ITALIAN FILM FESTIVAL USA METRO DETROIT ANNOUNCES
2015 LINEUP FEATURING LOCAL PREMIERES OF 14 AWARD-WINNING
CONTEMPORARY ITALIAN FILMS, APRIL 1 – 26
11th annual film festival offers FREE screenings of films in original language
with English subtitles and special appearances by Italian film directors!
DETROIT, March 2, 2015 –The 2015 Italian Film Festival USA Metro Detroit announces the complete schedule of its 11th edition, which takes place April 1-26 at various locations across the metro area. In addition to the local premieres of 14 award-winning contemporary Italian films, a highlight of the festival features special appearances by directors Paolo Zucca (L'arbitro/The Referee) and Rolando Ravello (Ti ricordi di me?/Remember Me?) who will discuss their films with audiences after their screenings. Admission for all events is FREE and open to the public. Other festival cities include Boulder, Cleveland, Indianapolis, Kansas City, Memphis, Milwaukee, Phoenix, Pittsburgh, Portland and St. Louis.
"We are thrilled with the selection of award-winning films the 11th edition of the Italian Film Festival USA will present to Detroit audiences as they participate in this national Italian film event," said Pietro Sarcina, Festival Organizer. "With comedies, dramas and biographies, the variety of genres provides something for all tastes."
Opening night of the 2015 Italian Film Festival USA Metro Detroit is Wednesday, April 1 at 7 p.m. at the Detroit Institute of Arts' Detroit Film Theatre with multiple award-winner Il capitale umano (Human Capital). Weekend screenings will then continue throughout the month at various locations. Closing night is April 26 at Detroit Film Theatre with La mafia uccide solo d'estate (The Mafia Kills Only in the Summer). A full schedule is below.
Opening Night, Wednesday, April 1 (Detroit Institute of Arts' Detroit Film Theatre, Detroit)
Wednesday, April 1
7:00 p.m. Il capitale umano (Human Capital).
2013 - Director, Paolo Virzì, Drama, 109 min.
A winter night, on a suburban road, a cyclist is hit by a SUV. What exactly happened? The only sure thing is that this accident will change the destiny of two families.
Friday, April 3 and Saturday April 4 (Wayne State University, Community Arts Auditorium, Detroit)
Friday, April 3
7:00 p.m. Come il vento (Like The Wind)
2013 - Director, Marco Simon Puccioni, Drama, 100 min.
The true story of one of the first women prison wardens who is called to direct the most dangerous prisons in Italy.
Saturday, April 4
5:00 p.m. Che strano chiamarsi Federico (How Strange to Be Named Federico)
2013 - Director, Ettore Scola, Biographic Drama, 93 min.
The film is a tribute to Federico Fellini, told by friend Ettore Scola, on the twentieth anniversary of the great director's death.
7:30 p.m. Song'e Napule
2013 - Directors, Antonio Manetti and Marco Manetti, Comedy, 114 min.
Thanks to his mom, Paco, a classically trained pianist, lands a safe job at the police department's warehouse, but he is called upon to use his musical talents to catch one the most notorious and elusive organized crime leaders.
Friday, April 10 and Saturday, April 11 (Henry Ford College, Forfa Auditorium, Dearborn)
Friday, April 10
7:00 p.m. Anime nere (Black Souls)
2014 - Director, Francesco Munzi, Drama, 103 min.
The story of three brothers – the sons of shepherds with ties to the 'ndrangheta – and their divided souls.
Saturday, April 11
5:00 p.m. La sedia della felecità (The Chair of Happiness)
2014 - Director, Carlo Mazzacurati, Comedy, 94 min.
A cosmetologist, a tattoo artist and a priest are rivals at first, then allies, in a hilarious adventure through Northern Italy to find a treasure hidden in a chair.
7:30 p.m. L'arbitro (The Referee)
2013 - Director, Paolo Zucca, Comedy, 90 min.
Special appearance by the director following the film
The parallel stories of Atletico Pabarile, the worst soccer team in the Sardinian bush league, and Cruciani, a professional referee whose ambition is to rise to the international level.
