05/09/2022 - VENICE 2022: The speakers talked through the potential co-production and collaboration opportunities involving Italy’s and Canada’s film-industry professionals, entrepreneurs and investors

Cristiano de Florentiis, Paul Golini (both seated) and Robert MacLean (on screen) during the event

On 3 September, as part of the Venice Production Bridge, the Hotel Excelsior’s Spazio Incontri hosted a one-hour conference titled “Italy-Canada Scouting the Film Industry’s New Landscape”. The event was moderated by Cristiano de Florentiis and Paul Golini, respectively founder and artistic director, and producer-chairman of the Toronto-based Italian Contemporary Film Festival (ICFF).

The Canadian event was introduced by a short clip illustrating some of the festival’s activities, including a drive-in cinema born during the pandemic, fashion- and literature-related side initiatives, the red carpet and the awards ceremony. The speakers also touched upon one of the ICFF’s side events, the Lavazza IncluCity Festival, which unspooled for 22 days this year, over June and July, and focused on celebrating multiculturalism in filmmaking. The gathering hosted 150 screenings, attracting some 52,000 viewers.

The purpose of the conference and its subsequent networking event taking place on the hotel’s Terrazza dei Limoni was to strengthen the co-operation opportunities between Italy and Canada, and to make festival attendees aware of what both industries have to offer.

Golini thanked Telefilm Canada, which has supported ICFF since its inception and has backed its mission to attract audiences keen to watch Italian films, and invited the body’s representative Danielle Bélanger up on stage, who touched upon Canada’s presence at the gathering with Graham Foy’s The Maiden, Salomé Villeneuve’s III and three works taking part in Venice Immersive.

Next, ANICA’s Roberto Stabile praised the work the festival has been doing in terms of fostering partnerships between industry players, institutions and private backers. He also announced that ANICA would be working on inviting a significant delegation of entrepreneurs who would get acquainted with the Italian titles with export potential and the co-production opportunities available, as well as promoting Italy as a filming location.

De Florentiis disclosed that the next edition of the festival would host two industry days, where the panels will focus on co-productions, and that there would be a special focus on joint animated projects.

Next, actor Marco Leonardi talked through Sean Cisterna’s From the Wine, shot in Canada and Italy. The project contributed to promoting the Basilicata region’s products and its local attractions.

Later, producer Andrea Iervolino appeared in a short video telling the audience that he had recently been elected president of ICFF. He also called on the institutions to strengthen the Italian-Canadian memorandum of understanding currently in place. Other contributions from producers Peter Gentile, Robert MacLean and Angela Prudenzi (organiser of the Women in Cinema Award) followed.

The event was brought to a close by the presentation of a special award to Lina Siciliano for her performance in Francesco Costabile’s drama Una Femmina – The Code of Silence [+see also:
trailer
interview: Francesco Costabile
film profile], which premiered at the Berlinale earlier this year, in February.