an environment like this is very dramatic and moves you. I really admire his approach to remove words from the piece and allowing the environment to speak for itself along with our behavior and pace.

DEADLINE: Talk more about forming relationships with these women. How did it help shape your performance? 

SALDAÑA: I had a very visceral reaction to it at first when I saw the facilities for families there. As a parent myself, I can’t imagine feeling pulled in a very opposite direction from my family. Because it was such a visceral reaction, I immediately threw myself into the work, so I just wanted to understand them more. I didn’t want to judge them or anything. I wanted to understand what it’s like to be them and to live with so many emotions. At first glance, you would think that it’s just nostalgia and melancholy that invades their being. But they do allow themselves to experience joy. They allow themselves to experience small moments of happiness and excitement. I believe that we brought some of that for the five days we were there, which was extremely rewarding for Marco and me. I didn’t really have to do anything but listen, observe and share space with them. That was my research.

I did ask questions to some of the directors at the facility, because I needed to understand what their dynamic with the women was. Contrary to what we know, this facility’s exchange between the handlers and the inmates was quite peaceful and cooperative. The women themselves form these groups that are supportive, educational and celebratory. That was really an experience that was very awakening for me.

DEADLINE: Marco, this film is very much about the visceral images. From the switch to black and white to the color at the end. Talk about some things you kept in mind while trying to portray this women’s prison. 

MARCO PEREGO: The question I was asking myself when making this is, “What is freedom?” Because 90% of these women, when they talk with you, they believe in a way the sense of community they’re creating inside this place is very difficult to find outside. The approach for me in the color and the black or white is not to say the outside is the freedom. Actually, it’s the opposite. Inside, the camera is a continuous shot, and that represents the idea of a community. The outside is where the color is and where the camera keeps cutting. The frame is four-by-three, which means it’s meant to feel more claustrophobic. Whereas inside, the lens is very open. It’s the opposite because all these women, they say, they believe when people see you that you belong somewhere, you’re finally free. It’s not about the sense of freedom everybody is thinking about, but the sense of freedom where you belong that you’ll finally be seen. 

DEADLINE: What are some things you kept in mind while working within the silence that the film presented? Was there anything more challenging about this work compared to your varied career? 

SALDAÑA: No, when it comes to that, I almost preferred it for this piece. I feel like that is such an intense set to be inside these kinds of environments and that they already bring in so much drama through a piece. And I think that Marco removing the color of each frame and removing words allowed this environment to just speak for itself and communicate with us for itself. What you see is just the way this environment affected me, the way it compelled me to feel and move around. And I feel like I wanted to match some of the energy of some of the women, but that wasn’t my character’s journey. Her journey was: this was her last day, if you want to see it that way, or her first day. But something is definitely changing in her life, and something is coming to an end, and something is beginning, and we just don’t know where she is with that. So, I didn’t really want to add more to what was already on the page and what Marco’s direction was dictating.

DEADLINE: Emilia Pérez and Dovecote have underlying themes of perception and the justice system, but more generally speaking, about how society treats women. What is it about these themes of women’s empowerment or justice that speak to you at this time in your career? 

SALDAÑA: I don’t necessarily see it as just female empowerment. What’s important for me is to tell stories of all women, all types of women, all kinds of women, all ways that women are, and how they are and what they are. And so, whether it’s in space or a correctional facility at the Giudecca in Venice or Mexico under a musical genre-dipping film, I’m just really happy that this year, I can proudly say that I was a part of three projects. I would also include Lioness in it, where women and female narratives, as well as women’s stories and journeys, are at the center of each of these projects. And so, in a way, this is the dream that I’ve had, this is my wish coming true of being able to add to women’s stories. And for women’s stories to be told better and for the amplification of female-driven stories. 

[This interview has been edited for length and clarity]