Francesco Dalli Cani Talks Latest TV Show Film al Dente

Italian actor and model Francesco Dalli Cani has never approached acting as simply a profession. For him, performance has always been deeply connected to communication, transformation, and identity itself. Born in Arzignano and raised in Vicenza, Italy, Francesco’s artistic journey has taken him from Classical Studies and law school in Italy to the entertainment industry in Los Angeles, where he is now developing original projects including the upcoming series Film al Dente and its pilot episode LA al Dente.

Blending comedy, cultural satire, emotional honesty, and outsider perspective, the project reflects many of Francesco’s own experiences adapting to life in America while pursuing acting full time.

In this exclusive interview, Francesco opens up about the deeplypersonal origins of his acting journey, his multilingual background, the philosophy behind Film al Dente, and why transformation remains at the center of everything he creates.

You’ve described acting as something that has always been connected to communication for you personally. Can you talk about that relationship?

Absolutely. For me, acting and communication almost started at the same time. I had a speech impediment as a child and didn’t really begin speaking until I was around three years old. My parents eventually realized that movies and play-believe were helping me communicate before normal conversation was. I grew up bilingual in Italian and English, and because of this experimental English-speaking school my parents enrolled me in, my first words actually ended up being in English rather than Italian. 

At some point my parents noticed I was constantly trying to imitate characters from movies before I could properly speak. So, acting never felt like a separate decision later in life. It felt natural. To me, acting is just another form of communication. It feels as instinctive as learning how to walk.

Your background is incredibly diverse, from classical studies to law school to dance. How have those experiences shaped you creatively?

I think all of it feeds into the work. Classical studies especially had a huge impact on how I approach storytelling. I studied Latin, Ancient Greek, philosophy, literature, Shakespeare, all these incredibly layered texts where meaning exists beneath the surface. Ancient Greek in particular teaches you how to interpret ideas, because words can have multiple meanings depending on context. It trains you to think emotionally and intellectually at the same time.

At the same time, outside of academics, I was performing constantly. I worked as a children’s entertainer for years in Italy, sometimes performing in front of over one hundred kids at once. That teaches you timing, improvisation, presence, and how to hold attention immediately.

Then there was dancing. I trained competitively in Caribbean dances like salsa and bachata while balancing law school and theatre work. Dance helped me understand rhythm, physical storytelling, and how movement alone can communicate emotion.

I think all these experiences ended up creating a very layered approach to acting.

You eventually moved to Los Angeles in 2023 and graduated from the New York Film Academy in 2025. What was that transition like for you emotionally and creatively?

It was exciting, overwhelming, surreal, and honestly very funny at times. Los Angeles is unlike anywhere else in the world. When you grow up in Italy, especially in a more historically grounded environment, America already feels mythological through film and television. Then you arrive here and discover that reality is somehow even stranger than the movies.

There’s this constant contradiction in Los Angeles. Everyone is searching for authenticity while simultaneously performing versions of themselves all the time. That fascinated me immediately. The city is inspiring, chaotic, lonely, beautiful, ridiculous, ambitious, exhausting, all at once.

That emotional collision eventually became one of the foundations for Film al Dente.

Let’s talk about Film al Dente. What is it about?

Film al Dente is an informative comedy series where an educated Italian cinephile tries to teach his American friend about movies and the behind-the-scenes craftsmanship that goes into making them. Every episode focuses on a different film while mixing movie analysis with this comedic “Italy versus America” dynamic. The pilot episode, LA al Dente, explores La La Land, which felt like the perfect movie to start with because it’s about artists dreaming of success in Los Angeles.

In the episode, two friends hike to a location inspired by the famous sunset dance sequence from La La Land, and the entire story becomes this back-and-forth conversation filled with jokes, film trivia, and behind-the-scenes stories about the movie.

The project is produced by Sara Bouret and directed by Burleigh Holder. 

Where did the idea for the show come from?

I’ve actually been with the project since the very beginning because I created the concept and wrote the script. The idea really started through conversations with close friends of mine. One friend told me that my “Italian reactions” to American culture were unintentionally hilarious and suggested I should do something with that. Around the same time, another friend, who is almost like a mentor to me, encouraged me to deepen my film knowledge.

Since 2024, I’ve been watching roughly a movie a day to better understand the industry I want to be part of. I truly owe a lot to those friendships because they helped shape both the comedic and cinematic side of the show. Eventually I realized I wanted to combine my movie knowledge with my Italian perspective, and the best way to do that was through a comedic duo dynamic. Something similar to The Odd Couple. Once I had that idea, I immediately knew who I wanted as my American counterpart.

How did the project officially move into production?

I created a pitch deck and presented the idea to producer Sara Bouret, who also happens to be my modeling agent. Once she responded positively to the concept, I immediately started writing the pilot. I intentionally wanted the episode to stay short, around ten minutes. I remember thinking, “Who in the world would want to hear me ramble about La La Land for more than ten minutes?”

