OH BOYS @ CANNES 2026
We screamed and begged. But nothin’…
A rat went through their donut stash. But they didn't seem to mind. Just enjoyed the sun.
But alas, we had to interrupt their summer laze with some important questions. We screamed louder and finally got some answers.
Donuts: And for the actors, how was working with Antonio as a director? He is very precise… but you've mentioned he encouraged spontaneity and improvisation. How did the two coexist on set?
Tom: Toto was brilliant, he’s an incredibly passionate, collaborative, funny person and he’s direct too- which is great.
Luca: On our last short, “Shooting Watermelons," while directing a specific scene in which my character had to feel the pressure of all the performative masculinity around him, he kept telling me not to talk to anyone and was kind of yelling, “Stop having fun!” It was actually very funny.
Tom: He was very free with the script, and some moments were definitely improvised. Knowing that you have that scope to change things if you feel it, really opened things up and kept us on our toes.
Meg: I think his precision is the exact reason we can be so spontaneous. If his world and the story-arc wasn’t so clear, we would feel lost and disconnected in the improvisation. But I think because we really knew the tone of the scene, we were able to play within our dynamics, understanding exactly what our characters would do within the spontaneity.
Tom: I think a master stroke of his was using real people from Pischotta, who weren’t professional actors in some of the smaller roles - the waiter/chef (Daniele) and the Saxophonist (Gianpiero) were exactly that in real life. It felt like we were entering their space - which of course we were - which added a whole new dimension/energy to the film.
Luca: When playing the character, I really liked working with emotions that weren’t expressed too explicitly. Antonio and Paolo have always written the characters I played as introverts, with subtle ways of expressing their feelings, and I’ve always found that really challenging. At the same time, it’s something I really enjoy working on.
Tom: Toto was brilliant, he’s an incredibly passionate, collaborative, funny person and he’s direct too- which is great.
Luca: On our last short, “Shooting Watermelons," while directing a specific scene in which my character had to feel the pressure of all the performative masculinity around him, he kept telling me not to talk to anyone and was kind of yelling, “Stop having fun!” It was actually very funny.
Tom: He was very free with the script, and some moments were definitely improvised. Knowing that you have that scope to change things if you feel it, really opened things up and kept us on our toes.
Meg: I think his precision is the exact reason we can be so spontaneous. If his world and the story-arc wasn’t so clear, we would feel lost and disconnected in the improvisation. But I think because we really knew the tone of the scene, we were able to play within our dynamics, understanding exactly what our characters would do within the spontaneity.
Tom: I think a master stroke of his was using real people from Pischotta, who weren’t professional actors in some of the smaller roles - the waiter/chef (Daniele) and the Saxophonist (Gianpiero) were exactly that in real life. It felt like we were entering their space - which of course we were - which added a whole new dimension/energy to the film.
Luca: When playing the character, I really liked working with emotions that weren’t expressed too explicitly. Antonio and Paolo have always written the characters I played as introverts, with subtle ways of expressing their feelings, and I’ve always found that really challenging. At the same time, it’s something I really enjoy working on.
Donuts: I think you can really feel the fun you guys had on set. The cinema was bursting with laughter at the premiere. How did it feel for you guys to bring the film to Director’s Fortnight at Cannes?
Meg: SO EXCITING. It’s been a dream of all of ours, so for it to be coming true is just amazing. The premiere was so surreal - hearing the audience laughing and cringing through the tension, and feeling the beats really working was amazing to witness and is testament to the team.
Tom: There were also around 50 of us who made the trip, which speaks to the spirit and commitment of the brilliant, primarily Italian team - the only one this year in Cannes.
Luca: At first, it was hard to realize it was really happening, even when we were already there, especially thinking about all the great directors and actors who had stood there before us.
Tom: At the beginning of the premiere, they show a montage of all the great films that had their first screening at Quinzaine: Mean Streets, Texas Chainsaw Massacre, The Host. It was a proper pinch me moment to feel connected to that lineage.
