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Showing posts from May, 2015

"Mia Madre" receives 10 minutes of applause at Cannes Film Festival

Nanni Moretti's latest film, "Mia Madre" received 10 minutes of applause upon its premiere at the Cannes Film Festival last night. European-film website, Cineuropa has been closely covering this film. They described it as a whirlwind of intimate and universally-shared emotions, with an exceptional performance from Margherita Buy. Hospital and set, public and private: these are the two juxtapositions that run the length of the film, alternating like clockwork. Buy's character is a director shooting a film about a group of factory workers who risk losing their jobs, but is also the daughter of a mother who is gravely ill (Giulia Lazzarini), the mother of a teenager who doesn’t want to focus on her studies (Beatrice Mancini), and the partner of a man she no longer loves (Enrico Iannello). She is also the sister of Giovanni (Nanni Moretti), with whom she shares her concerns and visits her mother’s bedside. The most serious stage of the illness coincides with the arrival

Paolo Sorrentino to make HBO series about fictional Italian-American pope

Just before his new film Youth premiered at Cannes, Paolo Sorrentino announced that he will be heading to the small screen next along with Jude Law for a show called The Young Pope . The eight-part drama will follow the life of Lenny Belardo, an Italian American who becomes pontiff. The official statement describes him as “a complex and conflicted character, so conservative in his choices as to border on obscurantism, yet full of compassion towards the weak and poor. He is a man of great power who is stubbornly resistant to the Vatican courtiers, unconcerned with the implications to his authority. “During the series, Belardo will face losing those closest to him and the constant fear of being abandoned, even by his God. A man who is however not afraid of undertaking the millennial mission of defending that same God and the world representing Him.” In an interview last year with Italian newspaper, Corriere della Sera, producer, Lorenzo Mieli said the character would be up there

Locarno Film Festival to Honor Marco Bellocchio

The 68th edition of the  Locarno Film Festival will award the "Leopard of Honour Swisscom" to director extraordinaire, Marco Bellocchio. With this award, the festival pays tribute to an extraordinarily rich career, and affirms the strong links between Locarno and Bellocchio, first forged in 1965 with the screening in the Grand Hotel of his debut feature film , "Fists in the Pocket". The stunning anarchy of his film overwhelmed the audience, the critics and the jury, who awarded him the Vela d’argento, a success that immediately thrust him into the spotlight both in Italy and internationally. The restored print of "Fists in the Pocket" was produced by Kavac Film, via Cineteca di Bologna at the laboratories of “L’immagine ritrovata”, with support from Giorgio Armani, and will be distributed internationally. According to Cineuropa, the festival audience will also have an opportunity to talk to the director, who will likely be at this year's Venice

"Thriller" - 2015 David di Donatello for Best Short Film

Watch the short film that just won the 2015 David di Donatello.. Thriller by Giuseppe Marco Albano and Angelo Troiano.. Made in Puglia by filmmakers from Basilicata..

16 David di Donatello Nominations for "Anime nere"

Francesco Munzi's "Anime nere" gets a whopping 16 nominations for Italy's Oscar- the David di Donatello.   Virna Lisi gets a nomination for her performance in Cristina Comincini's "Latin Lover".   View the complete list of nominees... http://www.rainews.it/dl/rainews/articoli/cinema-David-di-Donatello-2015-boom-di-nomination-per-le-Anime-nere-di-Francesco-Munzi-9fee6f7d-d695-4549-907d-1dc04c8da075.html

2015 Rome Independent Film Festival: Alessandro Colizzi's "Crushed Lives"

Our Mother's Day-themed movie pick... a comedy called, Crushed Lives by Alessandro Colizzi.. The movie speaks about sex after children. It will premiere on May 12th at the Rome Independent Film Festival.. Check out the hilarious trailer.. For information about the film and show times.. check out the Rome Independent Film Festival online.... http://www.riff.it/il-12-maggio-la-sala-4-si-riempie-di-cortometraggi-chiude-la-serata-crushed-lives-di-alessandro-colizzi/

Classic Italian Cinema to hit Big Screen in NYC

TITANUS: A FAMILY CHRONICLE OF ITALIAN CINEMA  MAY 22–31 Like MGM’s lion and The Archers’ target, the iconic Titanus logo is an unmistakable presence in film history. The series presents everything from soul-searching works by Fellini and Antonioni to frightfests by Argento and Bava.   For a complete schedule.. http://www.filmlinc.com/films/series/titanus-a-family-chronicle-of-italian-cinema

Spanish Filmmaker Fernando Arrabal to be Honored in Basilicata

To mark the 40th anniversary of  Fernando Arrabal's film, “L’albero di Guernica”, the Basilicata city of Matera will host a weekend dedicated to the Spanish director. The initiative led by the “Lucana Film Commission” will kick off at the Cinema Comunale on May 8th at 5:00pm. During the weekend to follow, there will be several events in which local artists will pay tribute to the works of Arrabal. For more information, visit the Lucana Film Commission online.. http://www.lucanafilmcommission.it/ Program: Matera – venerdì 8 maggio, ore 17.00 Cinema Comunale :  proiezione de “L’Albero di Guernica” (98 min). Seguirà conversazione sul cinema di Arrabal. Partecipano Paolo Calcagno, Luciano Veglia, Ivan Moliterni. Presenta Tiziana Bagatella Matera – sabato 9 maggio, ore 10.30 Cinema Comunale : proiezione del docu “Jorge Luis Borges: una vita di poesia” (65 min). Incontro con Arrabal “poeta e fondatore, insieme a Roland Topor e Alejandro Jodorowsky,  del movimento Panico”.

Tommaso Agnese's 'Mi chiamo Maya' Reflects Social Issue Facing Italy

In the mid 1970’s, Italian police seized an underground publishing company for distributing a book called, How to Flee Home and Live Happily . Before the police could halt production, 30,000 copies were sold, exposing a huge problem in Italian society. Teenagers wanted to run away from home. Various reasons were cited. Since the 70’s were a politically tumultuous time in Italy, many parents did not agree with the political beliefs of their children, so those kids wanted to escape the torment of daily quarrels. Others reportedly ran away for economic reasons. Some 40 years later, statistics show that 30% of young people under the age of 20 have run away from   home at least once in their lives, and many are also fleeing from foster homes. Fortunately, the episodes usually just last for a few days because the hard reality of starting over from nothing shatters their dreams of independence. Filmmaker Tommaso Agnese is bringing attention to this national problem with