After the script was completed, we set a shooting date and moved forward quickly. Throughout the process I worked very closely with director Burleigh Holder. We had a lot of conversations about the script, camera ideas, and locations. It was exciting because even though I write scripts from time to time, this was the first time I had an entire team helping bring something I wrote to life.

You originally planned to shoot in the actual ‘La La Land’ location. What changed?

Originally, we wanted to film in Griffith Park at the actual location from La La Land. But because of time, budget, and logistics, especially the one-hour hike required to get equipment there, we decided to film at Angel’s Point instead. Rather than pretending it was the same location, we rewrote the script slightly and turned the difference into a joke. That self-awareness fit perfectly with the tone of the show because we’re constantly breaking the fourth wall and poking fun at filmmaking itself.

What was your mindset on the day of filming?

The biggest thing for me was separating myself as the writer from myself as the actor. Once we arrived on set, I consciously decided to “forget” that I wrote the script. The last thing I wanted was to argue with the director over whether something matched the exact image in my head. So on filming day I focused entirely on acting and trusted the creative team.

There were a lot of pages to get through, and time was extremely limited, so that mindset really helped keep the process collaborative and efficient.

Your co-star Caleb Oviedo seems central to the chemistry of the show. How did that dynamic develop?

The chemistry was already there in real life. When I first imagined the show, Caleb Oviedo was immediately the person I thought of because he has this incredible talent for irritating me in the most comedic Italian way possible.

In fact, the trailer for the series was inspired by an actual conversation we had while trying to decide on a title for the show. At one point he seriously suggested calling it “Crime in Italy,” which completely broke my brain because we were making a comedy about movies and cultural differences. I also wrote the one-page trailer script, although a lot of it became improvised on set. Thankfully people really connected with it.

What was the biggest challenge during production?

Without question, filming twelve pages in a single day. Normally if a production films five pages in a day, that’s already considered very efficient. We had twelve pages and only one day to shoot everything. The night before filming I remember being on the phone with director Burleigh Holder asking how we were possibly going to pull this off. He simply told me to trust him, and that’s exactly what I did.

His biggest solution was brilliant. Since the script alreadybroken the fourth wall, he suggested taking it even further by having me directly address the camera during some of the larger informational sections. It dramatically reduced the number of camera setups and saved us an enormous amount of time. By 2:00 PM we somehow reached page eight of the script without even realizing how fast we had been moving.

But then the production hit another obstacle?

Yes, at around 3:00 PM an event suddenly started being set up in the park with giant speakers, lights, and loud music. We had no idea it was happening. Suddenly the clock started ticking again. So, we adapted in real time. We combined the final two scenes and rewrote dialogue on the spot to justify the increasing noise in the environment.

There’s even a line where the characters acknowledge how loud things are getting before leaving the area. In the end, we filmed the final scene inside a car away from the noise, and somehow, we still wrapped on time. Later over dinner, Burleigh admitted that even he wasn’t sure we would finish all twelve pages in one day.

Were there any particularly memorable behind-the-scenes moments?

I could talk endlessly about the “traumas” I experienced as an Italian on this set. At one point, Caleb used uncooked pasta as a paper fan because he “couldn’t afford a real one.” I wrote it as a joke in the script, but I was not emotionally prepared to see him walking around with pasta in his pants while aggressively fanning me with it.

At another point he bit into the pasta while trying to cool me down during a driving scene. As an Italian, it was horrifying. But honestly, my favorite moment involved an unexpected third “actor” on set, a bald eagle.

We were filming near the overlook while talking about dreams and Los Angeles. During one take I delivered the famous La LaLand line, “Here’s to the fools who dream,” and right at that exact moment a bald eagle flew behind me across the sky. That take made it into the final cut. You have an Italian actor overlooking Los Angeles talking about dreams while a bald eagle flies overhead. The only thing missing was an American flag.

What has it been like seeing the show continue beyond the pilot?

It’s been exciting because I’m still actively involved in future episodes. I’ve already mapped out the first ten films we want to explore, and the script for episode two is essentially finished. What started as a funny idea between friends has evolved into something much bigger creatively, and I’m excited to continue building the world of the show.

Where can audiences watch Film al Dente?

The series will be streaming on LatinDiva TV and it will also be available through Roku and Amazon Fire TV – which is exciting!

What do you hope audiences take away from the series?

I hope people laugh first of all, but I also hope they come away appreciating cinema in a deeper way. The show is ultimately about passion for movies, cultural perspective, and how differently people can experience the same piece of art. At its heart, it’s really a love letter to filmmaking told through comedy.

How can people follow your journey?

Thanks so much. People can check out my projects on IMDband Instagram. I also have a website: https://www.francescodallicaniacting.com/

With Film al Dente, Francesco Dalli Cani has created a series that merges film criticism, cultural comedy, and genuine cinematic passion into something distinctly personal. Balancing humor with heartfelt appreciation for filmmaking, the project showcases him not only as a performer, but as a writer and creative voice deeply invested in the art of cinema itself.