06/11/2012 - Director Gianni Amelio presented the programme for the festival’s thirtieth edition, which will open with Quartet by Dustin Hoffman: "Turin has the most recognisable soul of all Italian festivals”

With 223 titles, including 70 feature length debut and second films, 43 world premieres and 105 world, European and Italian premieres, the Turin Film Festival – in its thirtieth edition – is paying no attention to the potential threat of Rome’s festival, whose director Marco Müller moved the festival’s dates this year (9-17 November), making it a bit too close to comfort to Turin (running 23 November-1 December).

Gianni Amelio, who will be succeeded next year by Gabriele Salvatores, is full of fighting spirit. “Some would have us only show film debuts by unknown directors, Mongolian ones perhaps, but we will be opening with the premiere of Quartet [+see also:
trailer
film profile] by Dustin Hoffman. Turin has the most recognisable soul of all Italian festivals. It is the first voice to get word of mouth going on a film. And the films are not those you will find the next day in movie theatres.”

Among the sixteen films competing (all debuts or second films), three are Italian. Noi non siamo come James Bond by Mario Balsamo, starring two friends who venerate 007; Smettere di fumare fumando by Gipi, an ironic public diary from the author of L'ultimo terrestre [+see also:
film review
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film profile]; and Su Re by Giovanni Columbu, a re-elaboration of the passion of Christ.

British films will include The Liability by Craig Viveiros, a noir-pulp with Tim Roth, and Shell [+see also:
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film profile] by Scott Graham. Breaking Horizon by Pola Beck will be representing Germany and Terrados by Demian Sabini on a group of unemployed people watching the world from their terrace, Spain. Northern European film Call Girl [+see also:
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film profile] by Mikael Marcimain (Sweden, Ireland, Norway and Finland) tells the story of two fourteen-year-olds who work as prostitutes with politicians and diplomats. A Czech and Slovak film Made in Ash [+see also:
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interview: Iveta Grófóva
interview: Jiří Konečný
film profile] by Iveta Grófova will also feature.

In the Festa Mobile section, dedicated to this year’s biggest newcomers, Dustin Hoffman will not be the only one to draw attention. Other notables will be Anna Karenina [+see also:
trailer
film profile], a pop version of Tolstoi’s story by Joe Wright, Amleto by Felice Cappa with Filippo Timi, Snow White [+see also:
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interview: Pablo Berger
film profile] by Pablo Berger, Etoile du jour by Sophie Blondy with Iggy Pop playing a guardian angel on a motorbike, Roma people in Dimmi che destino avrò by Peter Marcias, and other British films, like Good Vibrations [+see also:
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film profile] by Glenn Leyburn and Lisa Barros D'Sa, on the birth of punk disc labels and Ginger & Rosa [+see also:
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film profile] by Sally Potter.

Enriching the programme, the Rapporto confidenziale section (meaning confidential rapport) has been created for themes of obsession and possession, with films such as Spanish Fin [+see also:
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film profile] by Jorge Torregrossa, French Maniac [+see also:
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film profile] by Franck Khalfoun, and Chained by David Lynch’s daughter Jennifer, as well as a suburban zombie holiday season in Christmas with the Dead, produced by writer Joe Lansdale.

A documentary and short film section created in honour of Portuguese director Miguel Gomes will also be drawing crowds. Onde will be focusing on Portuguese cinema.

The Turin Grand Prix, reserved to those filmmakers who have innovated cinematographic language, will go to two great European artists: Ken Loach and Ettore Scola.

(Translated from Italian)