74th Venice Film Festival Award Winners

Awards ceremony was average with most annoying moments when to Italian translations happened and nothing else was happening.

As a matter of fact some award winners had no idea of what to do while the translation was taking place.  Perhaps next time subtitles are use for translation or tell winners what to do, like for example, go to stage center and allow photographers to flash their cameras.

There was a moment that felt the awards were going very European, especially after parallel sections went Latin American; but was too early as after all big winner is Mexican and as he said, is the first time a Mexican director gets top award.  Congratulations to Guillermo del Toro!



Most interesting is that a couple of award winning films are already submissions to Oscars 2018 in the foreign-language film category; perhaps now the most awaited news is to find if Foxtrot wins the Best Picture Ophir award to become Israel's submission as will be interesting to find if film overcomes political controversy film generated.

The oldest film festival in the world has become the very first to acknowledge and award the new art form, virtual reality films.  The milestone is recorded for history.  All other festivals will be relegated to second and further places and yes, history is not kind and will be forgotten, unless virtual reality disappears as a momentary fashion; me, think will stay as long great directors start to use the medium and it's happening right now.

So this is for this year.  Ciao.

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9/9/17
Later today is the awards ceremony but there are some award winners already announced.

Official Selection

Golden Lion for Best Film: The Shape of Water, Guillermo del Toro, USA

Silver Lion Grand Jury Prize: Foxtrot, Samuel Maoz, Israel, Germany, France and Switzerland

Special Jury Prize: Sweet Country, Warwick Thorton, Australia

Silver Lion for Best Director: Xavier Legrand for Jusqu'à la garde, France

Copa Volpi for Best Actress: Charlotte Rampling in Hannah, Andrea Pallaoro, Italy, Belgium and France
Copa Volpi for Best Actor: Kamel El Basha in L'Insulte (The Insult), Ziad Doueiri, France and Lebanon
Marcello Mastroianni Award for Best New Young Actress or Actor: Charlie Plummer in Lean On Pete, Andrew Haigh, UK

Best Screenplay: Martin McDonagh for Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri, Martin McDonagh, UK
Lion of the Future - Luigi de Laurentiis Award for Best Debut Film: Jusqu'à la garde, Xavier Legrand, France

Orizzonti Awards
Best Film: Nico, 1988, Susanna Nicchiarelli, Italy and Belgium
Special Jury Prize: Caniba, Lucien Castaing-Taylor and Verena Paravel, France
Best Director: Vahid Jallilvand for Bedoune Tarikh, Bedoune Emza (No Date, No Signature), Iran
Best Actress: Lyna Khoudri in Les Bienheureux, Sofia Djama, France and Belgium
Best Actor: Navid Mohammadzadeh in Bedoune Tarikh, Bedoune Emza (No Date, No Signature), Vahid Jalilvand, Iran
Best Screenplay: Dominique Welinski and René Ballesteros for Los Versos del Olvido, Alireza Khatami, France, Germany, Netherlands and Chile

Best Short Film: Gros Chagrin, Céline Devaux, France, 15' (animation)
Short Film Nominee for the European Film Awards: Gros Chagrin, Céline Devaux, France, 15' (animation)

Venezia Classici
Best Documentary: The Prince and the Dybbuk, Elwira Niewiera and Piotr Rosolowski, Poland and Germany
Best Restored Film: Idi I Smotri (Come and See), Elem Klimov, USSR, 1985

Virtual Reality
Best VR Award: Arden's Wake Expanded, Eugene Yk Chung, USA, 16'
Best VR Experience Award (for Interactive Content): La Camera Insabbiata, Laurie Anderson and Huang Hsin-Chien, USA, 20' (animation)
Best VR Story Award (for Linear Content): Dongducheon (Bloodless), Gina Kim, South Korea and USA, 12'

To check winners at official site go here.

Autonomous Sections

14th Giornate degli Autori
Director's Award: Candelaria, Jhonny Hendrix Hinestroza, Colombia, Germany, Norway and Argentina
Finalists
M, Sara Forestier, France
Mi Hua Zhi Wei (The Taste of Rice Flower), Pengfei, China
Label Europa Cinemas: M, Sara Forestier, France
People's Choice Award: Ga'Agua (Longing), Savi Gabizon, Israel

32nd Settimana Internazionalle della Critica - Venice International Film Critics' Week
Mario Serandrei Award: Les garçons sauvages (The Wild Boys), Bertrand Mandico, France
SIAE Audience Award: Temporada de Caza (Hunting Season), Natalia Garagiola, Argentina, USA, Germany, France and Qatar
Verona Film Club Award:  Team Hurricane, Annika Berg, Denmark

Collateral Awards

FIPRESCI Awards
Best Film of Venezia74: Ex Libris. The New York Public Library, Frederick Wiseman, USA (documentary)
Best Film in Orizzonti: Los Versos del Olvido (Oblivion Verses), Alireza Khatami, France, Germany, Netherlands and Chile

SIGNIS Award: La Villa (The House by the Sea), Robert Guediguian, France
Special Mention: Foxtrot, Samel Maoz, Israel, Germany, France and Switzerland

FEDEORA Awards (Federation of Film Critics of Europe and the Mediterranean)
Best Film: Eye on Juliet, Kim Nguyen, Canada, France and Moroco
Best Debut Filmmaker: Sara Forestier for M, France
Best Actor: Redouanne Harjane in M, Sara Forestier, France

Arca CinemaGiovani Award
Best Film Venezia74: Foxtrot, Samel Maoz, Israel, Germany, France and Switzerland
Best Italian Film: Denoise (Beautiful Things), Giorgio Ferrero, Italy, 12'

Fair Play Cinema Award: Ex Libris. The New York Public Library, Frederick Wiseman, USA (documentary)
Special Mention: Human Flow, Ai Weiwei, Germany and USA

FEDIC Award: La Vita in Comune, Edoardo Winspeare, Italy
Special Mention: Nico, 1988, Susanna Nicchiarelli, Italy and Belgium
FEDIC Mention - Il giornale del cibo: Le Visite, Elio Di Pace

Fondazione Mimmo Rotella Award
George Clooney for Suburbicon, USA
Michael Caine in My Generation, David Batty, UK (documentary)
Ai Weiwei for Human Flow, Germany and USA (documentary)

Francesco Pasinetti Awards - SNGCI
Best Film: Ammore e Malavita, Manetti Brothers, Italy
Special Mentions
Gatta Cenerentola, (Cinderella the Cat) A. Rak, I. Cappiello, M. Guarnieri and D. Sansone (animation)
Nico, 1988, Susana Nicchiarelli, Italy and Belgium

Future Film Festival Digital Award: The Shape of Water, Guillermo del Toro, USA
Special Mention: Candelaria, Jhonny Hendrix Hinestroza, Colombia, Germany, Norway and Argentina

Green Drop Award: First Reformed, Paul Schrader, USA

Human Rights Nights Award: The Rape of Racy Taylor, Nancy Buirski, USA
Special Mentions
L'Ordine delle Cose, Andrea Segre, Italy
Human Flow, Ai Weiwei, Germany and USA

