01/03/2007

The frustrating reality of “institutes for the blind”, established by an Italian law that considered the seeing impaired as individuals without hope and a talented boy who fights for his right to be creative are the basis of Red Like the Sky [+see also:
trailer
film profile], the feature film by Cristiano Bortone starring Paolo Sassanelli, Marco Cocci and a very young Luca Capriotti.

The film, which will be distributed on 40 Italian screens on March 9 by Lady Film, is based on the true story of one of the most acclaimed sound editors of Italian cinema, Mirco Mencacci, who lost his sight at the age of eight.

Presented as a UNICEF Special Event at the 2006 RomeFilmFest, the film tells the story of young Mirco, who is left blind after a freak accident and thus sent to an institution, where he gives vent to his imagination – not without overcoming considerable obstacles – by recording “audio fairytales” with an old reel-to-reel tape recorder.

Through this intimate story and against the backdrop of the student protests of the 1970s, the film depicts the moment when these institutes were forced to close down. “This is a not very well known part of our history”, said the director during the film’s press conference, “through which I wanted to transmit, avoiding sad and depressing tones, a universal message: everyone’s right to follow their dreams”.

In fact, the film is never melodramatic but, rather, is conceived as a big fairy tale, with numerous and enthusiastic actors, in which the creative and technical search for sound takes centre stage. “For the first time, the noisemakers did not simply enrich a finished film”, added Bortone, “but offered their creative contribution throughout the entire production phase, creating the sonorous atmospheres that guide the main character in his new sensorial experiences”.

Red Like the Sky is an opportunity to rediscover the magic of cinema through its countless and varied sounds. With the added temptation of doing so with eyes closed.

(Translated from Italian)