Luca: After the screening, it felt incredible. I was sitting next to Toto, and we cried and hugged each other both before and after it.
Meg: SO EXCITING. It’s been a dream of all of ours, so for it to be coming true is just amazing. The premiere was so surreal - hearing the audience laughing and cringing through the tension, and feeling the beats really working was amazing to witness and is testament to the team.
Tom: There were also around 50 of us who made the trip, which speaks to the spirit and commitment of the brilliant, primarily Italian team - the only one this year in Cannes.
Luca: At first, it was hard to realize it was really happening, even when we were already there, especially thinking about all the great directors and actors who had stood there before us.
Tom: At the beginning of the premiere, they show a montage of all the great films that had their first screening at Quinzaine: Mean Streets, Texas Chainsaw Massacre, The Host. It was a proper pinch me moment to feel connected to that lineage.
Luca: After the screening, it felt incredible. I was sitting next to Toto, and we cried and hugged each other both before and after it.
Donuts: Ahem… What do you believe is the greatest and most important thing we can do as film makers for our audiences? How do you want to make your audiences feel?
Antonio: You never know who’s going to watch your film. You can’t predict people’s tastes or control how they’ll react. The only thing you can do is be honest. Only if you’re honest can you be intimate. Only if you’re intimate can you be authentic. And only if you’re authentic can you connect deeply with someone else’s experience. That’s how something personal becomes universal. So I think the most important responsibility we have as filmmakers is simply to be honest.
Donuts: How are you honest in your filmmaking? Where do you find inspiration?
Antonio: Unfortunately, everywhere around me. I tend to tell stories about people and situations I know very well, so my own life experience and the experiences of the people around me are my main source of inspiration. I guess where my curiosity brings me, but I’m curious about very stupid stuff most of the time.
Donuts: Your films have such a distinctive visual language. Symmetrical, balanced and drenched in colour! And this film too, breathes an aura of scorching Italiana while being framed in a very particular way. Do you see the world in the symmetrical visual language of your films? Do you look up to create more headroom in your everyday life?
Antonio: The headroom is there to make space for my huge ego.
No, I’m joking. But sometimes it does feel like something is constantly pushing us down, doesn’t it? I don’t actually see the world in a symmetrical way, but I do have an obsession with putting things in order. I like balance, but I don’t like perfection. Things need to be slightly off. A room that’s too tidy makes me uncomfortable, but if it’s not tidy, it drives me crazy. I think the same goes for my films.
Antonio: You never know who’s going to watch your film. You can’t predict people’s tastes or control how they’ll react. The only thing you can do is be honest. Only if you’re honest can you be intimate. Only if you’re intimate can you be authentic. And only if you’re authentic can you connect deeply with someone else’s experience. That’s how something personal becomes universal. So I think the most important responsibility we have as filmmakers is simply to be honest.
Donuts: How are you honest in your filmmaking? Where do you find inspiration?
Antonio: Unfortunately, everywhere around me. I tend to tell stories about people and situations I know very well, so my own life experience and the experiences of the people around me are my main source of inspiration. I guess where my curiosity brings me, but I’m curious about very stupid stuff most of the time.
Donuts: Your films have such a distinctive visual language. Symmetrical, balanced and drenched in colour! And this film too, breathes an aura of scorching Italiana while being framed in a very particular way. Do you see the world in the symmetrical visual language of your films? Do you look up to create more headroom in your everyday life?
Antonio: The headroom is there to make space for my huge ego.
No, I’m joking. But sometimes it does feel like something is constantly pushing us down, doesn’t it? I don’t actually see the world in a symmetrical way, but I do have an obsession with putting things in order. I like balance, but I don’t like perfection. Things need to be slightly off. A room that’s too tidy makes me uncomfortable, but if it’s not tidy, it drives me crazy. I think the same goes for my films.
Donuts: Cannes Film Festival has quite a reputation of being a week of one-upmanship, of people trying to be seen, to impress others and to perform. What do you notice about this? Do you think it was especially fitting for your film to play in such an environment?