La Pellicola d'Oro Awards - Production Directors
Italian Film: Daniele Spinozzi for Ammore e Malavita, Manetti Brothers, Italy
International Film: Riccardo Marchegiani for Mektoub My Love: Canto Uno, Abdellatif Kechiche, France and Italy
Miglior macchinista: Roberto di Pietro for Hannah, Andrea Pallaoro, Italy, France and Belgium

Online Critics Awards
Mouse d'Oro for Best Film in Competition: Mektoub My Love: Canto Uno, Abdellatif Kechiche, France and Italy
Mouse d'Argento for Best Film Out of Competition: Gatta Cenerentola, (Cinderella the Cat) A. Rak, I. Cappiello, M. Guarnieri and D. Sansone (animation)

Nuovo IMAIE Talent Award
Federica Rosellini in Dove cadono le ombre, Valentina Pedicini, Italy
Mimmo Borrelli in L'equilibrio, Vicenzo Marra, Italy

Sorriso Diverso Venezia 2017 Award: Il Colore Nascosto delle Cose, Silvio Soldini, Italy and Switzerland

Soutrack Stars Award: Alexandre Desplat for The Shape of Water, Guillermo del Toro, USA
Special Mention: Ammore e Malavita, Manetti Brothers, Italy
Career Achievement Award: Andrea Guerra

Brian Award: Les Bienheureux, Sofia Djama, France and Belgium
C. Smithers Foundation-CICT-UNESCO Award: The Shape of Water, Guillermo del Toro, USA
Cinema for UNICEF 2017: Human Flow, Ai Weiwei, Germany and USA (Documentary)
Civitas Vitae Award: Il Colore Nascosto delle Cose, Silvio Soldini, Italy and Switzerland
Coppa Codacons Ridateci i soldi:
Enrico Fulghignoni-CICT-UNESCO Award: Human Flow, Ai Weiwei, Germany and USA (Documentary)
Gianni Astrei Award: Gatta Cenerentola, (Cinderella the Cat) A. Rak, I. Cappiello, M. Guarnieri and D. Sansone (animation)
Interfilm Award: Los Versos del Olvido (Oblivion Verses), Alireza Khatami, France, Germany, Netherlands and Chile
Laterna Magica Award: L'equilibrio, Vicenzo Marra, Italy
Leoncino d'Oro Agiscuola Award: The Leisure Seeker, Paolo Virzi, Italy
Lina Magiacapre Award: Les Bienheureux, Sofia Djama, France and Belgium
Lizzani Award: Il Colore Nascosto delle Cose, Silvio Soldini, Italy and Switzerland
Open Award: Gatta Cenerentola, (Cinderella the Cat) A. Rak, I. Cappiello, M. Guarnieri and D. Sansone (animation)
Queer Lion: Marvin, Anne Fontaine, France
Sfera 1932 Award: La melodie, Rachid Hami, France

UNIMED Award:  La Villa (The House by the Sea), Robert Guediguian, France
Special Mention: Brutti e Cattivi, Cosimo Gomez, Italy

Golden Lion for Lifetime Achievement: Jane Fonda and Robert Redford
Jaaeger-Le Coultre Glory to the Filmmaker Award: Stephen Frears
L'Oreal Paris per il Cinema Award: Valentina Corti
Persol Visionary Award: Liev Schreiber
Premi Pietro Bianchi: Michele Placido
Premio Gillo Pontecorvo - Arcobaleno Latino: Miao Xiaotian, CEO of China Film Coproduction Corporation

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2017 International Film Critics' Week Award Winners

An Argentinean film wins section top award. To check jury comments go official site here.

Winners are in (*)BLUE.

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7/24/17
The Venice International Film Critics’ Week (SIC) is an independent and parallel section organized by the National Union of Italian Film Critics (SNCCI) during the 74th Venice International Film Festival (30th August – 9th September, 2017).

The program includes a selection of seven (7) debut films in competition and two special events out of competition, all presented in world premiere screenings. The selection is curated by the General Delegate of the Venice Critics’ Week Giona A. Nazzaro together with the members of the selection committee Luigi Abiusi, Alberto Anile, Beatrice Fiorentino and Massimo Tria.

The 2017 official selection includes:

Competition
Il Cratere (Crater), Luca Bellino and Silvia Luzi, Italy
Drift, Helena Wittman, Germany
(*) Les garçons sauvages (The Wild Boys), Bertand Mandico, France - Winner of Mario Serandrei  - Hotel Saturnia Award for the Best Technical Contribution
Körfez (The Gulf), Emre Yeksan, Turkey, Germany and Greece
Sarah joue un loup garou (Sarah Plays a Werewolf), Katharina Wyss, Switzerland and Germany
(*) Team Hurricane, Annita Berg, Denmark - Winner of Verona Film Club Award
(*) Temporada de caza (Hunting Season), Natalia Garagiola, Argentina, USA, Germany, France, Qatar - SIAE Audience Award

Special Events Out of Competition
Opening Film: Pin Cushion, Deborah Haywood, UK
Closing Film: Veleno (Poison), Diego Olivares, Italy

The Poster

Comic Books Artist Carmine di Giandomenico Creates the Image for the 32nd Venice International Film Critics' Week



The DC Comics and Marvel Comics illustrator designed a futuristic cinematic muse for the 32nd edition of the independent sidebar dedicated to debut feature films.

An unusual and innovative choice for a sidebar that portrays today’s cinema, and through it, envisages its future, with a selection of debut films. In the cyber-fantasy style image created by Di Giandomenico – one of the few Italian artists who collaborated with two of the most important and active comics publishing houses, Marvel Comics and DC Comics - the muse of cinema glides over the lagoon, reflecting herself in the water, remindful of the past, but projected towards the future. “I wanted to create a feminine figure that would synthesize an idea of cinema that mirrors and filters everyday life turning it into fantasy – explains Di Giandomenico – Cinema as an art that can project narratives, uncovering how reality and dream are two souls that realize they are attracted to each other. Cinema that makes us glide through the present, heading for the future”.

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2017 Giornate degli Autori Award Winners

A Colombian film wins Biennale section top award. To read jury statement go official site here.

Winners are below in (*)BLUE.

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7/26/17
There is one quite big surprise this year as seems organizers retired the section English name to left only the Italian name.  In my opinion is for the best as the English name, Venice Days, had no relation to the Italian name nor what the section is all about; the literal translation from Italian to English is "Days of the Authors" which at least mention something related to this film director's competition.  Well, let's see if soon there is an official press release about the name, if they give an official English translation or they simply go on as nothing happened with the belief nobody notices.  Sigh.

This year, the fourteenth edition of the Giornate degli Autori is devoted to seeking out originality and diversity. Not to astonish, or provoke by riding the wave of easy titles, but to share the delight of discovery. Of celebrating difference. Of finding the ones who march to the beat of a different drummer.

The Giornate's General Delegate, Giorgio Gosetti, has this to say: "Our experience of viewing the films, which we shared this year with a group of programmers and experts whom we truly cannot thank enough, has taught us that there is an abundance of films out there that are very well made and thoroughly professional, but all too often fail to strike a chord with audiences. Surprise them. The fact that we select a handful of titles from all over the world allows us the privilege - and the challenge - of placing our bets on each filmmaker and each work as if it were unique, and all the more precious for that reason. We don't aspire to offering solely masterpieces in our official selection and special events; we do want audiences to be able to say after each viewing, Well, it was well worth it, flying on the wings of this story. I'm glad I've made this filmmaker's acquaintance."

