30/09/2003

This year is the fourth edition of the Rossellini Prize, which once again will be introducing four young new talents to the world of Italian cinema. This international competition is open to receive screenplays sent in to compete for the prize. The jury is led by Renzo Rossellini, who has chosen the four finalists along with the other members of the jury, Silvia D'Amico, Gualtiero Rosella, Rossa Rossellini and Emy de Sica. The finalists are three Italians and one Frenchman and they will have the chance to make their debut behind the camera. The competition receives funding from the Maiori Film Festival and technical support from Canon, one of the partners of the Association.

The next stage of the event will take place from October 20 to 25 on the Amalfi coast, a location that has often been used as a set by some of the great Italian filmmakers for works like Paisà, Il Miracolo and La macchina Ammazzacattivi. One of the short film makers will receive a cash prize of €2,500. The Rossellini Prize is run in collaboration with the Istituto Luce, RaiCinema and UNESCO’s International Council of Film and Television.

"My father always believed that to learn how to make cinema, you first need to start making it" said Renzo Rossellini during the press conference about the event held in Rome "And the best way to help today’s young talent to enter into the world of cinema is to give them the chance to make a film. And making a short film can be a marvellous debut into this world".
This year’s Rossellini Prize will be dedicated to "The Woman in Cinema", and this theme will also be explored with the presentation of films from Morocco, Turkey and India. The Festival will feature appearances by actors and directors, who will be showing their films but also giving their artistic contribution by holding a series of “cinema lessons”.

For more information about the competition see the site www.premiorossellini.org .

(Translated from Italian)