“Effetto Eco” is the new audio series from Audible that blends crime and science fiction, with an exceptional cast made up of Filippo Nigro, Fatima Romina Alì and Francesco Pannofino. The exclusive production, available on Audible.it from November 1st, takes listeners on a sonic journey that uses advanced recording technology, creating an immersive experience for the audience. The story revolves around the character of Massimo Riversi, known as Max, played by Filippo Nigro, a former policeman capable of perceiving sound traces from the past. Max becomes involved in a series of investigations together with the detective Fausto Colombo (Francesco Pannofino) and his forensic colleague Delia Del Vaux (Fatima Romina Alì), where his supernatural ability leads him on the trail of an obscure serial killer known as “Bluebeard ”.
The series, which spans eight episodes, explores mysterious crimes set in Turin, with each episode featuring a title inspired by the sounds that guide the investigation, such as “Ticking”, “Symphony” and “Whisper”. Through an original sound design, an eighteen-piece orchestra and the use of special headband microphones that allowed the actors to move freely during recording, “Effetto Eco” manages to convey a sense of realism that brings the action to life in first person, immersing the listener in a sensorial experience that goes beyond visual narration. “Effetto Eco” represents a fascinating challenge for the cast and the audience, offering a new dimension to audio entertainment, where the evocative power of the voice and sounds becomes the main vehicle for transmitting emotions and tension. We talked about it with the protagonist, Filippo Nigro.
What was it like working on the series? Tackling this medium, a little different than usual, must have been a challenge.
This is a unique project: a podcast that is actually a true original series, exclusively for Audible. I approached the script as if it were a “normal” series, the story was so engaging. My character is a detective who loses his job and is overwhelmed by a personal drama, the loss of his daughter, who is killed. He, upset, leaves the Turin flying squad and falls into a deep depression. Subsequently, he tries to rebuild himself and begins working as a night watchman, isolated and abandoned to himself, until his former teammate, played by Francesco Pannofino, asks him to collaborate on some murder cases.
The voice will have been central to making the most of all these nuances.
Yes, absolutely. We worked a lot on the voice, especially at the beginning, together with Marco Mete, the director. The character of Max, mine, is also constructed in contrast to that of Fausto, played by Pannofino, who is more energetic and explosive. Max, on the other hand, is very reflective, he speaks out loud to himself in some scenes, but not as a narrator, they are real moments of solitude and introspection. At the beginning of the series, the tone of his voice is slowed down, he is a character left to himself. Little by little, however, he regains energy, also because he begins to see the possibility of solving his daughter’s case.
This project seems to have required a special effort from an acting point of view. Do you think it could represent a return to the use of the audio format for the general public?
It’s possible. There are new technologies and particular attention to sound quality: I had the headband with three microphones, advanced post-production and refined sound effects. It is an immersive sound experience, different from the classic podcast we are used to listening to, and with an emphasis on mental images that the viewer creates in his head. It’s like a modern version of those radio plays that relied only on words, like the historic broadcast of the “War of the Worlds”. The challenge was to convey everything without images, using only the voice to create atmosphere and involvement.
Was this acting experience very different from dubbing?
Yes, it was a huge difference from the dub. In dubbing you often have to correct the sounds or adapt to the direct recording, but in this case I had more freedom. Even though I was working with the microphone, I could move a little, which is rare in dubbing. There were still limitations – some ambient noise had to be avoided – but it was more physical and dynamic work. I also had the text visible on screens in front of me, so I could concentrate more on the interpretation. It was an intense and stimulating experience.