The Giornate degli Autori has always been much more than just a showcase of films yet to be released. "Ever since our debut," recalls Giornate President Roberto Barzanti, "we have stayed true to the mandate handed us by the film associations promoting us, now ANAC and 100autori. The essence of our event lies in the art of bringing people together, comparing notes, sparking discussions and experimentation. And our Villa degli Autori does just that. It's hosting a packed program of events again this year, thanks in large part to long-standing projects like 28 Times Cinema, promoted by the European Parliament's LUX Film Prize; Women's Tales, the film showcase we share with Miu Miu, and its conversations with filmmakers; and our ongoing investigation into the diverse transformations of the film medium in the digital age."

A look at the lineup for our 2017 official selection reveals a well-deserved attention to Italian films, at a vibrant and courageous time in the industry; as well as important new works by Giornate alumni such as China's Pengfei, Morocco's Faouzi Bensaïdi, Italy's Vincenzo Marra, Matteo Botrugno and Daniele Coluccini; not to mention hotly-awaited titles by Canada's Kim Nguyen, Iran's Shirin Neshat, and Thailand's Pen-ek Ratanaruang.

We think it all makes for eleven days of great film and great film personalities, too, talks with the public and entertainment. 

Official Selection
(*) Candelaria, Jhonny Hendrix Hinestroza, Colombia, Germany, Norway and Argentina - Winner of Best Film
Dove cado no le ombre (Where the Shadows Fall), Valentina Pedicini, Italy
Eye on Juliet, Kim Nguyen, Canada
געגוע Ga'agua (Longing), Savi Gabizon, Israel
Il Contagio (The Contagion), Matteo Botrugno and Daniele Coluccini, Italy
L'equilibrio, Vincenzo Marra, Italy
Life Guidance, Ruth Mader, Austria
Looking for Oum Kulthum, Shirin Neshat, Germany, Austria, Italy and Morocco
(*) M, Sara Forestier, France - Finalist
Mai Mee Samui Samrab Ter (Samui Song), Pen-ek Ratanaruang, Thailand, Germany and Norway
(*) Mi Hua Zhi Wei (The Taste of Rice Flower), Pengfei, China - Finalist
Volubilis, Faouzi Bensaïdi, Morocco and France

Jury
President: Samira Makhmalbaf, actress and director, Iran

Special Events
Agnelli, Nick Hooker, USA (documentary)
Getting Naked: A Burlesque Story, James Lester, USA (documentary)
Il tentato suicidio nell'adolescenza (T.S. Giovanile), Ermanno Olmi, Italy, 1968 (documentary)
La legge del numero uno, Alessandro D'Alari, Italy (documentary)
Il Risoluto (The Resolute), Giovanni Donfrancesco, Italy and France (documentary)
Thrist Street, Nathan Silver, USA and France

Special Screenigs
I'm (Endless Like the Space), Anne-Riitta Ciccone, Italy
Raccontare Venezia, Wilma Labate
The Millionairs, Claudio Santamaria, Italy, 14'

Miu Miu Women's Tales
#13 Carmen, Chloë Sevigny, USA, 8'
#14 (The [End) of History Illusion], Celia Rowinson-Hall, USA, 13'

Lux Prize Finalists
120 battements par minute (Beats per Minute), Robin Campillo, France
Sameblod (Sami Blood), Amanda Kernell, Sweden, Denmark and Norway
Western, Valeska Grisebach, Germany, Bulgaria and Austria

To read about each film at official site go here.

From the competition there are some films that seem interesting but not many well-known directors are competing which I believe is good as gives opportunities to new generations.  Most interested with Kim Nguyen latest opus but can't deny my surprise when he ended in Venice and in this section; still, of course will watch.

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74th Venice International Film Festival Lineup

Today, August 7, 2017 organizers announce three (3) more films in the selection, one is out of competition, another is a special screening and the last one is a documentary in Venezia Classici section.

The two films are by well-known directors, first is the much-awaited return of John Woo to the crime thriller which made him famous and second, outstanding filmmaker Andrea Segre latest opus which hope has his peculiar storytelling style even when story is about immigration to Europe.

Just noticed la Biennale di Venezia changed its website, so have to find where is everything as not being able to find where is the Special Screenings or maybe the movie announced today is the only one (probably not).  While learn about the site will write the Andrea Segre film data in the following paragraph.

Special Screening: L'ordine delle Cose, Andrea Segre, Italy

To check the news at official site go here

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1/27/17
The complete line-up of the 2017 Biennale was announced during a press conference that took place on Thursday, July 27th in Rome.  The conference was streamed live and to my delight was able to watch the end with the live announcement of the 21 films in the main competition.

Believe must of us were expecting a very strong lineup as already knew the films that didn't make it to the other two main competitive festivals and well, the lineup is great but is not as strong as I was hoping for.  Still will not deny that I'm very pleased to find in the competition the latest films by Aronofsky and Kechiche.  Talking about Kechiche, his film is the first installment in a diptych -that could become triptych- based on Francois Bégaudeau’s book La blessure, la vraie, a saga centering around a screenwriter who returns to his hometown.

Another film that could be interesting is the debut film by Xavier Legrand as he's the director of the 2013 short film that went on to collect an Oscar nomination.  I loved Lebanon and now Samuel Maoz is in competition with Foxtrot which becomes must-be-seen for me.

Most unexpected is to find Lucrecia Martel's Zuma and Anne Fontaine's Marvin not in competition but relegated to Out of Competition the first and the Orizzonti section -the second-.  Really wonder how some American movies in competition could be "better" than films by Martel or Fontaine; so, there was room in the competition, just take 2 films and voila! two extraordinary female filmmakers would have been in the competition that -by the way- has only one female director.  Sigh.

On the not-so-good side, there are too many American films for my taste but know the festival is trying to be the harbinger to the Oscars and seems that last year its effort were successful as not only the festival opening film "almost" won the top Oscar (LOL) but also there were other films with nominations.

No doubt that the best news for many non-cinephiles is Jennifer Lawrence attending the festival, which obviously will give fest lots and lots of social media buzz and press coverage. Yes, I'm please with her doing all the crazy antics she does.

The festival will run from August 30 to September 9 and will update post with additions as soon as they're announced, if applicable.  Was waiting for the official press release but seems this year organizers will take their time releasing more data about the festival.  As of this moment, Saturday,  July 29th, the post is updated with all films in all sections, including the ones that have been added yesterday; so, maybe, no more updates will come, but will be checking constantly.

There are twenty-one (21) films in the competition, seven (7) are USA productions or co productions which makes it the leading country, followed by  France with 6, Italy 5, UK and Germany with 2 each, Australia, Japan, Switzerland, Lebanon and Israel with 1 each.

