Roberto Gagnor: “Fired by Mickey Mouse after 23 years, a creative business cannot depend on haters”

Gagnor’s reaction to the comments, however, was not liked by the director of ‘Topolino’ Alex Bertani who, in a note sent to ‘Fumettologica’, explained the reason for the dismissal: “I can ignore other things, but I don’t compromise on one thing: readers must be respected. Regardless. Because we live in a free country, where if you buy a magazine you have every right to comment, disagree and criticize. Even harshly”, we read in a statement from The director thus chose to “listen to them instead of to me.” But for Gagnor “a creative undertaking cannot depend on the judgment of a minority of fans”.

The screenwriter says he received the communication “from a member of the editorial staff”, followed by “an email from the director in which he reiterated the same concepts expressed at Fumettologica”. A choice which for him “represents much more than a personal fracture”: “I learned to read with Mickey Mouse, I met my wife thanks to Mickey Mouse. For me it was a dream come true: I wanted to do this as a child and I succeeded”. That dream ended abruptly. The deepest wound, in addition to the end of the professional relationship, is the precedent that is created: “The director, who is supposed to defend the authors, did not defend me. The next time an author tries something different and gets attacked, he will have no one to protect him.” A risk aggravated by the fact that “we authors are all freelancers, temporary workers. We can be sent home at any time”.

Despite everything, Gagnor doesn’t stop. His first novel, ‘Giorgio Furia and the sea on holiday’ (HarperCollins), has just been released: “It’s a comic mystery, something very different from what I’ve always written. I come from the world of Disney, from stories designed for children and teenagers: this, however, is a novel for adults.” The protagonist “is a writer who has published only one book, which has sold very little, but continues to travel around Italy giving presentations to which no one goes” because, in reality, “he is a killer, an vigilante who only eliminates those who, in his opinion, deserve it. He is a romantic anti-hero, a bungler, someone who gets into trouble. During one of these assignments he ends up in a small village and there he finds an old love”. A novel “full of irony and action”, he says, “that I had a lot of fun writing”. Meanwhile, he continues his work in comics and animation: “I have several other projects. For years I have been collaborating with the Civil Protection on ‘The Decisive Moment’, a free comic distributed in all Italian schools, dedicated to prevention and the importance of awareness. It is a project that I care a lot about and on which we continue to work”. And he adds: “I write other cartoons. My work continues: Mickey Mouse was part of my path, but luckily I’ve always done something else too.” And when asked if one day he could return to Mickey’s house, he replies without completely closing the door: “I would love to, sooner or later. But not now, certainly not”, he concludes.