Meet Filippo Di Franco | Filmmaker and Cinematographer

We had the good fortune of connecting with Filippo Di Franco and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Filippo, what habits do you feel helped you succeed?
The other day, some friends and I were talking about success. We all had different definitions, but they all boiled down to the same idea: success is when you make it. Make it where, though? Some saw it in wealth, others in landing their dream job, directing their dream film, reaching that one milestone that had lived in their minds for years. To succeed was to arrive somewhere.

But as I left college and stepped into work life, I started wondering—what if some of those big dreams never materialized? What if I spent years chasing them, pouring in time, money, and effort, only to find that they never quite came together? If success was some far-off destination, then was everything before it just struggle?

That idea made me question a lot of things. It made me feel discouraged in ways I hadn’t felt before. Why make films, why take risks, why work myself to exhaustion if I might never get to say, I made it? Perhaps I didn’t realize it then, but maybe all of this discouragement was coming from the “success” itself. Essentially, my idea of success was powered by fear—the fear that if I didn’t reach that one big goal, everything I did along the way would feel like a waste.

“What’s yours is already yours” is a phrase someone told me when I was facing one of those moments of doubt. At first, It seemed like one of those broad enough phrases that people say to make you feel better. But slowly, I began to feel like I understood it. The few glimpses of success I’ve been able to experience ever since didn’t come from what I was able to achieve, but what I was able to realize while striving towards that goal. “What’s yours is already yours” is a phrase I believe helped me not only “succeed” in my life and career, but truly appreciate the beautiful experimentation that is the journey towards the goal. What belongs to you is already yours, no matter how much you spend your life fixating on a prospective reality. Success was in knowing that. It was in the quiet moments of discovery. In the risks taken, the ideas chased, and the stories told along the way.

Creating a habit of reminding myself of that as often as I could made me feel like I had already succeeded. It loosened my grip on perfection, on certainty. I started trying more, searching for more stories, experimenting without thinking it would be all for nothing. There was no longer a right or wrong way—just curiosity. I stopped seeing success as something in the distance and started recognizing it in the present. It’s in the work. In the effort. In the act of simply doing. And because of that, it’s with me at all times.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
One of the earliest memories I have—and one my family still teases me about—is the day I convinced my mom and sister we were about to be attacked by a lion while biking through suburban California.

I was born in São Paulo to Italian parents, and it was one of my first times outside Brazil; everything felt unfamiliar and full of possibility. My dad was studying in the United States, so my mom brought my sister and me to visit him. From an early age, I remember being captivated by books about animals and the natural world. Something about those new surroundings made it feel as if we were biking straight into the pages of one of those books, and I panicked.

I started off by telling you this story because recently I was looking back, and I realized that this sense of wonder and fear—of possibility and uncertainty—has very much shaped my artistic practice.

I believe filmmaking has become my way of investigating these ideas. Stories, like memories, are rarely linear or entirely truthful, yet they carry so much emotional resonance, and we derive our sense of self so much from them. I am drawn to documentary filmmaking because it allows me to explore how fear, identity, and memory shape human experience. My work, whether it is in photo or video form, often examines the tension between reality and perception—how the stories we tell ourselves can be both revealing and deceptive. And that perhaps too much reliance on these narratives can lead us into unexpected and undesired paths.

My most recent project, inspired by time spent with my grandmother in Brazil, explores how fear—subtle yet pervasive—shapes actions and perceptions. “Everything In This World Is Exactly What It Is” is a film about an old lady in the autumn of her life, reconciling with her past memories and losses, alongside the presence of a teenage girl—a young version of herself. The story doesn’t follow a conventional narrative, and is rather a series of vignettes told from the perspective of the old lady. My aim was to leave the audience wondering and guessing the relationship between the two women, and to suggest that in life the stories we tell ourselves are often communicated between the many versions of us we have come to create.

I believe what sets my work apart is my multidisciplinary approach. As an undergraduate at NYU Tisch, I immersed myself in filmmaking, weaving together my passions for photography and visual ethnography. Photography introduced me to the language of images, anthropology deepened my understanding of representation and power, and filmmaking became the bridge that united them. These disciplines have informed my recent projects, which blend observational documentary with experimental storytelling techniques.

Like most things we are passionate for, the path to where I am today has had its ups and downs. I have had the immense privilege to grow up alongside both of my parents, even during our transition from Brazil to the United States, we were always together. Storytelling and documentary filmmaking was one of those things that I believe has always lurked behind my immediate passions, even if I didn’t notice it at first. I have always been fascinated with photography and had a big urge to document my life experiences. During high school, while exploring that passion at a summer program I did with National Geographic, I realized that the pleasure I gained from taking photos came from the curiosity I had for the world and the stories that it provided me.

I am most proud of the moments when my work resonates with others—when a film sparks a conversation or challenges someone’s perspective. I would want the world to know that my art is rooted in a deep curiosity about the human experience. I strive to tell stories that reveal hidden truths, that interrogate memory, fear, and belonging. My goal is to continue pushing the boundaries of documentary storytelling, creating films that are both intimate and expansive, personal and universal.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
I love making in-house plans. I love planning out recipes to cook for the week that me and my friend could take a stab at. Cooking and watching a movie or playing a game always seems like a good night. Here in New York we have a lot of great coffee stops and breakfast places. I’d take my guest to check out a new coffee shop everyday and see which one we liked the most by the end of the week. If it was summer time, I would plan to go to a park and bring a soccer ball to kick around, that’s a nice activity to do here in the city. I don’t think I would have a set itinerary but would definitely try to find new places with my friend who is visiting. The plan would be to make the plan.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
I wouldn’t have been the person that I am today without my parents. The freedom they gave me to experiment and learn as a kid is truly the strongest testament to their love for me. I would also love to shoutout the incredible mentors I had the chance to meet during my college career, from friends to professors. Anyone that gave me the incentive to try and experiment without taking life too seriously.

Website: https://filippodifranco.com

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/filippo.difranco/

Image Credits
Tom Araujo, Matheus Gyordano, Liam Ma.