Have finished reading/learning about each of the 21 films in competition and from the ones I knew nothing, the biggest surprise undoubtedly is Guillermo del Toro's movie as from trailer seems will be quite entertaining while being dramatic, yes, has become must-be-seen for me.  From the little info available for some films is not easy to guess if any will qualify for the Queer Lion, which is unusual as always there is something in synopsis that gives it away.   Maybe Queer Lion contenders will come from other sections but soon enough we will learn the lineup.

Venezia 74 Competition
International competition of feature films, presented as world premieres

Opening Film: Downsizing, Alexander Payne, USA
Ammore e Malavita, Manetti Brothers, Italy
Ex Libris.  The New York Public Library, Frederick Wiseman, USA (documentary)
First Reformed, Paul Schrader, USA
Foxtrot, Samuel Maoz, Israel, Germany, France and Switzerland
Hannah, Andrea Pallaoro, Italy, Belgium and France
Human Flow, Ai Weiwei, Germany and USA (documentary)
嘉年華 Jia nian hua (Angels Wear White), Vivian Qu, China and France
Jusqu'à la garde, Xavier Legrand, France
La Villa (The House by the Sea), Robert Guédiguian, France
L'Insulte (The Insult), Ziad Doueiri, France and Lebanon
Lean on Pete, Andrew Haigh, UK
Mektoub, My Love: Canto Uno, Abdellatif Kechiche, France and Italy
mother!, Daren Aronofsky, USA
三度目の殺人 Sandome no Satsujin (The Third Murder), Koreeda Hirokazu, Japan
Suburbicon, George Clooney, USA
Sweet Country, Warwick Thornton, Australia
The Leisure Seeker, Paolo Virzì, Italy
The Shape of Water, Guillermo del Toro, USA
Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri, Martin McDonagh, UK
Una Famiglia, Sebastiano Riso, Italy

Jury
President: Annette Bening, actress, USA
Ildikó Enyedi, director and screenwriter, Hungary
Michel Franco, director, producer and screenwriter, Mexico
Rebecca Hall, actress, UK
Anna Mouglalis, actress, France
David Stratton, film critic, UK and Australia
Jasmine Trinca, actress, Italy
Edgar Wright, director and screenwriter, UK
Yonfan, director, producer and screenwriter



Out of Competition
Important works by directors already established in previous editions of the Festival

Feature Films
アウトレイジ 最終章 Autoreiji Saishusho (Outrage Coda), Takeshi Kitano, Japan
Brawl in Cell Block 99, S. Craig Zahler, USA
Il Colore Nascosto delle Cose, Silvio Soldini, Italy and Switzerland
La mélodie, Rachid Hami, France
Le Fidèle (Racer and the Jailbird), Michaël R. Roskam, Belgium, France and Netherlands
Loving Pablo, Fernando León de Aranoa, Spain and Bulgaria
Our Souls at Night, Ritesh Batra, USA
The Private Life of a Modern Woman, James Toback, USA
Victoria & Abdul, Stephen Frears, UK
Zama, Lucercia Martel, Argentina and Brazil
追捕 Zhuibu (Manhunt), John Woo, China and Hong Kong

Documentaries
Cuba and the Cameraman, Jon Alpert, USA
Diva!, Francesco Patierno, Italy 
Happy Winter, Giovanni Totaro, Italy
Jim & Andy: The Great Beyond. The Story of Jim Carrey, Andy Kaufman and Tony Clifton, Chris Smith, USA and Canada
My Generation, David Batty, UK
Piazza Vittorio, Abel Ferrara, Italy
Ryuichi Sakamoto: Coda, Stephen Nomura Schible, USA
The Devil and Father Amorth, William Friedkin, USA 
This is Congo, Daniel McCabe, Congo

TV Series
Wormwood, Errol Morris, USA (6 episodes)

Special Events
Casa d'Altri, Gianni Amelio, Italy, 16'
Il Signor Rotpeter, Antonietta de Lillo, Italy, 37'
Making of Michael Jackson's Thriller, Jerry Kramer, USA, 45'
Michael Jackson's Thriller 3D, John Landis, USA, 14'



Orizzonti
A competition dedicated to films that represent the latest aesthetic and expressive trends in international cinema.

Feature Films
بدون تاریخ بدون امضاء Bedoune Tarikh, Bedoune Emza (No Date, No Signature), Vahid Jalilvand, Iran
Brutti e Cattivi (Ugly Nasty People), Cosimo Gomez, Italy and France
Caniba, Lucien Castaing-Taylor and Verena Paravel, France
Espèces menacées, Gilles Bourdos, France and Belgium
Gatta Cenerentola, Alessandro Rak, Ivan Cappiello, Marion Guarnieri and Dario Sansone,  Italy (animation)
Ha Ben Dod (The Cousin), Tzahi Grad, Israel
Ha'Edut (The Testament), Amichai Greenberg, Israel and Austria
Invisible, Pablo Giorgelli, Argentina, Brazil, Uruguay and Germany
Krieg, Rick Ostermann, Germany
La Nuit ou J'ai Nage (The Night I Swam), Damien Manivel and Igarashi Kohei, France and Japan'
La Vita in Comune, Edoardo Winspeare, Italy
Les Bienheureux, Sofia Djama, France and Belgium
Los Versos del Olvido, Alireza Khatami, France, Germany, Netherlands and Chile
Marvin, Anne Fontaine, France
الإختفاء Napadid Shodan (Disappearance), Ali Asgari, Iran and Qatar
Nico, 1988, Susanna Nicchiarelli, Italy and Belgium
The Rape of Recy Taylor, Nancy Buirski, USA
Undir trénu (Under the Tree), Hafsteinn Gunnar Sigurðsson, Iceland, Denmark, Poland and Germany
West of Sunshine, Jason Raftopoulos, Australia

Short Films
8th Continent, Pavlos Iordanopoulos, Greece, 11'
Apia, Myrsini Aristidou, Cyprus and France, 13'
Astrometal, Efthimis Kosemund Sanidis, Greece, 15'
Awasarn Sound Man (Death of the Sound Man), Sorayos Prapapan, Thailand and Myanmar, 16'
By The Pool, Laurynas Bareiša, Lithuania, 16'
Gros Chagrin, Céline Devaux, France, 15' (animation)
Himinn Opinn, Gabriel Sanson and Clyde Gates, Belgium, 19'
Lagi Senang Jaga Sekandang Lembu (It's Easier to Raise Cattle), Amanda Nell Eu, Malaysia, 18'
L'Ombra della Sposa, Alessandra Pescetta, Italy, 11'
Meninas Formicida, João Paulo Miranda Maria, France and Brasil, 12'
Mon Amour, Mon Ami, Adriano Valerio, Italy, 15'
The Knife Salesman, Michael Leonard and Jamie Helmer, Australia, 10' 
Tierra Mojada, Juan Sebastián Mesa Bedoya, Colombia, 17'

Out of Competition Short Films
Futuro Prossimo, Salvatore Mereu, Italy, 18'

Jury
President: Gianni Amelio, director, Italy
Rakhshan Banietemad, director, Iran
Ami Canaan Mann, director, USA
Mark Cousins, director, screenwriter and curator, Ireland
Andrés Duprat, screenwriter and artistic curator, Argentina
Fien Troch, director and screenwriter, Belgium
Rebecca Zlotowski, director and screenwriter, France

