Film Ferrania - Developments from October 2023 onward

[Andrew O'Neill]

I cannot even open their facebook page anymore...

 

[retina_restoration]

Over on the Facebook group for users of Film Ferrania's products, people are whipping themselves into a frenzy and becoming convinced that Film Ferrania have gone bust....simply because several of their films are currently unavailable.

I guess the rumour mill is about to go wild on that front.

Facebook is an alternate reality - a home to conspiracies and histrionics. I wouldn't put much value on what happens on Facebook groups. Same goes for Reddit.

 

[retina_restoration]

I cannot even open their facebook page anymore...

I can't open ANY Facebook page and I like it that way, thank you very much.

 

[TheGreatGasMaskMan]

Over on the Facebook group for users of Film Ferrania's products, people are whipping themselves into a frenzy and becoming convinced that Film Ferrania have gone bust....simply because several of their films are currently unavailable.

I guess the rumour mill is about to go wild on that front.

internet gonna internet

 

[loccdor]

Might be a selling opportunity. I've got around 10 boxes kicking around.

 

[Andrew O'Neill]

I'll keep the faith. I'm hoping to see P33 in 120.

 

[cmacd123]

Well, Using the facebook link from the filmferrania.com website ( https://www.facebook.com/filmferrania ) , I get taken to a page called

"Bảo Lasvegas"​

SO their facebook page has been hacked it seems.


the Shop page still only shows

Ferrania P30 135/36 - 80 ISO The very last production ! €11,90​

as being in stock.

I was wondering when I could get more P33 as it fits closer than P30 to my way of taking pictures.

Lets hope this is all just Doom and Gloom, and not substantive.

 

[koraks]

I've never followed the Ferrania case very closely, but what I do recall is that a few years ago, they used to employ a social media / communications officer who would manage all their online channels for them. I think it was an American guy? Apparently, he left not too long after he started. I can imagine how that would leave an online 'infrastructure' that was a little too top-heavy for Ferrania to manage, also given the language barrier and their primary focus on getting film to the market. All considered, I wouldn't put too much trust in what happens (or doesn't happen) on Ferrania's online channels.

 

[PhotoGeek35]

The Wikipedia (Italy) site in says:
“Nel 2023 i fondatori Nicola Baldini e Marco Pagni lasciano l'azienda, Silvio Pignone è il nuovo CEO.”

which translates (via Google translate) to:
“In 2023 the founders Nicola Baldini and Marco Pagni leave the company, Silvio Pignone is the new CEO.”

FILM Ferrania - Wikipedia

it.m.wikipedia.org

Not a good sign in my opinion.

 

[koraks]

Not a good sign in my opinion.

I don't agree that this is necessarily a bad sign, or specifically in this case.
The present CEO, Pignone, according to his LinkedIn page has extensive experience in finance and as managing director of an SME in the food packaging industry. This means he has more than a little experience in running a business, and probably in guiding it through phases of growth/expansion/development. He has been employed at Ferrania for 5 years, which furthermore suggests he's not a 'hit & run' kind of guy who does an interim management job for 1-2 years in exchange of a 300k€ freelance fee before pulling out and leaving a smoldering carcass. A tenure of 5 years and counting instead suggests commitment to the business, which appears to be in line with his career path.

Furthermore, from the viewpoint of a venture, it's quite normal to see the initiators or original entrepreneurs take a step back or even pull out altogether. Getting a business off the ground is a totally different challenge from growing it to a sustainable size. People who are good at the former are not always (and in fact, usually not) necessarily good at the latter - and vice versa. It takes different competencies, personalities and interests to manage a business in various stages of its life cycle. Note that Nicola Baldini was/is apparently primarily a film-maker - likely a creative kind of personality. I find it easy to imagine that the job of growing a business is not his primary interest or competence. Likewise, co-founder Marco Pagni appears to have more of an interest in the use of motion picture film than an entrepreneurial profile. So from this viewpoint, that a nascent enterprise goes through one or several changes of top-level management is not necessarily a bad thing - in fact, it's usually a good sign.

 

[Andrew O'Neill]

Oh well, I guess all we can do it sit back and wait...with fingers crossed.