Antonio: Absolutely. I was there trying to impress people too; it’s part of my job. As filmmakers, we’re constantly pitching ourselves, our projects, our ideas. But I try to do it without pretending to be someone else. If people like me, great. If they don’t, that’s okay too. I still have people around me that I love and trust, and people I want to keep making films with. That’s ultimately much more important than winning any social competition.
To be honest, I always try to be myself. With my friends, I completely let go. My problem is actually the opposite: sometimes I don’t know when to stop. They often tell me that I become like a river in flood and risk becoming a bit too much.
I probably performed the most when I was younger, desperately trying to prove myself: during my first years at film school or when I was trying to impress girls. Nowadays, I feel much closer to my true self. But of course, life sometimes becomes a performance of survival. Even though this interview is, in a way, a performance, I have to think carefully about what I say.
Antonio: Absolutely. I was there trying to impress people too; it’s part of my job. As filmmakers, we’re constantly pitching ourselves, our projects, our ideas. But I try to do it without pretending to be someone else. If people like me, great. If they don’t, that’s okay too. I still have people around me that I love and trust, and people I want to keep making films with. That’s ultimately much more important than winning any social competition.
To be honest, I always try to be myself. With my friends, I completely let go. My problem is actually the opposite: sometimes I don’t know when to stop. They often tell me that I become like a river in flood and risk becoming a bit too much.
I probably performed the most when I was younger, desperately trying to prove myself: during my first years at film school or when I was trying to impress girls. Nowadays, I feel much closer to my true self. But of course, life sometimes becomes a performance of survival. Even though this interview is, in a way, a performance, I have to think carefully about what I say.
Donuts: Do you think performing is inherently bad?
Antonio: Not necessarily. We all perform to some extent. The problem comes when performance becomes a mask that hides vulnerability.
If you constantly need to project power, dominance, or superiority in order to feel worthy, you’re probably not a very happy person. And that kind of behaviour can become dangerous. Many dictators, fascists, warlords, and violent leaders throughout history and nowadays have worn exactly those kinds of masks. That’s why I think we need to be careful about the values we teach people. We should create more space for vulnerability rather than rewarding domination.
Donuts: And for Meg, being the female lead, do you think Alice is free from the kind of performativity we see in the film, or is she playing a role of her own?
Meg: I think she is absolutely as swept up in the performativity as anyone! When her boyfriend is fumbling with the fish, she is looking around, mortified that people might be watching or judging them. I think she holds her self-perception in high importance. But it’s tricky and I really understand her. I really feel that in order to function in this world and society, we are constantly asked to perform in some way. That’s why the magic of the saxophone calming people at the end feels so dream-like and beautiful, I wish we could all access that kind of freedom so easily.
Donuts: Tom, how long did you train to be able to debone a fish?
Tom: I learned the steps from a YouTube tutorial which I watched a few times, but never trained with a physical fish, which is probably where I came unstuck. I have to admit I was genuinely trying to debone the fish, while genuinely trying to understand Italian- neither of which is my strong suit.
Antonio: Not necessarily. We all perform to some extent. The problem comes when performance becomes a mask that hides vulnerability.
If you constantly need to project power, dominance, or superiority in order to feel worthy, you’re probably not a very happy person. And that kind of behaviour can become dangerous. Many dictators, fascists, warlords, and violent leaders throughout history and nowadays have worn exactly those kinds of masks. That’s why I think we need to be careful about the values we teach people. We should create more space for vulnerability rather than rewarding domination.
Donuts: And for Meg, being the female lead, do you think Alice is free from the kind of performativity we see in the film, or is she playing a role of her own?
Meg: I think she is absolutely as swept up in the performativity as anyone! When her boyfriend is fumbling with the fish, she is looking around, mortified that people might be watching or judging them. I think she holds her self-perception in high importance. But it’s tricky and I really understand her. I really feel that in order to function in this world and society, we are constantly asked to perform in some way. That’s why the magic of the saxophone calming people at the end feels so dream-like and beautiful, I wish we could all access that kind of freedom so easily.