Luigi De Laurentis for a Debut Film - Lion of the Future Jury
President: Benoît Jacquot, director and screenwriter, France
Geoff Andrew, author and film programmer, UK
Albert Lee, producer, Hong Kong
Greta Scarano, actress, Italy
Yorgos Zois, director, Greece

Venice Virtual Reality
Competitive section of VR films, with a section of out-of-competition VR films

Alice, The Virtual Reality Play, Mathias Chelebourg, France, 20'
Arden's Wake Expanded, Eugene Yk Chung, USA, 16'
Chuang (In The Pictures), Qing Shao, China, 5' (animation)
Dispatch, Edward Robles, USA and UK, 6'
Dongducheon (Bloodless), Gina Kim, South Korea and USA, 12'
Draw Me Close, Jordan Tannahill, Canada and UK, 15'
Free Whale, Zhang Peibin, China, 7' (animation)
Gomorra VR. We Own the Streets, Enrico Rosati, Italia, 14'
Greenland Melting, Nonny de la Peña, USA, 11'
Hver Sin Stilhed (Separate Silences), Denmark, 17'
I Saw The Future, François Vautier, France, 5'
Jia Zai Lanre Si (The Deserted), Tsai Ming-Liang, Taiwan, 55'
La Camera Insabbiata, Laurie Anderson and Huang Hsin-Chien, USA, 20' (animation)
Melita, Nicolás Alcalá, USA, 24'
My Name is Peter Stillman, Lysander Ashton and Leo Warner, UK, 6' (animation)
Nefertiti, Richard Mills and Kim-Leigh Pontin, UK, 15' (animation)
Nothing Happens, Uri Kranot and Michelle Kranot, Denmark and France, 14' (animation)
Proxima, Mathieu Pradat, France, 9'
Shi Meng Lao Ren (The Dream Collector), Mi Li, China, 11' (animation)
Snatch VR Heist Experience, Rafael Pavón and Nicolás Alcalá, USA, 5'
The Argos File, Josema Roig, USA, 4'
The Last Goodbye, Gabo Adora, USA, 20'

Out of Competition
Alteration, Jérôme Blanquet, France, 16'
Chromatica, Flavio Costa, Italy, 17'
Dear Angelica, Saschka Unseld, USA, 13' (animation)
Denoise (Beautiful Things), Giorgio Ferrero, Italy, 12'
Mule, Guy Shemerdine, USA, 6'
Miyubi, Félix Lajeunesse and Paul Raphaël, Canada, 40'
Naive New Beaters "Heal Tomorrow", Romain Chassaing, UK, 4'
On/Off, Camille Duvelleroy and Isabelle Foucrier, France, 10'
Sens. Part 1, Charles Ayats and Marc-Antoine Mathieu, France, 16'

Jury
John Landis, director, USA
Céline Sciamma, director and screenwriter, France
Ricky Tognazzi, director and actor, Italy

Venezia Classici
A selection of restored classic films and documentaries on cinema.  Outstanding selection with films by Antonioni, Bertolucci, Chabrol, Godard, Forman, Ozu, Mizoguchi and many more.  Check films at official site here.

Jury of Cinema History Students
Chair: Giuseppe Piccioni, director, Italy

Cinema nel Giardino
Films, talks and visions with interesting films and one TV series from Italy.  Check all films here.

Videos

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61st David di Donatello Awards Winners

Last Monday, March 27th the Italian cinema academy had their award ceremony and Like Crazy by Paolo Virzì won top honors and a total of 5 prizes but top winners were Indivisible and Italian Race as each took 6 awards.

Roberto Benigni was honored with a special career achievement award presented by President Sergio Mattarella and Italy's Culture Minister Dario Francheschini.

To check winners in all categories go official site here.  Winners for main categories are below in *BLUE.

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2/21/17
Today the Accademia del Cinema Italiano announced at the Casa del Cinema, the nominations for the 2017 edition of the annual David di Donatello awards that honor Italian cinema.

Two films lead the pack, each with 17 nominations, Indivisibili by Edoardo De Angelis and La Pazza Gioia by Paolo Virzì followed very close by Veloce come il Vento by Matteo Rovere with 16.  Most remarkable is the two nominations for Valerio Mastandrea as Best Actor and Best Supporting Actor.

There are some films from 2016 Cannes like Sweet Dreams and Like Crazy that opened at Directors Fortnight, Fiore that also opened at the Directors sidebar and was competing for the Queer Palm, or films from 2016 Biennale like Indivisible that won several collateral awards, just to mention films from the five nominees to Best Film.

Have to confess that also in 2016 -as happened in 2015- did not watched much Italian cinema but as always occurs when doing the annual awards, and this time is no exception, some films have become relevant for me to NOT skip and surely will add a few to my film viewing too-long queue. 

Best Film
Fai bei sogni (Sweet Dreams)
Fiore
Indivisibili (Indivisible)
*La Pazza Gioa (Like Crazy)
Veloce come il vento (Italian Race)

Best European Film
Florence Foster Jenkins, Stephen Frears
*I, Daniel Blake, Ken Loach
Julieta, Pedro Almodóvar
Sing Street, John Carney
Truman, Cesc Gay

Best Foreign Film
*Nocturnal Animals, Tom Ford
Captain Fantastic, Matt Ross
Lion, Garth Davis
Paterson, Jim Jarmusch
Sully, Clint Eastwood

Best Documentary
60 - Ieri, oggi, domani, Giorgio Treves
Acqua e zucchero: Carlo Di Palma, i colori della vita, Fariborz Kamkari
*Crazy for football, Volfango de Biasi
Liberami, Federica di Giacomo
Magic Island, Marco Amenta

Best Director
Marco Bellocchio for Fai bei sogni (Sweet Dreams)
Claudio Giovannesi for Fiore
Eduardo De Angelis for Indivisibili (Indivisible)
Matteo Rovere for Veloce come il vento
*Paolo Virzì for La pazza gioia (Like Crazy)

Best New Director
Michele Vannucci for Il più grande sogno
*Marco Danieli for La ragazza del mondo (Worldly Girl)
Marco Segato for La pelle dell’orso
Fabio Guaglione and Fabio Resinaro for Mine
Lorenzo Corvino for WAX: We Are X

Best Actress
Daphne Scoccia in Fiore
Angela and Marianna Fontana in Indivisibili (Indivisible)
*Valeria Bruni Tedeschi in La pazza gioia (Like Crazy)
Micaela Ramazzotti in La pazza gioia (Like Crazy)
Matilda De Angelis in Veloce come il vento (Italian Race)

Best Supporting Actress
*Antonia Truppo in Indivisibili (Indivisible)
Valentina Carnelutti in La pazza gioia (Like Crazy)
Valeria Golino in La vita possibile
Michela Cescon in Piuma
Roberta Mattei in Veloce come il vento (Italian Race)

Best Actor
Valerio Mastandrea in Fai bei sogni (Sweet Dreams)
Michele Riondino in La ragazza del mondo (Worldly Girl)
Sergio Rubini in La stoffa dei sogni
Toni Servillo in  Le confessioni (The Confessions)
*Stefano Accorsi in Veloce come il vento (Italian Race)

Best Supporting Actor
*Valerio Mastrandrea in Fiore
Massimiliano Rossi in Indivisibili (Indivisible)
Ennio Fantastichini in La stoffa dei sogni
Pierfrancesco Favino in Le confessioni (The Confessions)
Roberto De Francesco in Le ultime cose

To check nominees in other categories go official site here, available only in Italian. For the second year the awards ceremony will be produced by Sky Cinema and broadcasted live in Sky Cinema Uno, Sky Cinema David di Donatello, Sky Uno, Sky Arte and TV8 on March 27 at 9:15pm local time; ceremony host is Alessandro Cattelan.

