Davide Maldi's The Young Observant is exclusively showing on MUBI in most countries starting October 29, 2020 in the series Viewfinder. Maldi generously shared with us an excerpt from his logbook and inspirational images from his movie's production.
Standing straight! standing straight! Stand still. Stand still! Stand still! Standing straight.
Day one, end of March 2017. After a long exchange of emails with the director of the Mellerio Rosmini Hospitality Training Institute, I arrived for the first time at the institute in Domodossola.
I have been given the opportunity to visit this fascinating 19th century building and observe some lessons with the students. For the previous three months, I was visiting other institutes in the north of Italy. Domodossola is a very small town near the Swiss border, surrounded—almost guarded—by the Alps. Here, until recent times, there weren’t many options for those who wanted to get away, and one of these was to learn to be a waiter, embark on a cruise ship and set off for the States.
You will have longer working hours than in other industries and you will have to work harder when everyone is having fun and, most of all son, you will be away from home for long period of times.
Before these surveys, I had been reading a short essay by Jonathan Swift, “Instructions to Servants,” a survival manual for those taking service in aristocratic families during the 18th century. How to transpose this to the present?
So, that day, I entered the class of the first year’s students. It was a small class, with five kids.
Luca was there among them, playing with a bullet on the school desk. He seemed very shy and quiet. His hands were all covered in grease. He looked at me, with a fierce look, like a wild animal, very difficult to approach. Fascinated, I started observing and studying each and every one of his movements.
"I have to be precise!," I said to myself. "I have to learn to set myself rules, to make this movie as close as possible to what these guys are experiencing."
"Now smile. Never stop smiling. Always smile because customers want to be satisfied," the Maître ceaselessly repeated.
The Young Observant