New Documentary Offers Gelato and Happiness

By Gary M. Kramer–

Out gay filmmaker Jay Arnold went all the way to San Gimignano, Italy, for his tasty new documentary, Sergio Dondoli’s Happy Life, available on demand August 19. Arnold co-wrote and co-produced this portrait of the titular jovial gelato maker with out gay actor Matt Dallas (of Kyle XY fame; Dallas also starred in Arnold’s previous film, Shoulder Dance).

The award-winning Dondoli is a genial subject who recounts how he got started in the business, his success and setbacks, as well as his secrets to making good gelato. (It’s the milk from happy cows.)

Arnold and Dallas chatted with me for the San Francisco Bay Times about Sergio Dondoli and their sweet and cool new documentary.

Gary M. Kramer: How did you meet Sergio and what made you decide to tell his story?

Jay Arnold: I was on a family vacation in Tuscany. I saw on the itinerary there was a gelato class and was like, “I’m not doing that.” But I went, and there were 8 of us in a private class, and he was a remarkable storyteller. Something about Sergio and his presence—he had so much joy—it was overwhelming. He instructed us about gelato and told stories of the history of gelato. He kind of glossed over his upbringing, which I learned about later. He was the poorest kid, but he had a spirit of life, and being in his presence you feel a big shadow. That’s what he radiates. It was love. I was clear at the end of the class it was not about gelato. He drew me right in. And I never tasted anything like his gelato in my life. I’m just glad we glad we got there before Stanley Tucci did.

Gary M. Kramer: Matt, you seem to be moving into producing with this film and a few other features. What sparked your interest in this project, in particular, and producing in general?

Matt Dallas: Jay and I had just worked together, and I was working on another film I was producing. Jay told me he was working on this film about this gelato maestro, and it sounded intriguing. I threw it out there: Do you need a producer? A year before this, I was in San Gimignano and stood in line at Gelateria Dondoli. We were there with a group and the guide said, “If you are going to have gelato, in Italy, it must be this place. The line is going to look long, but it moves fast, and it was worth the time.” We tasted all the flavors, and it was unlike any gelato that I have experienced. He has some true artisanal flavors.

Jay Arnold: 12 of them are trademarked.

Matt Dallas: Shooting the documentary, we went out to the farmers’ market, and he was picking the ripest fruits of the day. He grabbed a cantaloupe, and he made gelato for us. There were only a handful of ingredients. When it is so pure and organic and untouched, the flavor is at its absolute peak. This cantaloupe gelato blew my mind. It was interesting to work on a documentary. What is appealing to an actor about working on a documentary is the excitement of not knowing what you might stumble upon each day. In a narrative film, you want things to happen as much as possible according to the plan. But with the documentary, we had an idea about what the story was, but did not know what we’d get. It was truly an exciting experience.

Gary M. Kramer: What decisions did you make about what stories to include?

Jay Arnold: I wanted it to be observational style. Sergio is the storyteller. One of the things I wanted to spend time on was his discovery of the biodynamic farm. Nothing comes into the farm. Sergio knew all the cows by name. They eat what they want. When it’s hot, they have a ventilated covered area where they can cool off. His reverence for the animals and the humanity and the earth moved me to tears.

Matt Dallas: That philosophy carries over to all aspects of their life. It’s seen in how they treat the world around us to packaging up his passion and his love into a scoop of gelato. When you eat it, you can feel it. It is truly like a warm hug, a smile, and a ray of sunshine. We could use a little positivity and love right now in the world. Here we are to deliver some happiness.

Gary M. Kramer: Sergio’s optimism is inspiring. What lessons did he impart to you while making the film?

Jay Arnold: Many things. The first thing was to follow your dream. He says in the film, “Your life is like a train, and it keeps moving, and if it stays still, you get old in two minutes.” There is nothing more precious than realizing a dream—and he did that. He demonstrated you can achieve a dream even if it seems impossible. And he taught me, “It all matters.”

Matt Dallas: Putting love into the world and following your dreams are lessons that stick with me, but I would add remaining steadfast in who you are and staying true to your inner guiding light. He did that through everything. He could have taken an easy way, but his true belief was to use the purest and best ingredients and he did it with love and sacrifice.

Jay Arnold: One perk was that we could have as much gelato as we wanted. There were moments when we were in silence eating gelato and absorbing that love. There is something about gelato in the texture; it’s cold and sweet, but not too sweet. Sergio said, in his career, he never saw once saw a person cry with gelato in their mouth.

Gary M. Kramer: Sergio offers dozens of flavors including rosemary and raspberry; ricotta cheese and blueberry; and blackberry and lavender. Which was your favorite, and were there any you didn’t like?

Jay Arnod: There weren’t any I didn’t like. My favorite was the Crema di Santa Fina®. It has saffron, which comes from the town, and pine nuts. The flavor is native to the town and reminiscent of flavor moments in life. I also loved the Champelmo®, which was fruit sorbet made with local wine (Vernaccia di San Gimignano) and pink grapefruit.

Matt Dallas: I love the pistachio, and my second favorite is gorgonzola and walnuts. 

© 2025 Gary M. Kramer

Gary M. Kramer is the author of “Independent Queer Cinema: Reviews and Interviews,” and the co-editor of “Directory of World Cinema: Argentina.” He teaches Short Attention Span Cinema at the Bryn Mawr Film Institute and is the moderator for Cinema Salon, a weekly film discussion group. Follow him on X @garymkramer

Film
Published on August 14, 2025