Skip to main content

Italian Distributors Bridging Culture Between Europe and North America


Raoul Bova and Sarah Jessica Parker on the set of "All Roads Lead to Rome"
Andrea Iervolino and Monika Bacardi are taking the distribution world by storm and bringing a whole new angle of Italian cinema to North America.

Iervolino who has been a producer since the age of 16, has produced, financed and distributed over 40 films. A partner and founder of a number different production companies, he is currently, the youngest and most highly regarded Italian entrepreneurs in the world of film-making.
With his Italian-Canadian origins (his mother is Canadian, his father Italian), after also having worked on different productions and co-productions with some of the country’s major film-makers and having shot no fewer than 8 films in 2011, in October of that same year he founded his own distribution company, Iervolino Entertainment S.p.A, which is now a part of the AMBI PICTURES Group, whose partners are Andrea Iervolino and Monika Bacardi.
Andrea Iervolino has never left out his innate passion for films on powerful social issues and in this regard he is also president of the FCAI, an association that is committed to taking exposé and social commentary films into schools, something made possible thanks to the Cineschoolday initiative, for which Italian Life Senator Giulio Andreotti was a spokesperson in 2011-2012.
Iervolino’s latest ventures include “Italian Style Thriller”, which comprises three feature-length films in 3D and a series consisting of eight episodes that will have as their common denominator a genre that in the seventies led to Italy becoming a worldwide point of reference, namely Horror.
It is through this project that some young Italian directors have had the opportunity to once again bring this genre of movie, which had all but disappeared, back to life in Italy, creating them using present-day directing techniques with a view to venturing once again on the international scene.

AMBI Pictures and Distribution

Andrea Iervolino and Monika Bacardi are partners in AMBI PICTURES, an investment company whose task is to provide financial backing for medium to high-budget international films featuring Hollywood names. Iervolino and Bacardi also founded AMBI Distribution. Based in Beverly Hills, it's a worldwide sales agency that  integrates finance, production and distribution for AMBI Pictures.
Andrea Iervolino and Monika Bacardi
had a conference call with the two distributors during Toronto's Italian Contemportary Film Festival. They talked about their recently produced films, which include eight just last year- the action-thriller 2047 Sights of Death starring Danny Glover, Daryl Hannah, Rutger Hauer, Stephen Baldwin and Michael Madsen; (My interview with “2047: Sights of Death” Screenwriter, Tommaso Agnese) the Barry Levinson directed drama, The Humbling, starring Al Pacino, Greta Gerwig, Kyra Sedgwick, Charles Grodin and Dianne Wiest; and the crime-thriller Hope Lost starring Danny Trejo, Mischa Barton and Michael Madsen.
Recently AMBI produced Andron – The Black Labyrinth, by Francesco Cinquemani starring Alec Baldwin, Danny Glover, Gale Morgan Harold III and the singer Skin. Andrea Iervolino and the director Marco Risi, in collaboration with Monika Bacardi produced Tre Tocchi, by Marco Risi. In collaboration with Paradox Studios, AMBI Pictures is also in production with the romantic comedy All Roads Lead To Rome starring Sarah Jessica Parker. Monika told me that the story brings together the Italian and American cultures.. and that she's really looking forward to releasing this film at the end of this year or in 2016, depending how production goes. We'll keep you posted.
AMBI Pictures is financing and producing with Franco’s Rabbit Bandini Productions and That’s Hollywood Pictures, a film directed by James Franco and based on Steinbeck’s gritty, realist style novel: In Dubious Battle. The film stars James Franco, Selena Gomez, Vincent D’Onofrio, Robert Duvall, Ed Harris, Bryan Cranston and Danny McBride.
The company has also recently ventured into the world of animation, with two animated features: Arctic Justice – Thunder Squad and East End. Iervolino and Bacardi, together with American Sniper Producer, Andrew lazar,are tackling Sci-Fi Thriller, Rupture, starring Noomi Rapace and directed by Steven Shainberg. The team is also in talks with the family of Federico Fellini to remake the iconic filmmaker's equally iconic film, La dolce vita. 

