Located in the heart of the desert, the city of Palm Springs was all but deserted during the last week.
Indeed, a great number of cinema lovers and professionals gathered there January 3 through 14 for the 2014 Palm Springs International Film Festival, to enjoy some of the best movies of the year 2013 and to attend exclusive galas hosting artistic delegations from all over the world.
Of course, Italy was among the participating countries in the 25th edition of the Festival, organized by the Palm Springs International Film Society. A selection of nine Italian films was presented on the occasion of several screenings, taking place in different venues and theaters around the city, including Paolo Sorrentino’s critically acclaimed The Great Beauty. The movie won the 2014 Golden Globe Award for Best Foreign Language Film last Sunday, and it is also Italy’s entry at the 86th Academy Awards to be held on March 2, 2014.
Besides Sorrentino’s work, other interesting titles were chosen to represent Italy in the prestigious PSIFF: A Five Star Life by Maria Sole Tognazzi, featuring Margherita Buy, winner of the David di Donatello
Award as Best Actress; The Mercury Factor by former MP Luca Barbareschi; actress Valeria Golino’s directorial debut Honey; Salvo by Fabio Grassadonia and Antonio Piazza; Stefano Sardo’s documentary Slow Food Story dedicated to the global Slow Food Movement; and the autobiographical Those Happy Years by Daniele Lucchetti.
Two masterpieces of Italian cinema were also included: Roberto Benigni’s Life Is Beautiful (1997), Academy Award winner as Best Actor, Best Music, and Best Foreign Language Film; and Giuseppe Tornatore’s Cinema Paradiso (1988), Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film.
In addition, two more movies directed by young Italian filmmakers – Medeas by Andrea Pallaoro winner of the New Voices/New Visions Award, and The Italian Character by Angelo Bozzolini, based on the story of Rome’s Orchestra di Santa Cecilia – participated in the Festival, but they were assigned respectively to the American and German sections due to the foreign production.
Some of the screenings were attended by the Italian filmmakers and producers. Among them were Paolo Sorrentino and producer Nicola Giuliano (The Great Beauty), Angelo Bozzolini (The Italian Character), and producer Viola Prestieri (Honey).
In particular, The Great Beauty and The Italian Character were presented simultaneously by the directors on Friday, January 10, at the Palm Springs High School and the Annenberg Theater.
The showings were followed by an exclusive gala at the Viceroy Hotel, celebrating the Italian artists and guests in a friendly atmosphere, featuring exquisite food and wines. The party was organized by the PSIFF and the Consulate General of Italy in Los Angeles, in collaboration with the Italian Cultural Institute, the Italian Film Commission, and the Italian Heritage Culture Foundation. Many representatives of the Italian Institutions and of the movie industry were in attendance.
In his introductory remarks, Consul General of Italy Giuseppe Perrone congratulated the organizers of the Festival and thanked all the guests, the sponsor Terry Weiner, and the Italian organizations represented by Massimo Sarti, IIC Acting Director, and ICHF President Cynthia Catalino.
“We are proud to be part of this extraordinary film festival, and to show here in Palm Springs some excellent examples of Italian filmmaking”, he said introducing guests of honor Paolo Sorrentino and Angelo Bozzolini. He also underlined the importance of supporting the Italian tradition, creativity, and talent in this particular field of art.
The gala was a very pleasant occasion to acknowledge the valuable contribution of new-generation Italian movie stars to international cinema, looking forward to the long-waited appointments with the 2014 Golden Globe and Academy Awards.
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