Video with excerpts from the five films nominated to 2017 Best Film

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73rd Venice Film Festival Award Winners

Will not deny that I'm quite pleased with the top awards winners as consider three of them, great contemporary directors each with a very particular and peculiar style. I'm talking about the awesome visuals in Lav Diaz films, the amazing esthetic of Tom Ford, and the outstanding visual -and violent- storytelling style of Amat Escalante. Congratulations to the three directors and yes, I'm looking forward to be able to watch their latest oeuvres.

On the not positive side of la Mostra have to share that seems there was a communication release with the award winners leaked or released ahead of time to the American press and those without fest experience (to put it mildly) started to release winners names three hours before the award ceremony; of course, as American media usually ignores what happens outside their local industry, leaks were about American winners. Just hope that this fest as well as others control their information as they will eventually loose credibility if they don't. Sigh.

Wish to be positive and hope that next year and in the near future the festival goes back to what made it great and allowed it to be the oldest still-running film festival in the world. We don't need another Hollywood event, we need events that showcase the best of the best of World cinema and to have only two of those events will be a huge loss as a matter of fact, I believe there should be another great competitive festival in the world and not only Berlin, Cannes and (fading) Venice.

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9/9/16
With Toronto starting a couple of days ago and San Sebastian opening soon, 2016 Biennale has come and gone with too-much Hollywood-glitter for my taste and too-many media coverage for American films, stars and celebrities that for a moment felt more like any film festival but what La Mostra used to be. Perhaps there is some truth in those articles in American media about how organizers are "reviving" the festival and looking forward to make it the "Oscar predictor". Deep in my heart hope that is NOT truth and La Biennale Cinema will continue to be a window for great Italian Cinema plus films from all over the world ... except America! (LOL)

Nevertheless here are the awards announced today.

Official Selection

Golden Lion for Best Film: Ang Babaeng Humayo (The Woman Who Left), Lav Diaz, Philippines



Silver Lion Grand Jury Prize: Nocturnal Animals, Tom Ford, USA



Special Jury Prize: The Bad Batch, Ana Lily Amirpour, USA

Silver Lion for Best Director (tie)
Amat Escalante for La Region Salvaje (The Untamed), Mexico, Denmark, France, Germany and Norway
Andrei Konchalovsky for Рай Rai (Paradise), Russia and Germany



Copa Volpi for Best Actress: Emma Stone in La La Land, Damien Chazelle, USA
Copa Volpi for Best Actor: Oscar Martínez in El Ciudadano Ilustre (The Distinguished Citizen), Mariano Cohn and Gastón Duprat, Argentina and Spain
Marcello Mastroianni Award for Best New Young Actress or Actor:  Paula Beer in Frantz, François Ozon, France and Germany

Best Screenplay: Noah Oppenheim for Jackie, Pablo Larraín, USA and Chile
Lion of the Future-Luigi de Laurentiis Award for Best Debut Film:  Akher Wahed Fina (The Last of Us), Ala Eddine Slim, Tunisia, Qatar, UAE and Lebanon

Orizzonti Awards

Best Film: Liberami, Federica di Giacomo, Italy and France (documentary)
Special Jury Prize:  Koca Dünya (Big Big World), Reha Erdem, Turkey
Best Director: Fien Troch for Home, Belgium
Best Actress: Ruth Díaz in Tarde para la Ira (The Fury of a Patient Man), Raúl Arévalo, Spain
Best Actor: Nuno Lopes in São Jorge (Saint George), Marco Martins, Portugal and France
Best Screenplay: Ku Qian (Bitter Money), Bing Wang, Hong Kong and France
Best Short Film: La Voz Perdida, Marcelo Martinessi, Paraguay, Nepal and France
Short Film Nominee for the European Film Awards: Amalimbo, Juan Pablo Libossart, Sweden and Estonia

Venezia Classici

Best Documentary: Le Concours, Claire Simon, France
Best Restored Film:  Break-up. L'umo dei 5 Palloni (Break-up. The Man With The Balloons), Marco Ferreri, Italy and France

Autonomous Sections

13th Giornate degli Autori - Venice Days
Venice Days Award: The War Show, Andreas Dalsgaard and Obaidah Zytoon, Denmark and Finland
Label Europa Cinemas: Sameblod (Sami Blood), Amanda Kernell, Sweden, Denmark and Norway
SIAE Creative Talent:  Vangelo, Pippo Delbono, Italy
People's Choice Award: Pamilya ordinaryo (Ordinary People), Eduardo Roy Jr., Philippines

31st Settimana Internazionalle della Critica - Venice International Film Critics' Week
Mario Serandrei Award: Akher Wahed Fina (The Last of Us), Ala Eddine Slim, Tunisia, Qatar, UAE and Lebanon
Audience Award: Los Nadie, Juan Sebastian Mesa, Colombia

Collateral Awards

FIPRESCI Awards
Best Film of Venezia73: Une vie (A Woman's Life), Stéphane Brizé, France and Belgium
Best Film in Orizzonti: Kékszakállú, Gastón Solnicki, Argentina

SIGNIS Award: Piuma, Roan Johnson, Italy
Special Mention:  Na mliječnom putu (Milky Road), Emir Kusturica,  Serbia, UK and USA

FEDEORA Awards (Federation of Film Critics of Europe and the Mediterranean)
Venezia73 Best Film in Competition:
Giornati delgi Autori - Venice Days
Best Film: 再見瓦城 Zai Jian Wa Cheng (The Road to Mandalay) by Midi Z, Myanmar, Taiwan, China, France and Germany
Best Debut Filmmaker: Amanda Kernell for  Sameblod (Sami Blood), Sweden, Denmark and Norway
Best Actress: Ashleigh Cummings in Hounds of Love by Ben Young, Australia
Best European Film: Ne gledaj mi u pijat (Quit Staring at My Plate), Hana Jušić, Croatia and Denmark

Arca CinemaGiovani Award
Best Film Venezia 73: Arrival, Denis Villeneuve, USA
Best Itlian Film: Orecchie (Ears), Alessandro Aronadio, Italy

FEDIC Award: Indivisibili (Indivisible), Edoardo De Angelis, Italy
Special Mention: Il più grande sogno (I Was a Dreamer), Michele Vannucci, Italy
Special Mention: Orecchie (Ears), Alessandro Aronadio, Italy

