PERSONALE is set at a four-star hotel in northeastern Italy - a luxurious spot in the Dolomite Mountains, where guests come to ski, swim, and relax. But instead of the scenery, the film focuses on the unseen: the housekeeping staff who are at the bottom of the hotel hierarchy, and whose work is absolutely essential. Filmed over six weeks, PERSONALE is a snapshot of behind-the-scenes intensity, punctuated by the repetitive rhythms and hard physical labor of washing, folding, scrubbing, and changing bedding. Housekeeping is understaffed, and the workers commiserate over workload and time off. But they also bicker, argue over who cleans the toilets, and break off into their own language groups. A well-run hotel is an immaculate world of its own. PERSONALE immerses us in the view few guests ever see.