Donuts: Tom, how long did you train to be able to debone a fish?
Tom: I learned the steps from a YouTube tutorial which I watched a few times, but never trained with a physical fish, which is probably where I came unstuck. I have to admit I was genuinely trying to debone the fish, while genuinely trying to understand Italian- neither of which is my strong suit.
Antonio: I think we often talk about masculinity as if it’s inherently a bad thing, but I don’t see it that way. What interests me more is how a performative, competitive society pushes men toward certain behaviours. We grow up with the idea that if we’re not relevant, successful, dominant, or admired, then we’re somehow pathetic.
I still struggle with that sometimes. This need to feel relevant can be exhausting. At the same time, it has become fuel for my work. In a strange way, I’m not sure I could completely live without it.
Donuts: Meg, This isn’t your first rodeo with the Donuts. How does it feel to be working with Antonio, Patrick and Courageous Donuts after starting your career on your first, and their first student film? Does that journey feel special in some way?
Meg: Honestly it is a gift. Working with Toto, Patrick and Ana when we were all at the beginning of our careers was so special. After wrapping Prince Of Savile Row, every day I would get the tube home from London Film Studios pretty much in tears of joy because of how wonderful the day had been. The creativity and passion in the room was nothing short of euphoric, and I have always respected them so much as filmmakers. So to be celebrating our selection at Cannes feels very emotional. They deserve it undeniably and I am very honoured to have been part of their journey. Watch this space!!
Donuts: Toto, what are you working on next? Who with… ;)
Antonio: With the same gang plus new amazing people (it’s fun to call them new, as we've been working together almost for more than a year). We’re trying to make the jump into feature filmmaking by adapting my short film Shooting Watermelons (Sparare alle Angurie) into a feature. We’ve been developing it for a while now, so hopefully we’ll be shooting soon.
Meg: Honestly it is a gift. Working with Toto, Patrick and Ana when we were all at the beginning of our careers was so special. After wrapping Prince Of Savile Row, every day I would get the tube home from London Film Studios pretty much in tears of joy because of how wonderful the day had been. The creativity and passion in the room was nothing short of euphoric, and I have always respected them so much as filmmakers. So to be celebrating our selection at Cannes feels very emotional. They deserve it undeniably and I am very honoured to have been part of their journey. Watch this space!!
Donuts: Toto, what are you working on next? Who with… ;)
Antonio: With the same gang plus new amazing people (it’s fun to call them new, as we've been working together almost for more than a year). We’re trying to make the jump into feature filmmaking by adapting my short film Shooting Watermelons (Sparare alle Angurie) into a feature. We’ve been developing it for a while now, so hopefully we’ll be shooting soon.
Donuts: What do you think the world would look like if we didn’t have boys trying to impress others? Would Antonio make asymmetrical films about girls instead?
Luca: It would definitely be a better and more relaxed world. I live in a city where I feel that pressure every day, and it definitely shaped me while growing up. So I hope things will be easier in the future. It’s definitely a topic that Antonio loves to explore, so maybe he would make the same kind of films about girls. But I also think girls are often encouraged to express their emotions more openly, which can make them less competitive in that sense…
Luca: It would definitely be a better and more relaxed world. I live in a city where I feel that pressure every day, and it definitely shaped me while growing up. So I hope things will be easier in the future. It’s definitely a topic that Antonio loves to explore, so maybe he would make the same kind of films about girls. But I also think girls are often encouraged to express their emotions more openly, which can make them less competitive in that sense…
Tom: …
Antonio: …
Donuts:...
Suddenly, soft saxophone music started playing out of nowhere… The wary director and the actors fell asleep on their lounge chairs…
And so did we…
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Pictured left to right: Anastasiya Mykhaylova, Meg Bellamy, Tom Byrne, Luca Lacerenza, Patrick James Verlin, Antonio Donato - Photo © Michael Fels