PIETRO BIANCHI AWARD TO SERGIO CASTELLITTO
“I confess that I have always been more embarrassed to receive an award than to face a close-up,” said Sergio Castellitto, receiving from the hands of Laura Delli Colli the Pietro Bianchi Award 2023, in the presence of Alberto Barbera and Roberto Cicutto, who recalled his past as a film producer in which he shared the making of numerous works with Castellitto.
“I thank you for this award, it is a nice coincidence that it comes the day after the premiere of Enea by my son Pietro, the 100th film I have starred in. However, I am convinced that awards should be deserved above all for what you will do after receiving them,” Castellitto continued, “so in a year’s time you will tell me if I really deserved it and if I can keep it. In any case, I will never give it back to you!”
The Pietro Bianchi Award is the recognition that the Italian Cinema Journalists (SNGCI) traditionally award at the Lido to an outstanding personality of Italian cinema in agreement with the Venice International Film Festival. Laura Delli Colli, after saying that “two words are enough for the motivation of the award: Sergio Castellitto!”, pointed out “the Bianchi is this year a tribute to one of our most beloved actors who has also signed as an author some of the most interesting films of recent years.”
“Giuliano Montaldo was a friend, a gentleman, as well as a great joke teller.” Thus begins Mostra director Alberto Barbera’s remembrance of Montaldo. “After a difficult debut he was able to redeem himself, films like Sacco and Vanzetti became world famous, he had a place in the history of great cinema after World War II, which at that time was one of the most beloved in the world. We were second only to the Americans. Unfortunately, he is part of a generation of film giants that is disappearing. He was a person of rare kindness, hard to find in the film world, not all directors are like that.” “I was an extra in Sacco and Vanzetti,” recalls Roberto Cicutto, president of the Biennale, “We all know what it was, however, he would have said the show must go on.
Daria Colli, makeup artist on Matteo Garrone’s film Io Capitano, was awarded the Berenice Prize, the recognition for the arts and crafts of cinema organized by CNA, now in its 24th year. “On the set we lived in tents for three months, with filming in the dunes or on a barge on the high seas, but we were very close,” Colli says, “Our work with technology became more difficult, the grain of film helped us, while digital puts us in difficulty.
THE OTHER ITALY OF DE SANTIS
AT VENICE CLASSICS STEVE DELLA CASA’S DOC ON THE DIRECTOR OF BITTER RICE
“The film is a hopefully faithful portrait of a person I greatly loved, admired and respected.” Thus Steve Della Casa on his documentary Un’altra Italia era possibile, the cinema of Giuseppe De Santis, produced by Beetlefilm and Surf Film (in collaboration with La7 and Piemonte Film Commission) and dedicated to the director (1917-1997) who marked Italian postwar cinema with films such as Bitter Rice (1949, iconic the dance scene between Silvana Mangano and Vittorio Gassman), combining spectacle and political commitment in dealing, as a PCI militant, with themes such as women’s employment (in titles like Roma ore 11, 1952, where his “student” Elio Petri debuts) and peasant struggles (Caccia tragica, 1947) with a use of the camera mindful of Hollywood. The doc recalls the director, the man and the teacher of cinema, with contributions from many witnesses, from Mario Martone and Silvia Scola to Paolo Virzì and Andrea Purgatori. “It struck me,” Della Casa confesses, “that the most diverse people I contacted immediately agreed enthusiastically to participate, a sign this that they, like me, thought that another Italy was possible.”
FERRETTI & LO SCHIAVO: MASTERCLASS AT THE LIDO
THE TWO AWARD-WINNING SET DESIGNERS STAR IN CARTIER EVENT
Three-time Oscar-winning set designers Dante Ferretti and Francesca Lo Schiavo were the protagonists of the masterclass (moderated by Alberto Cavalli) on The Art and Craft of the Cinema (“The Art and Craft of Cinema”), promoted by Cartier (main sponsor of the 80th Venice Film Festival). The couple (in work and life) formed by Ferretti and Lo Schiavo won the coveted Academy Award for The Aviator, Sweeney Todd and Hugo Cabret. Before them, Cartier’s new season of masterclasses on the Lido had hosted director (and Venice 80 Jury President) Damien Chazelle and composer Justin Hurwitz. “We are thrilled,” said Festival Director Alberto Barbera, “that the festival now includes the opportunity to learn about the art and craft of filmmaking from some of its most prestigious players, and to reflect on the many different types of collaboration and artistry that contribute to the creation of film.” “In these master classes we celebrate the collaborative nature of filmmaking, where talent from many disciplines is in demand. At Cartier we have long believed in the value of building bridges and drawing inspiration from each other,” says Cyrille Vigneron, President and CEO of Cartier International.
Already available in all post offices, in 250 thousand copies, is the stamp reproducing Gina Lollobrigida’s portrait with her signature. The presentation of the initiative, desired by the Mic, was also an opportunity to announce a new award of the Venice Biennale in her honor and to present the Nastro D’Argento for Lifetime Achievement, which will be displayed at the Cinecittà museum.
