Daniela Scattolin amidst Venetian fog, African memories, and Netflix: "Adoption saved me. In Africa, I would have died."

She's beautiful, and she also has a very tough character: " I've never experienced any discrimination : but even if they'd played a joke on me, or made fun of me, it would take more than that to hurt me." Daniela Scattolin, 28, grew up in Veneto. She was adopted when she was four: her biological parents are from Ghana , her father, and South Africa , her mother.

She is the first Italian actress of African descent to land a leading role . She starred in the Netflix series "Zero," the first with an all-Afro-Italian cast, and is one of the stars of "Glass Beach" by American director Will Geiger, an intimate and powerful film shot in Calabria and Sicily, and currently in theaters. We reached Daniela by phone and tried to learn more about her story.

Daniela, do you feel like you have a responsibility of some kind? Do you feel like you can be an example to others?

“I don’t know if I should talk about responsibility: but I know that, as a child, I would have been happy to see someone like me doing the thing I like.”

Your biological parents are both African, and your adoptive family is Venetian. You grew up in Veneto. How do you feel?

"I feel like a child of the world: I like to feel part of everything and nothing, I don't like to label almost anything. I have a lot of respect for confusion: that of others, and my own too."

But do labels still exist, in your opinion?

We're labeled every day. Especially us actors: each of us has a label attached to us. And of course, even in the hierarchical hierarchy that forms on a set, on every set, there are labels there too.

Have you ever experienced feelings of mistrust? Veneto, where you grew up, has a reputation for not being the most open region…

"The Veneto region is closed, but I was very lucky: I grew up immersed in slightly more cultured environments, where distrust and isolation are less prevalent. I grew up, in a way, in a bubble."

Are you aware of the racism that still exists around, or do you think it is actually in decline?

"No, no, I'm aware of the racism that exists, and it's palpable. Personally, I try to live the rest of my life with as much dignity as possible."

As a child, in a school drawing, she had depicted herself as white. Why?

I had drawn myself like my classmates; I didn't feel different. But it wasn't an expression of 'I wish I were white': it's different, I felt exactly like them. My catechist, Francesca, took me aside and asked me why I drew myself, telling me 'something's wrong.' But I considered myself, and still consider myself, like the others, like the others."

Have you ever had to suffer because of the gaze of others?

I've been fortunate enough to process everything without any external violence. Although I haven't suffered, it's obvious that I look different from most Italians. But this has given me a stronger character. There are those who deny their skin color because they experience racism. I've lived in complete tranquility.

What did adoption mean to you?

“A great stroke of luck. Adoption changed my life. I don't have fond memories of my biological father, who was married to another woman with children. I, the daughter of his extramarital affair, was like a drifting 'thing.' He would have sent me back to Africa, to his mother.”

He would have lived a whole different life…

"No: I would have died. My biological mother had terrible nervous breakdowns because of my father's attitude. Once in Ghana, it would have been difficult for me to survive."

And in Veneto, in Scorzè, how did it go?

"I spent time enjoying my good fortune, rather than seeing the 'difference' from my peers. I've developed a very strong character: it's difficult to hurt me with a prank."

Adoption was a lifesaver for her. In general, what do you think of Italian adoption laws?

"It's still not easy to adopt a child in Italy. First of all, you have to have a certain income, and that already excludes many families. Italy has also opened adoptions for same-sex female couples: but it's a slow process, and it won't be easy to complete."

Your daughter, Adelaide, is now four years old. What do you envision for her future?

“We live between Milan and Rome: Adel, growing up in the city and not in the countryside, like me, will have broader and more colorful experiences.”

When did your acting journey begin? When did you realize it would be your path?

I've always loved cinema: watching a movie was my adolescence's comfort zone. I didn't think about becoming an actress, but rather being behind the camera, in production. Then, at twenty, I dropped out of university, studying Pharmacy, to move to Rome. Without telling my parents.

What were your first roles?

"I studied in Claudia Gerini and Massimiliano Bruno's art workshops; my first job was on 'Tv delle ragazze' with Serena Dandini in 2018. Then I passed the Gian Maria Volonté school auditions, but at the same time I was cast in the TV series 'L'ora' directed by Piero Messina, and I practically never stopped."

What are your most recent experiences?

"I shot a miniseries for RAI based on the investigations of Inspector Buonvino, the protagonist of Walter Veltroni's detective novels. Milena Cucozza is directing, and Palomar is producing; the action is set in Rome, at Villa Borghese."

In which next works will we see her?

"I'm starring in an action TV series in England for Sky Studios. Maya Sansa stars as the commander of a police squad; I'm an undercover cop. And then I'll star in a thriller set in Sicily, shot in disturbing and captivating black and white: it's called 'Lo scuru,' which means 'The Darkness.'"