Stefano De Martino

"I am a slave to my enthusiasm: when I lose it, I have to find a way to rekindle it. When dance became a job and there was nothing left for me to discover, it came naturally to me to turn to television. That's how I am: if I'm uncomfortable, I enjoy myself; if I'm comfortable, I get bored. I like to learn, to apply myself to things I don't know how to do well. I would like to be able to do more things at the same time. I'm not good at multitasking, I think in silos and it's something I can't stand about myself. I am privileged, I do what I love and yes, today I am a very happy man."

"Growing up, sarcasm and irony helped me overcome my shyness. My dad was a dancer at the San Carlo theatre in Naples, and as a child I loved watching him perform, but I never thought of pursuing the same career. In my opinion, Naples is “the worst most beautiful city in the world”. I find magic in its contradictions. It is a unique city, where I would choose to be reborn if I could. And I love looking at it from the sea: it is poetic."

"I am quite obsessive about order and cleanliness at home, but I don't ask people to take their shoes off before coming in or to smoke cigarettes with their heads out of the window. I like to live in spaces and tidy them up, which is a bit like what happens every evening at the Bar. Discomfort and enthusiasm drive everything I do. The former should be understood as not feeling up to the task and always out of place, but this feeling of being a bit uncomfortable has helped me grow. As soon as I feel comfortable and a goal is easily achievable, I get bored and want to change. I still have to work on this."

"I have learned to take responsibility. When you are assigned a task, you have to complete it. That is the gratification of having done and learned something. I was top of the class in primary school, tenth in middle school, and last in high school."

"I am not obsessed with my career. I have a very long-term view of my work, and this helps me to live everything with commitment, but without anxiety. I experienced a lot of exposure as a young man and I understood the disadvantages. To improve, you have to practise; to take off, you need many hours of flight time. There is nothing healthier than study and application. I achieved important goals early on, but I love this job so much that I don't want it to wear me out."

"I was born at a time when computers and video games were not widely used. I played in the street, a bit of football, and rode my bike. At home, I used a wooden strummolo, a sort of spinning top that I spun with a string and stopped with a bottle cap. When I was very young, my father took me to the beach and we had fun in the water or building sandcastles. When I got older, my grandfather taught me how to play cards. But I never managed to win a game of scopa or briscola with him. Grandfather was incredible. When we played hide and seek as children, one of us would inevitably get hurt and shout “stop the game”. And that was the end of it. I wish that today this “stop” could be used to stop the war."