Jonathan Glazer documents a brutal Italian sport for new Canon campaign

Date
16 September 2014

Fresh off the press trail from Under The Skin, Jonathan Glazer has just finished work on an intensely physical advert for Canon. The spot, called Gladiator Football, focuses on the annual Florentine game of Calcio Storico, a brutal combination of cage fighting and football that sees two teams pitted against each other in a sandy ring, beating the crap out of each other in order to win a cow.

As subjects go it’s pretty captivating, but as ever Glazer’s masterful directorial work gives a simple narrative shape to an otherwise chaotic event. The piece accompanies a dedicated website that offers handy tips to Canon camera users, enabling them to recreate some of Glazer’s tricks, but let’s be honest, a minute-long walk-through of how to make the most of your slow-motion settings isn’t going to turn you into Glazer overnight. Better to marvel at his skill here instead…

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Jonathan Glazer: Gladiator Football

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Jonathan Glazer: Gladiator Football

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Jonathan Glazer: Gladiator Football

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Jonathan Glazer: Gladiator Football

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Jonathan Glazer: Gladiator Football

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Jonathan Glazer: Gladiator Football

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Jonathan Glazer: Gladiator Football

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Jonathan Glazer: Gladiator Football

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About the Author

James Cartwright

James started out as an intern in 2011 and came back in summer of 2012 to work online and latterly as Print Editor, before leaving in May 2015.

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