Fondazione Mimmo Rotella Award
to James Franco and Ambi Pictures for the film In Dubious Battle
to Paolo Sorrentino and Jude Law for the series The Young Pope
to Roan Johnson and Lucky Red for the film Piuma

Francesco Pasinetti Awards
Venice Days
Best Film: Indivisibili (Indivisible) by Edoardo De Angelis, Italy
Best Actor: Michele Riondino in La Ragazza del Mondo (Worldly Girl),  Marco Danieli, Italy
Best Actress: Sara Serraiocco in La Ragazza del Mondo (Worldly Girl),  Marco Danieli, Italy
Special Mention: Angela and Marianna Fontana in Indivisibili (Indivisible), Edoardo De Angelis, Italy

Future Film Festival Digital Award: Arrival, Denis Villeneuve, USA
Special Mention: Voyage of Time: Life's Journey, Terrence Malick, USA and Germany

Green Drop Award (tie)
Spira Mirabilis, Massimo D'Anolfi and Martina Parenti, Italy and Switzerland
Voyage of Time: Life's Journey, Terrence Malick, USA and Germany

Human Rights Nights Award: Ku Qian (Bitter Money), Bing Wang, Hong Kong and France
Special Mention: Robinù, Michele Santoro, Italy

Online Critics Awards
Mouse d'Oro for Best Film in Competition: Jackie, Pablo Larraín, USA and Chile
Mouse d'Argento for Best Film Out of Competition: Austerlitz, Sergei Loznitsa, Germany

Queer Lion: Hjartasteinn (Heartstone) by Guðmundur Arnar Guðmundsson, Iceland and Denmark

Nuovo IMAIE Talent Award
Camilla Diana in Tommaso, Kim Rossi Stuart, Italy
Daniele Parisi in Orecchie (Ears), Alessandro Aronadio, Italy

Sorriso Diverso Venezia 2016 Award
Best Italian Film (tie)
Questi Giorni, Michele Vannucci, Italy
Il più grande sogno (I Was a Dreamer), Michele Vannucci, Italy
Best Film in a Foreign-Language: Ang Babaeng Humayo (The Woman Who Left), Lav Diaz, Philippines

Soundtrack Stars Award:  L'Estate Addosso (Summertime), Gabriele Muccino, Italy
Best Soundtrack Venezia73: Andrei Konchalovsky for Рай Rai (Paradise), Andrei Konchalovsky, Russia and Germany
Special Mention: Giuseppe Piccioni for Questi Giorni, Italy

Young Jury Members of the Vittorio Veneto Film Festival Award: El Ciudadano Ilustre, Mariano Cohn and Gastón Duprat, Argentina and Spain

Bisato d'Oro:  Kékszakállú, Gastón Solnicki, Argentina
BNL Award: Palmiya Ordinaryo (Ordinary People), Eduardo Roy Jr., Philippines
Brian Award: La Ragazza del Mondo (Wordly Girl), Marco Danieli, Italy
C. Smithers Foundation-CICT-UNESCO Award: The Bleeder, Philippe Falardeau, USA and Canada
Cinema for Unicef:  Рай Rai (Paradise), Andrei Konchalovsky, Russia and Germany
Civitas Vitae Award: Roan Johnson for Piuma, Italy
Coppa Codacons Ridateci i soldi: La La Land, Damien Chazelle, USA
Enrico Fulghignoni-CICT-UNESCO Award: Mukti Bhawan (Hotel Salvation), Shubhashish Bhutiani, India
Gianni Astrei Award: Indivisibili (Indivisible), Edoardo De Angelis, Italy
Interfilm Award: White Sun, Deepak Rauniyar, Nepal, USA, Qatar and Netherlands
Lanterna Magica Award: Dark Night, Tim Sutton, USA
Leoncino d'Oro Agiscuola Award: Na mliječnom putu (Milky Road), Emir Kusturica,  Serbia, UK and USA
Lina Mangiacapre Award:  Indivisibili (Indivisible), Edoardo De Angelis, Italy
Lizzani Award:  La Ragazza del Mondo (Worldly Girl), Marco Danieli, Italy
Open Award: Pippo Delbono for Vangelo, Italy and Belgium
Padre Nazareno Taddei Award: Рай Rai (Paradise), Andrei Konchalovsky, Russia and Germany
Sfera 1932 Award:  Spira Mirabilis, Massimo D'Anolfi and Martina Parenti, Italy and Switzerland

Final Cut Awards (Post Production Support)
Félicité (Felicity), Alain Gomis, France, Senegal and Belgium
Isiko (The Wound), John Trengove, South Africa, Germany, France and Netherlands
Istiyad Ashba (Ghost Hunting), Raed Andoni, Palestine, France and Switzerland

Golden Lion for Lifetime Achievement: Jean-Paul Belmondo and Jerzy Skolimowski
Jaeger-Le Coultre Glory to the Filmmaker Award: Amir Naderi
Biennale Special Award
L'Oreal Paris per il Cinema Award: Matilde Gioli
Persol Visonary Award: Liev Schreiber
Premi Pietro Bianchi: Ugo Gregoretti

To check collateral awards at official fest site go here.

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13th Venice Days Award Winners

The independent section of Venice Film Festival that honors film directors closed today with the awards ceremony and here are the many awards related to this section.

The Jury for the Venice Days Award, chaired by the Canadian artist Bruce LaBruce, has bestowed the 2016 Venice Days Award on the following documentary feature film from the Official Selection:
The War Show by Andreas Dalsgaard and Obaidah Zytoon, Denmark and Finland

Jury Motivation on the Venice Days Award
The War Show provoked an impassioned response from the jury. We were immediately struck by the political and social significance and urgency of the film, while also appreciating its daring and innovative approach to filmmaking. We deliberated on whether or not this harrowing documentary should be included alongside the rest of the Venice Days lineup, which was comprised of narrative fiction features. However, we came to the conclusion that the film worked on its own merits as an outstandingly crafted piece of cinema, not simply one that appealed to our moral conscience. The War Show is also an incredibly topical film that sheds light on an ongoing conflict that is too often ignored or misrepresented by the media. We believe it is a film that each and every one of us should see.

The Jury is composed of the participants in the 28 Times Cinema program: 28 young cinephiles from as many countries in the European Union, selected by the exhibitors in the Europa Cinemas circuit and invited to Venice by the European Parliament LUX Prize, in collaboration with Cineuropa. The award carries a cash prize of €20,000, to be equally divided between the director and the international distributor of the film; the latter is urged to use the sum received to promote the winning film.

Most interesting is when section releases the process to select the award winner and the following is a summary. At the conclusion of the official selection, which consisted of 11 films from 15 different countries this year, the Jury convened this morning, its proceedings open to the public and livestreamed on Venice Days' Facebook channel, to discuss the three films that had garnered the most votes in the previous voting sessions:
Heartstone by Guðmundur Arnar Guðmundsson
Hounds of Love by Ben Young
The War Show by Andreas Dalsgaard and Obaidah Zytoon

The reasons for the exclusion of the 8 other films in competition from the above shortlist and from the final deliberations were reviewed, after which the entire jury took part in a run-off vote between two titles that produced a winner. By so doing, after the 28 jurors' initial lack of consensus over the titles in the running for the 2016 Venice Days Award, they were able to declare the Syrian film The War Show best film of this year's edition.