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Anna Foglietta: Actress and Activist with Old School Elegance

One look at actress Anna Foglietta in her any of her roles, and the Golden Age of Italian cinema comes to mind. Among Italy’s most sought-after actresses today, Foglietta brings to the table a classic eloquence of yesterday while representing Italy’s modern woman. Born in Rome in 1979, Foglietta began her career in 2005 with a role in the RAI television series La squadra . Her character Agent Anna De Luca had a two-year run on the series as she was transitioning to cinema with Paolo Virzì’s 2006 ensemble project 4-4-2- Il gioco più bello del mondo . Since then, she has become one of Italy’s most diverse actresses, transforming herself into interesting, layered characters for comedies and dramas alike. Aside from a small part in Anton Corbijn’s 2010 film The American starring George Clooney, Foglietta’s work began reaching mainstream American audiences in 2015. As Elisa in Edoardo Leo’s 2015 comedy Noi e la Giulia , Foglietta showed her funny side playing a goofball pregn

The Life and Work of Monica Bellucci

Monica Bellucci as Malèna Born in Umbria in 1964, Monica Bellucci is one of the most recognizable faces of international cinema. But she didn't always have her sights set on the spotlight. She went to college to study law and modeled to pay her tuition. Her success in the fashion world coupled with the offers that were pouring in to appear on the big screen eventually took over, changing her fate. Bellucci made her on-screen debut in the 1990 television movie, " Vita coi figli." Just two years later, she scored her first American role in Francis Ford Coppola's "Dracula."   In addition to her native language, she speaks fluent English and French, which has made for a smooth transition from Italian to international cinema. Stateside, she has acted in blockbusters such as "The Matrix-Reloaded,"     " The Passion of the Christ" and " The Sorcerer's Apprentice." She has also appeared in several French films, a

Marco Giallini's latest film headed to America

He's an intense, articulate actor with dozens of diverse roles to his credit, and his latest film, Perfetti Sconosciuti (Perfect Strangers) is set to make its North American premiere at the Tribeca Film Festival. Roman-born actor, Marco Giallini shines in the roles he takes on, whether he is the oddball in a comedy, the sexy mystery man in a drama or the bad guy you’d love to hate in a thriller.   In each case, Giallini reels us into his character’s fascinating world with his impressive range of performing. Born in Rome in 1963, Giallini grew up with a number of interests including music, motorcycles and soccer. Before he discovered his call to act, he explored his passion for music, starting his own band in the early 80’s called, I Monitors. Then in 1985, destiny knocked at his door, and Giallini enrolled in acting school. He studied theater and for nearly a decade, participated in local productions in Rome’s many venues. It was in 1995 that he made his debut in cinema wit

Michelangelo Frammartino's "Il buco" — Unearthing our past

When a team of speleologists descended 700 meters into the Bifurto Abyss in Cosenza, Calabria, in 1961, they discovered that the underground caverns were the third deepest in the world and the deepest in Europe. Italian filmmaker Michelangelo Frammartino retraces that mission six decades later with a cast of locals and their livestock in his latest documentary, “Il buco” (“The Hole”). Inspiration for the film came while he was on location shooting his 2007 documentary, “Le quattro volte” (“Four Times”). Officials in the Pollino mountains, which stretch between Calabria and Basilicata, showed him what appeared to be just another sinkhole. Frammartino failed to understand their enthusiasm until they tossed a large stone into the void. It disappeared without making a sound. He was so overcome by the experience and the eerie landscape, he was haunted for years, compelling him to make his current film, one of many rooted in nature. “I was born in Milan, but my family is from Calabria. My pa

Nicoletta Braschi and Roberto Benigni.. What cinema dreams are made of

The Toronto International Film Festival is wrapping up its retrospective of the cinematic collaboration of husband and wife team, Nicoletta Braschi and Roberto Benigni. Over the last few days, the couple have participated in discussions, Q & A sessions and have introduced several of their films. Today, I attended a screening of "La voce della luna" (The voice of the moon). It was  Federico Fellini's last film and is a wonderful tribute to the director's signature poetic madness. The film gave Benigni the opportunity to team up with fellow beloved comic, Paolo Villaggio, and the two created a truly unforgettable adventure. Today's screening began with an introduction by Benigni. The moments leading up to his introduction were noticeably serious and somewhat tense. Benigni's publicist and TIFF security staunchly guarded his privacy. There was no interaction and no photos were allowed. Guided by his entourage, he walked quickly from the Green Room to th