This weekend, Spanish screens premiere Ferrari, the latest work by Michael Mann that tells the story of the founder of the iconic Prancing Horse team, Enzo Ferrari. The film focuses on the critical year of 1957 in the life of the legendary motor racing entrepreneur. With a stellar cast led by Adam Driver, Penélope Cruz and Shailene Woodley, the film is destined to become a box office success.
The film offers an intimate and complex portrait of Enzo Ferrari, moving away from the typical glorification of heroes to explore his humanity and internal conflicts. Without reservation, she explores the shadows of his life, revealing moments of doubt, vulnerability and despair, as well as his remarkable triumphs and achievements.
Behind Ferrari's production, there are numerous situations and creative decisions that the viewer does not know in detail. From the careful selection of the cast to the meticulous recreation of the period and historical events, every aspect of the film has been planned and executed to the millimeter to capture the essence of Enzo Ferrari's life.
Next, we are going to discover some of the insides of Ferrari, revealing the secrets hidden behind the cameras and that have contributed to bringing this fascinating story to life on the big screen.
In the film you can see both original cars and replicas specially built to recreate the era with precision and authenticity. Original cars that took part in the Mille Miglia appear, such as Mercedes Benz 300 SL, Porsches and some Ferraris that compete in the film recreating the 1957 race.
Robert Nagle, stunt coordinator, explains that during the filming of the film word spread and the owners of some of those original cars began calling production to say: “I have a 1957 car that ran in the Mile Miglia, did it? Do you want to use it in the movie?”
One of the biggest challenges with historical films, especially those featuring vintage automobiles, is finding authentic vehicles that fit the specific period portrayed on screen. Unable to find them, production teams turn to making replicas, a complex process that requires expert craftsmanship.
Thanks to Michael Mann's contacts with Ferrari, which date back to the days of Miami Vice, the film's producers managed to identify several original cars that were 3D scanned. A UK company was responsible for building the chassis and assembling the body. The result of the replicas is amazing: “The cars look like Ferraris or Maseratis from 1950, but if you turn them around, everything is modern machinery,” says Robert Nagle, one of the best specialists for driving scenes.
Penélope Cruz plays Laura Garello, Enzo Ferrari's wife, in the film. In the film's production notes, the Madrid actress says that she visited people close to the woman and reveals an anecdote that has to do with her strong character. “This doesn't appear in the movie, but Laura used to sleep near the tires at races to make sure no one stole anything.”
Some scenes reveal the power that Laura Garello exercised over the Ferrari company. In one of them, the engineering staff threatens to leave the team if Laura continues making visits to the production department. Enzo Ferrari's reaction was instantaneous and he fired all the engineers.
The film was shot during the summer of 2022, in the Modena region, the birthplace of Enzo Ferrari. It was one of Mann's wishes, and he finally managed to find the perfect locations to capture the essence and atmosphere of Ferrari's life. To recreate the factory, the production team had a very extensive photographic archive of the factory and plant plans.
They found a factory that, although not from the same era, had a patio covered with cobblestones that matched what they had seen in the photographs. In the end, they only had to build the entrance and an office to complete the authenticity of the scene.
Jack O'Connell was selected for the role of driver Peter Collins and worked under Robert Nagle, who was responsible for acclimating the actors to the conditions of being a racing driver. “The objective of that kind of camp was above all for us actors to understand the mentality of a racing driver,” explains the British actor.
O'Connell has revealed that "the driving scenes that we had to perform in front of the camera are very few compared to those we did without being filmed." So many hours behind the wheel had the result of “seeing how motorized you feel and how mechanical your brain ends up being.” “It was very useful, because obviously when you're behind the wheel you don't concentrate on anything else.”
The film's director was particularly interested in finding the right music for the racing sequences. Mann entrusted this task to Oscar-nominated composer Daniel Pemberton. “One of the first things I realized in ‘Ferrari’ was that sound was part of the narrative. The sound of the vehicles is a key element in the racing sequences,” adds the composer.
“I needed to compose something that wouldn't get in the way of the engines, but wouldn't clash with them, in terms of frequencies, and that would also provide an element of drama, rhythm and emotion,” concludes Pemberton.
