ITALY DAY AT PULA FILM FESTIVAL
Yesterday was marked by the industry programme SPOTLIGHT ITALY, which presented the Italian film industry, as well as successful examples of Italian-Croatian cooperation in film.
In cooperation with the Italian Trade Agency (ITA) in Croatia, Pula Film Festival organised a presentation of the Italian audiovisual system for Croatian professionals, covering the organisation of the system and all possibilities for support in film, as well as the opportunities for cooperation in film distribution and production. Tina Hajon, the producer at Pari Pikule was the facilitator for the programme.
Piefrancesco Sacco, Italian Ambassador to Croatia and Davide Bradanini, Consul General in Rijeka gave the opening statements.
Sandra Di Carlo, Director of the Zagreb office of the Italian Institute for Foreign Trade (ICE), Roberto Stabile, Head of International Relations of the Italian National Association of Film, Audiovisual and Multimedia Industries – ANICA, Christopher P. Marcich, CEO of Croatian Audiovisual Centre (HAVC), Paolo Vidali, Director of the Audiovisual Fund FVG, and Dalibor Matanić, whose film The Dawn is one of the examples of a successful Croatian-Italian co-production, spoke about their experiences.
The evening at the Arena started with the presentation of the Nikola Tanhofer Award of the Croatian Cinematographers Society for best achievements in art and cinematography. The Nikola Tanhofer Award is presented in three categories, and the decisions for last year’s achievements were made by the jury composed of Mario Sablić, Goran Mećava, and Branko Linta.
In the category of short film, the Nikola Tanhofer Award was presented to Tomislav Sutlar. In the category of best cinematography in a live action feature film, the Nikola Tanhofer Award was presented to Mirko Pivčević for the film Tereza37, and in the category of TV series, the Nikola Tanhofer Award was presented to Igor Martinović.
The Dawn, directed by Dalibor Matanić, was screened at the Arena as the last film in competition for the Golden Arenas in the Croatian Programme. With an already established team, Tihana Lazović and Krešimir Mikić in leading roles, Matanić presents a drama about a family that has suffered irreparable damage and the political extremism that further divides them. The Dawn had its world premiere at Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival last year, and is the second film in The Sun Trilogy (The High Sun, The Dawn, Sunset), a trilogy against Fascism.
The second screening at the Arena, the 1977 Italian classic Suspiria, a horror film directed by Dario Argento, was the Croatian cinema premiere of the cult classic, starring, among others, the legendary Alida Valli. The special screening of Suspiria was also an hommage to the actress Alida Valli that the Pula cinema is named after.
Thou Shalt Not Hate, directed by debutant Mauro Mancini and filmed in Trieste, which talks about the consequences of a decision to not help a victim hit by a car because he has a Nazi tattoo, was screened at the Istrian National Theatre. Nowhere Special, directed and produced by Uberto Pasolini, starring James Norton, which tells the story of a single father facing a terminal illness, was screened at Kaštel. Both films had their premieres at Venice Film Festival.
The award ceremony will take place tomorrow. The laureates will learn about winning the Golden Arenas at the award ceremony, so film crews will face uncertainty until the end, that is, the closing ceremony.
Following the award ceremony, the screening of the cult classic The Cameraman, directed by Edward Sedgwick and Buster Keaton in 1928. The screening will be accompanied by a piano performance by professor Mitja Reichenberg, renowned Slovenian pianist, virtuoso, and composer for silent film. The live piano performance will make this screening even more special.
Come to the Arena and experience this incredible film event just like from the beginnings of film art!
