Liberato's Secret

Francesco Lettieri's 2024 documentary is about Liberato, the Neapolitan singer who has never revealed his identity. He does not show his face, gives no interviews and stays in darkness even at concerts. Lettieri is the person who has made all of his videos. The documentary does not set out to expose the identity. Instead its subject is anonymity itself: why it has been kept, how it relates to the music, and how listeners fill the gap. Because the identity is never uncovered, the film has to find another route and turns to animation. The animated passages bring Naples and the stories in the songs to life. That is the documentary's most distinctive quality; where there is no real footage, drawing takes over. The music forms the spine of the account. Who it's for: those interested in the Naples music scene and portraits of artists built on anonymity. Who it's not for: viewers wanting an answer to the question of identity; the film withholds it deliberately.