Other Awards

The Europa Cinemas Label goes to Sameblod (Sami Blood) by Amanda Kernell, Sweden, Denmark and Norway.  Kernell will be collecting the award with producer Lars G. Lindström.
The Europa Cinemas Label is devoted to European-produced films and co-productions. The Label was created in 2003 by a network of European exhibitors of independent films (over 2,300 screens in more than 500 European cities), with the support of the European Union's Media Programme, and consists of a cash prize for the distribution and promotion of the winning film, and its release in the cinemas belonging to the network.

The Brian Prize goes to La Ragazza del Mondo (Wordly Girl) by Marco Danieli, Italy
The UAAR (Union of Rationalist Atheists and Agnostics) bestows an award on the best film presented at the Venice Film Festival; director Marco Danieli will be on hand to collect the award.

The Queer Lion goes to Hjartasteinn (Heartstone) by Guðmundur Arnar Guðmundsson, Iceland and Denmark
The Queer Lion is a film prize awarded annually since 2007 to the "Best Film with Homosexual & Queer Culture Themes". Director Guðmundur Arnar Guðmundsson will be on hand to collect the prize.

The Lina Mangiacapre Prize goes to the film Indivisibili (Indivisible) by Edoardo De Angelis, Italy
Created in 1987 by Lina Mangiacapre and awarded by a jury made up of journalists and film critics (50% men, 50% women), the prize aims to "acknowledge films that honor diversity by showing the changing image of women as a subject of historical and cultural interest." Director Edoardo De Angelis and producer Pierpaolo Verga will be on hand to collect the prize.

The Pasinetti Prizes
Best Film: Indivisibili (Indivisible) by Edoardo De Angelis, Italy
Best Actor: Michele Riondino in La Ragazza del Mondo (Worldly Girl) by Marco Danieli, Italy
Best Actress: Sara Serraiocco in La Ragazza del Mondo (Worldly Girl) by Marco Danieli, Italy
Marco Danieli will be collecting the prize on behalf of his actors.
A Special Mention goes to actresses Angela and Marianna Fontana in Indivisibili (Indivisible) by Edoardo De Angelis, who will be collecting the prize on their behalf.
The Pasinetti Prize, named after the director, screenwriter, film critic and photographer Francesco Pasinetti and assigned by the National Syndicate of Italian Film Journalists (SNGCI), is one of the collateral prizes of the Venice Film Festival.

The FEDEORA Prizes (Federation of Film Critics of Europe and the Mediterranean):
Best Film: 再見瓦城 Zai Jian Wa Cheng (The Road to Mandalay) by Midi Z, Myanmar, Taiwan, China, France and Germany; who will be on hand to collect the prize.
Best Debut Filmmaker: Amanda Kernell for  Sameblod (Sami Blood), also on hand to collect the prize.
Best Actress: Ashleigh Cummings in Hounds of Love by Ben Young, Australia; who will collect the prize on behalf of the actress.
Best European Film: Ne gledaj mi u pijat (Quit Staring at My Plate), Hana Jušić, Croatia and Denmark; on hand to collect the prize along with producer Ankica Tilic.

The Lizzani Prize goes to La Ragazza del Mondo (Worldly Girl) by Marco Danieli, Italy
The Lizzani Prize established by ANAC is dedicated to filmmaker Carlo Lizzani, a legendary figure in the Italian film industry and director of the Venice Film Festival from 1979 to 1982. The prize goes to film exhibitors who have shown the most courage in their choices. This year that exhibitor is Sino Accursio Caracappa from Sciacca, who has selected the winning film and will ensure it will be promoted and distributed in his cinemas.

Gianni Astrei Prize goes to Indivisibili (Indivisible) by Edoardo De Angelis, Italy
Director Edoardo De Angelis will be on hand to collect the prize.

To read main winner announcement go official site here and the other awards announcement is here.

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31st Venice International Film Critics' Week Award Winners

As Venezia73 starts to slide into the sunset, the collateral sections start to announce their awards winners; the following are two award winners in Settimana Internazionale della Critica.

Premio Mario Serandrei – Hotel Saturnia Award:   Akher Wahed Fina (The Last of Us) by Ala Eddine Slim (Tunisia, Qatar, United Arab Emirates and Lebanon)

From this year on and together with the Audience Award, the Venice International Film Critics’ Week decided to also give a prize for the best technical contribution, named after the great editor Mario Serandrei. The jury, composed by the film critics’ Franco Montini (president of the National Union of Italian Film Critics’), Adriano De Grandis and Piero Spila gave the Mario Serandrei – Hotel Saturnia Award for the Best Technical Contribution to The Last of Us for “the admirable photography of Amine Messadi and the decisive contribution of Moncef Taleb and Yazid Chabbi for the sound, that constitute a real alternative to narration in a film without dialogues, thanks to which The Last of Us (Akher Wahed Fina) by Ala Eddine Slim carries out an original existential road movie, between ghostly intuitions and an almost abstract description of reality”.

“A confirmation and a restart. The cinema at Venice Critic’s Week is alive and kicking” says Giona Nazzaro, general delegate of the Venice International Film Critics’ Week “characterized by a generous affluence of audience and a great attention by national and international press, this edition of Critics’ Week awards the urgency of living and making cinema, a young cinema which is in tune with the world. Juan Sebastián Mesa and Ala Eddine Slim are two filmmakers that revealed themselves to the audience with an unmistakable and radical gaze. Two filmmakers that are rooted in the present and projected towards the future”.



Audience Award - Circolo del Cinema di Verona:  Los Nadie by Juan Sebastián Mesa (Colombia)

Seventeen years after the victory of Mondo Grúa, the film that revealed the talent of Argentinean Pablo Trapero, Latin America triumphs again in the Venice International Film Critics’ Week thanks to the Colombian film winner of the Circolo del Cinema di Verona Audience Award of this 31st edition.

Los Nadie tells the story of five friends who, during their late adolescence full of intense restlessness, astonishment, unexpressed tenderness and manifested rage, survive in the margins of Medellín: a city that attracts and excludes at the same time, a city that seduce them with their promises but also pushes them away with hostility. Music, street art and friendship are their weapons of resistance in the hope of a rite of passage that is able to transform them in something different.

“This is a film – says Mesa – that speaks about a generation of disenchanted dreamers that feel the need to embrace the unknown and to explore the world by themselves, in order to escape from the problems and the violence that surrounds them on a daily basis”, offering at the same time a portray of “a movement, the anarcho-punks, which is one of the most enigmatic and radical movements of our time”.

Shot only in seven days (but imagined for eight months), produced with merely two thousand dollars, Los Nadie (literally The Nobodies) it’s – as explained by selection committee member Beatrice Fiorentino in her essay in the Critics’ Week catalogue – “ spirit de jeunesse at its more pure, vivid and kicking state (…) for Juan Sebastián Mesa, who debuts in long feature developing characters and stories from a previous short, it’s enough a song, a tear and a gesture to evoke the tenderness that coexists with the rage and the disorientation of an entire generation”.



To check the announcement at the official site go here.

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