08/04/2013 - 2013 edition (12-14 April) highlights comedies and dramas from award-winning directors such as Soldini, Virzì, Bertolucci

The Italian Film Festival (Edinburgh,12-14 April), curated by Allan Hunter and Richard Mowe and funded by the Istituto Italiano di Cultura di Edimburgo, celebrates its 20th anniversary edition this year . It has brought the best of Italian cinema to Scottish venues and welcomed some of the most beloved and iconic figures in the Italian industry to present their films and discuss their careers with Scottish audiences.

To celebrate its two decades the Festival expands this year to two new locations, Kirkcaldy and Belfast, as well as traditional partners in Edinburgh, Glasgow, Dundee and Inverness.

2013 edition highlights a diverse line-up of contemporary and classic Italian cinema, including comedies, dramas, thrillers and classics from award-winning directors and actors, many of whom such as Silvio Soldini (The Commander and the Stork [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile]), Paolo Virzì (Every Blessed Day), Bernardo Bertolucci (Me and You [+see also:
trailer
film profile]) and Marco Bellocchio (Dormant Beauty [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Marco Bellocchio
film profile]) will be familiar from previous festivals. Among the others titles are Immature, The Trip, the star-studded sequel to Paolo Genovese's smash hit comedy The Immature (a festival favourite in 2012) and The Interval [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Leonardo Di Costanzo
film profile], an accomplished first feature from documentary filmmaker Leonardo di Constanzo.

A highlight of this edition is a special focus on Roberto Rossellini and the films he made starring Ingrid Bergman, tied to a new documentary on his work and his tempestuous personal relationships, The War of the Volcanoes by Francesco Patierno. Two documentaries stir up controversy, one around Silvio Berlusconi, S.B. I Knew Him Well by Giacomo Durzi and Giovanni Fasanella, and the other on the food industry, Slow Food Story, directed by Stefano Sardo.

(Translated from Italian)