Roberto Catani on love and loss in animated film 'Per tutta la vita'

Italian artist Roberto Catani (born 1965 in Jesi) spent two years creating over 1,400 drawings for his four-minute animated film 'Per tutta la vita' (2018), produced by Davide Ferazza for Withstand Film and Miyu Distribution, with support from Mibac, Regione Marche, ARTE France, and CNC Fonds de soutien audiovisual. The film explores abandonment and the end of a type of love, emphasizing transformation rather than tragedy. Catani describes it as a reminder that things can end without drama, contrasting with contemporary violence in relationship endings. He started from an image of a man walking away in snow, building the story backward. The technique combines chalk, transparent oilbar, and drypoint engraving, a tradition from the Scuola del Libro di Urbino where Catani studied and taught until 2018. Sound design by Andrea Martignoni, with whom Catani previously collaborated on 'La testa tra le nuvole'. Catani has also worked with composers David Monacchi, Mario Mariani, and Oscar winner Normand Roger (for 'The Man Who Planted Trees'). The film uses seasonal metaphors—winter for abandonment, summer for celebration—and circus imagery to convey the precarious balance of relationships.