During the month of July Filmatique will host Opera Prima Italiana, a collection of first films from directors working in the vanguard of Italian cinema.
Alessio Rigo de Righi and Matteo Zoppis' Il Solengo revolves around a man who has disappeared from society and the inconsistent myths formed in his absence. In N-Capace documentary filmmaker Eleonora Danco turns the camera on herself and the provincial seaside town of her youth, investigating the notions of identity, origins, performance and culture. Opera Prima Italiana's two narrative works depict female adolescence in contemporary Italy— Lamberto Sanfelice's highly-acclaimed Cloro tells the story of Jenny, a 17-year old girl who dreams of becoming a synchronized swimmer, while Carlo Lavagna's stylish debut Arianna delves into a warm, hazy summer at Lake Bolsena, where a 19-year old girl reckons with memories of her transition from male to female.
Split equally between documentary and works of fiction, Filmatique's Opera Prima Italiana Series presents bold, diverse visions of contemporary Italy— a culture that pioneered some of the world's most formidable artistic movements and continues to evolve through its cinema.
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Il Solengo, Alessio Rigo de Righi & Matteo Zoppis (2015)
Il Solengo by Alessio Rigo de Righi and Matteo Zoppis / 2015
Outside of Rome, a group of elders gathers in a hunting lodge and recalls the life of Mario de Marcella, a man who lived in a cave for more than 60 years. Why he chose to live a solitary existence is unknown, though the men seem fond of conjecture. Those who saw him while hunting referred to him as "il Solengo"— the male boar who lives away from the pack. Some say he was crazy, others say he wasn't. They all agree, however, that he never spoke to anyone.
Il Solengo not only captures a spartan way of life rarely depicted in mainstreamItalian cinema— it is a mysterious, timeless meditation on the aesthetics of absence and an investigation into the form of narrative itself. This first feature from Italian documentary filmmakers Alessio Rigo de Righi and Matteo Zoppis premiered at Rotterdam, Göteborg, São Paulo, Vienna, and both Turin and Doclisboa, where it won Best Film.
Cloro, Lamberto Sanfelice (2015)
Cloro by Lamberto Sanfelice / 2015
Jenny is a 17-year old girl living in the seaside town of Ostia, with a singular passion— synchronized swimming. Following her mother's death Jenny is forced to relocate to a mountain village in Abruzzo and become the caretaker for her incapacitated father and her young brother Fabrizio. While working at a local hotel she finds an empty, nocturnal space for her old life— the hotel pool.
Capturing the subjective experience of a young girl whose dreams transcend her circumstances, Cloro is a naturalistic portrait of adolescence rich with observational details. Lamberto Sanfelice's debut feature premiered at Sundance and Berlin, and was nominated for Best New Director at Italy's David di Donatello Awards.
Arianna, Carlo Lavagna (2015)
Arianna by Carlo Lavagna / 2015
Arianna is 19 years old and still has not had her first menstrual cycle. During the summer Arianna returns with her parents to a vacation home on Lake Bolsena where she spent the earliest years of her childhood. Here, small objects seem to be endowed with greater significance, clues to Arianna's understanding of her body, and her past. An encounter with her young cousin Celeste, whose feminine figure is distinctly different than Arianna's, as well as the fact that, unlike her, Celeste has already lost her virginity, pushes Arianna to confront the true nature of her sexuality.
Arianna intricately chronicles an adolescent girl's journey to understanding her sexual identity, her body, and the history of her gender. Carlo Lavagna's first feature premiered at BFI London, Rotterdam, Göteborg and Venice's Giornate degli Autori where it was nominated for the Queer Lion, and won Best Actress in a Debut Film.
N-Capace, Eleonora Danco (2014)