 

[TheGreatGasMaskMan]

I don't agree that this is necessarily a bad sign, or specifically in this case.
The present CEO, Pignone, according to his LinkedIn page has extensive experience in finance and as managing director of an SME in the food packaging industry. This means he has more than a little experience in running a business, and probably in guiding it through phases of growth/expansion/development. He has been employed at Ferrania for 5 years, which furthermore suggests he's not a 'hit & run' kind of guy who does an interim management job for 1-2 years in exchange of a 300k€ freelance fee before pulling out and leaving a smoldering carcass. A tenure of 5 years and counting instead suggests commitment to the business, which appears to be in line with his career path.

Furthermore, from the viewpoint of a venture, it's quite normal to see the initiators or original entrepreneurs take a step back or even pull out altogether. Getting a business off the ground is a totally different challenge from growing it to a sustainable size. People who are good at the former are not always (and in fact, usually not) necessarily good at the latter - and vice versa. It takes different competencies, personalities and interests to manage a business in various stages of its life cycle. Note that Nicola Baldini was/is apparently primarily a film-maker - likely a creative kind of personality. I find it easy to imagine that the job of growing a business is not his primary interest or competence. Likewise, co-founder Marco Pagni appears to have more of an interest in the use of motion picture film than an entrepreneurial profile. So from this viewpoint, that a nascent enterprise goes through one or several changes of top-level management is not necessarily a bad thing - in fact, it's usually a good sign.

thank you for the optimism

 

[koraks]

thank you for the optimism

Well, that's a different matter - I don't know enough about what's happening to, within and around Ferrania to be either optimistic or pessimistic about their future (or present, for that matter). Just looking from the outside and the perspective of business venturing, I don't see anything particularly odd in the change of leadership.

 

[TheGreatGasMaskMan]

there's just far too much gossip and drama on the internet, it's refreshing to hear something grounded, even if we don't know for sure.

 

[Agulliver]

Dave Bias was the American who used to deal with their social media. I recall him giving it up due to all the abuse he was getting from people who don't understand the difference between backing a Kickstarter campaign and ordering a product. I am surprised to see that Nicola and Marco have departed. They both seemed to be the lifeblood of the project.

Not that it necessarily means the end. Just surprised. If they left in 2023, we certainly saw at least two lots of film released since that time.

The Facebook group I mentioned isn't the official Film Ferrania group but a group for users of P30 and P33. Mostly it's people posting photos they've shot but there's still a fair amount of "I hate them, I backed them and didn't receive my order. They're fraudsters". I think FIlm Ferrania have pretty much stopped interaction with social media due to it always ending up with "where's my colour film?". But that could also coincide with the new management of the company. A couple of people say they've tried contacting the company and not had a response....and then drawing the conclusion that they must have gone out of business....presenting this as fact rather than opinion.

I hope for the best. I like P30 in some circumstances and hope they release P33 in 120. The stuff always seems to sell well when it's made available.

Regarding the official Facebook group being hacked....I am familiar with a music producer and a covers band who's Facebook pages were hacked, and Meta did absolutely *nothing*. Eventually after several months, both entities created new Facebook pages and had to start afresh. So it's likely that even if Film Ferrania are trying to get it back, the chances are very low that it'll do any good.

The official INstagram account is still up but they haven't posted to it since June 2024.

 

[Andrew O'Neill]

I think it would be very beneficial for them to let the public know that everything is hunky dory...providing everything is indeed, hunky dory... It only takes a few minutes to do so on their FB page.

 

[cmacd123]

Nicola Baldini and Marco Pagni are the two folks who originally discovered the opportunity to take over what was a dead company. And the staff who knew what everything does, and who had a plan fro Radically downsizing the Plant.

I understood that Silvio Pignone was the investor who was recruited to provide the money to get the packaging line running.

we will have to keep watching the continuing Saga of a Small Film Factory in Cairo Montenotte (SV), Italy

 

[AnselMortensen]

Hopefully, they're too busy working on making film to bother with social media.
Actually, this being the holiday season, I hope they're all busy with their families and friends, socializing the analog way.