9:00 p.m. Q & A with Paolo Zucca, director of L'arbitro (The Referee)
Friday, April 17 and Saturday April 18 (University of Michigan, Askwith Auditorium, Ann Arbor)
Friday, April 17
7:30 p.m. Il giovane favoloso (Leopardi)
2014 - Director, Mario Martone, Biographic Drama, 137 min.
The story of Giacomo Leopardi, one of Italy's greatest 19th century poets.
Saturday, April 18
5:00 p.m. I nostri ragazzi (The Dinner)
2014 - Director, Ivano De Matteo, Drama, 92 min.
Two brothers and their wives meet once a month in a fashionable restaurant. Their tradition has continued for years until, one evening, security cameras in a remote part of town record a foolish act committed by their children.
7:30 p.m. Ti ricordi di me? (Remember Me?)
2014 - Director, Rolando Ravello, Comedy, 91 min
Special appearance by the director following the film
Roberto, a kleptomaniac, and Bea, who suffers from narcolepsy and unpredictable memory losses, meet in front of their therapist's office. A determined and comic courtship begins between the two. Can Roberta win over Bea?
9:00 p.m. Q & A with Rolando Ravello, director of Ti Ricordi di Me? (Remember Me?)
Friday, April 24 and Saturday, April 25 (Oakland University, Dodge Hall, Rochester)
Friday, April 24
7:00 p.m In grazia di Dio (Quiet Bliss)
2014 - Director, Edoardo Winspeare, Drama, 127 min.
The story of four women - a grandmother, her two daughters and granddaughter-in a small town in Salento during the economic crisis.
Saturday, April 25
5:00 p.m. Un ragazzo d'oro (A Golden Boy)
2014 - Director, Pupi Avati, Drama, 102 min.
Davide is a copywriter whose dream is to pen something beautiful, truly wonderful, but he suffers from anxiety and lack of satisfaction. Will he overcome his insecurities and fulfill his dream?
7:30 p.m. Allacciate le cinture (Fasten Your Seatbelt)
2014 - Director, Ferzan Ozpetek, Drama, 110 min.
Elena and Antonio are not made for each other; they are total opposites, yet they are overwhelmed by a mutual physical attraction.
Closing Night, Sunday, April 26 (Detroit Institute of Arts, Detroit Film Theatre, Detroit)
4:30 p.m. La mafia uccide solo d'estate (The Mafia Kills Only in the Summer)
2013 - Director, Pierfrancesco Diliberto (PIF), Comedy, 90 min.
A tender and amusing love story unfolds between Arturo and Flora in Palermo, while Sicily's most tragic events from the 70s to the 90s take place.
All films will be shown in original language with English subtitles.
Founded in 2005, the Italian Film Festival USA is a 501 (c) (3) non-profit organization that brings, for free, premieres of contemporary award-winning Italian films. With 10 other major metropolitan cities and more than 10,000 viewers, the festival is one of a kind in all the United States.
The Italian Film Festival USA Metro Detroit thanks its generous sponsors, including:
Multi-City Festival Gold Sponsor: National Italian American Foundation
Multi-City Festival Sponsor: Italian Cultural Institute
City Festival Sponsors: Antonio's Cucina Italiana, National Endowment for the Arts, Michigan Council for Arts and Cultural Affairs, Anton Art Center
Film Sponsors: IACL Charitable Foundation, Dante Alighieri Society-Michigan Chapter, Accettura & Hurwitz, Butzel Long, Federazione Abruzzese del Michigan, Italian American Bar Association of Michigan, San Marino Social Club and Ladies Auxiliary, Cantoro Italian Markets & Trattoria, U of M Romance Languages and Literatures.
For further information, please visit the festival's website www.italianfilmfests.org or call 248-930-6017.
Italian Film Festival USA is on Facebook at www.facebook.com/pages/Italian-Film-Festival-USA and Twitter at twitter.com/ItalianFilmFest