An exclusive interview with director MICHELLE DANNER discussing the beautiful and romantic UNDER THE STARS.
SYNOPSIS: Under the Stars follows a struggling romance novelist trapped in a lifeless relationship and plagued by writer’s block. Hoping to reignite his passion, he travels to Italy for inspiration – only to unexpectedly fall for a spirited local who challenges everything he thought he knew about love and himself.
Directed by MICHELLE DANNER with script by Victoria Vinuesa, UNDER STARS stars Toni Collette, Andy Garcia, Alex Pettyfer, Eva De Dominici, Rob Estes, and Vincent Riotta.
Michelle Danner likes to say that UNDER THE STARS began with a phone call and a feeling. Producer Pia Patatian rang her up one day with an irresistible proposition: How about shooting a film in Puglia? For Michelle, whose late mother was Italian and had spent Michelle’s childhood painting vivid pictures of the region, it felt like fate calling. She’d never set foot in Puglia before, but the moment she heard the name, she was in. The script only sealed the deal.
Once she signed on, the film quickly began to fill with familiar faces. Michelle has a knack for hand-picking actors she knows will fit a story’s emotional rhythms, and Under the Stars was no exception. She reached out to longtime collaborators—Andy Garcia among them—who read their roles and immediately said yes. Alex Pettyfer, Eva De Dominici, Rob Estes, and others followed, many inspired not just by the script, but by the chance to work in sun-drenched southern Italy. Michelle loves casting almost as much as directing; she imagines actors in the roles as she reads, then reaches out—sometimes through agents, sometimes with a simple text or Zoom call—to see if they want to play.
As Michelle discusses, on set, she creates a space that feels more like a creative retreat than a high-pressure production. Michelle believes films flourish in an atmosphere of calm collaboration, not tension, so she avoids the stereotypical shouting director persona. Instead, she favors quiet focus, encourages improvisation, and loves those spontaneous moments that actors bring when they feel completely safe. She jokes that her ideal set involves “candles and classical music”—and many days, that’s not far from the truth.
The heart of Under the Stars lies in its setting, and finding the right locations became a group adventure. Michelle’s cinematographer, Pierluigi “Gigi” Malavasi, joined forces with her first AD and executive producer Gian Gabriele Foschini to scout the southern Italian countryside. They roamed Puglia in search of the perfect “masseria”—the region’s traditional farm estates—and eventually landed on one that felt touched by magic. With its courtyards, olive trees, winding paths, generous hosts, and frankly phenomenal food, it became the film’s soul.
Visually, Michelle and Malavasi crafted a style that celebrates Puglia’s natural beauty. The film opens with sweeping drone shots over the Adriatic Sea, the coastline glowing in natural light. Wide landscapes and two-shots anchor the story, making viewers feel like they’re traveling right alongside the characters. Close-ups are used sparingly; instead, intimacy is found in the environment and in the way characters move through it together. Daytime scenes brim with sunlight, sandstone, and greenery, while nighttime sequences wrap the audience in, as Michelle likes to say, “a blanket of love.”
Music and editing became the film’s emotional guideposts. Composer Andrea Guerra created a warmly textured score—accordion included—that captures Italy’s charm while elevating the romantic and uplifting beats of the story. In the edit suite, Teferi Seifu and later Federico Conforti shaped the film’s breezy pacing, ensuring the montages, scenic stretches, and character moments all flowed with a cheerful, heartfelt rhythm. The end result is a film designed to leave audiences with “a smile on your face, a smile in your heart.”
As Michelle reflects on the experience now, she recognizes how much the film taught her. Working in Italy—with its saner 10-hour days—reminded her that filmmaking doesn’t need to be grueling to be productive. She learned the value of immersing an audience fully in a world and realized how deeply she wants to carry that sensory storytelling forward. And she confirmed something she always suspected: when the set is calm, the creativity soars.
With Under the Stars now making its way into the world, Michelle has already turned her attention to her next adventure: Starstruck, a comedy she gleefully describes as “hilarious,” featuring Billy Zane among its ensemble. If its energy is anything like Under the Stars, audiences are in for a spirited ride.
TAKE A LISTEN. . .
by debbie elias, exclusive interview 11/14/2025
UNDER THE STARS is now available On Digital and On Demand.