 

[dkirby]

There's a story that "certain entities" left the company and took some of the money with them that they shouldn't have. The most "reliable" version of that rumor comes from Japan Camera Hunter, who says he's spoken to Silvio Pignone. He says that Pignone is working to bring Ferrania film to customers but is hampered by the, well - embezzlement. See here:



(I think it's about 28:45 minutes in that he talks about it)

There's a bit of potentially useful info on a reddit thread here:



which comes from someone who reached out to Ferrania directly and says:

"UPDATE 10/29/2024

I wrote to multiple email addresses I found and got the following reply from one of them, so I am happy

“Ciao from Ferrania !

Difficult time but still in business, new exciting adventures will start soon.”

The most positive news comes from Freestyle Film - they said Novemberish they were expecting a shipment of Ferrania "end of 2024/start of 2025". But that was retailer to consumer talk, and I don't know how much truth there is behind it, or maybe even how much Freestyle knows.

The takeaway that I have personally is more along the lines of what JCH says - that they might pull through but might not. I hope they do - the film itself is awesome. I think if they survive they'll be better off without the old management.

 

[Agulliver]

I think it would be very beneficial for them to let the public know that everything is hunky dory...providing everything is indeed, hunky dory... It only takes a few minutes to do so on their FB page.

The Film Ferrania Facebook account has been hacked and taken over by something wholly irrelevant. As I said upthread, Meta's track record indicates they will do precisely nothing about this. So there is no official facebook account to update.

However, there is still an Instagram account....assuming current management have the ability to access it.

Not sure I'd believe JCH without a pinch of salt, but clearly something unusual happened.

 

[Peter Schrager]

There's a story that "certain entities" left the company and took some of the money with them that they shouldn't have. The most "reliable" version of that rumor comes from Japan Camera Hunter, who says he's spoken to Silvio Pignone. He says that Pignone is working to bring Ferrania film to customers but is hampered by the, well - embezzlement. See here:



(I think it's about 28:45 minutes in that he talks about it)

There's a bit of potentially useful info on a reddit thread here:



which comes from someone who reached out to Ferrania directly and says:

"UPDATE 10/29/2024

I wrote to multiple email addresses I found and got the following reply from one of them, so I am happy

“Ciao from Ferrania !

Difficult time but still in business, new exciting adventures will start soon.”

The most positive news comes from Freestyle Film - they said Novemberish they were expecting a shipment of Ferrania "end of 2024/start of 2025". But that was retailer to consumer talk, and I don't know how much truth there is behind it, or maybe even how much Freestyle knows.

The takeaway that I have personally is more along the lines of what JCH says - that they might pull through but might not. I hope they do - the film itself is awesome. I think if they survive they'll be better off without the old management.

perhaps Freestyle is doing a private deal with them as they do with Foma and will give them an infusion of $$$ their way...let's be positive
I never got to try the P33!!

 

[retina_restoration]

The Film Ferrania Facebook account has been hacked and taken over by something wholly irrelevant. As I said upthread, Meta's track record indicates they will do precisely nothing about this. So there is no official facebook account to update.

However, there is still an Instagram account....assuming current management have the ability to access it.

Not sure I'd believe JCH without a pinch of salt, but clearly something unusual happened.

A large pinch of sulfite, yes. I'd file that under "just a rumor" and leave it at that. Not sure how much credit I'd put in anything Bellamy puts out into the public view.

 

[Andrew O'Neill]

A large pinch of sulfite, yes. I'd file that under "just a rumor" and leave it at that. Not sure how much credit I'd put in anything Bellamy puts out into the public view.

That last bit, I totally agree with.

 

[retina_restoration]

That last bit, I totally agree with.

It would be a mistake to assume that he "has all the facts".

 

[Nzoomed]

I've never followed the Ferrania case very closely, but what I do recall is that a few years ago, they used to employ a social media / communications officer who would manage all their online channels for them. I think it was an American guy? Apparently, he left not too long after he started. I can imagine how that would leave an online 'infrastructure' that was a little too top-heavy for Ferrania to manage, also given the language barrier and their primary focus on getting film to the market. All considered, I wouldn't put too much trust in what happens (or doesn't happen) on Ferrania's online channels.

You referring to Dave Bias, I have good reason to believe he is still involved in the company.