Mark Lewis, the director of one of the most controversial and disturbing true-crime documentaries in recent memory, is back with a new series on Netflix “Vatican Girl: The Disappearance of Emanuela Orlandi.”
Like “Don’t F**k With Cats: Hunting an Internet Killer,” “Vatican Girl”Raw, a British TV production company, produced the series. The four-part documentary series will be available worldwide on Netflix starting Oct. 20.
“Vatican Girl”This is the latest investigation into a case that began on June 22, 1983 when Emanuela Orlandi (a 15-year old girl who lived in Vatican City) disappeared under mysterious circumstances. The case became a worldwide sensation. Various theories have linked the girl’s presumed abduction to intrigue involving secret services of various countries, the Italian mob, and the Vatican, which has denied accusations of a coverup.
“Vatican Girl” features interviews with Orlandi’s family and witnesses to her disappearance.
VarietyWe spoke with Lewis, who was awarded a Primetime Emmy. “Don’t F** With Cats,”About why he decided to look into the story he finds less traumatizing than his last and how the documentary could help solve the cold case.
How did this project come about?
Chiara Messineo, an Italian producer, had been studying this story for several years and had negotiated access to the Orlandi clan. She came through the doors of Raw, the company where I work, and it was a real meeting of minds, because both of us could see that this was a story that wasn’t just an Italian story but also an international story. While we wanted the series appeal to an Italian audience we also wanted it to appeal to an international audience. This was a key factor in how the film was made.
How do you achieve this?
We deliberately made the series available in two languages. We have Italians that speak Italian, English-speaking Italians, and both English-speaking and Italian speakers. This series was created to be as accessible as possible to an international audience.
What attracted you to Emanuela Olandi’s story?
It’s a story that Dan Brown could have written. The story begins with a local tale about a young girl who goes missing in Rome on a hot summer day in 1983. It then spirals into one that involves the KGB and Cold War politics. We find factions working within Vatican to push for certain policies and to restore Catholicism the Eastern Bloc. There is also the Mafia, and the Roman underworld. It felt very political thriller-like to me.
Did you ever feel the pressure to complete the next task? “Don’t F**ck With Cats”?
“Don’t F**k With Cats”It was a challenging story, but she did a great job. You couldn’t help but feel a little bit traumatized by working on a story about animal abuse and then the horrific murder of Jun Lin. So I didn’t want to do something after that project that also felt so traumatizing. Although the Orlandi story is very sad, it’s not easy. “Vatican Girl”It is a geopolitical tale. It’s a story that really tells you an incredible amount about Italy and the extraordinary coexistence of extreme forces – politics, business, and organized crime. It was an interesting landscape for a series.
What do you believe audiences will find most interesting? “Vatican Girl”?
I hope an audience will feel connected to the Orlandi families on an emotional level. The other thing I’m hoping audiences get from the series is a better understanding of the Vatican. While it is the smallest country in the world, it’s so much more than that. It’s a kind of absolute monarchy.
Let’s be honest, I hope the audience responds in a way that keeps this case on track and continues to stimulate discussion.
Do you think the series will help solve the case of Emanuela Orlandi?
The way I see it is we have got a table, and over the years, we’ve been laying down big pieces of a jigsaw puzzle on that table. The puzzle is slowly but surely being completed. But there’s a few key pieces of the puzzle still missing. I hope, for the family’s sake, those last few pieces are found.