12/11/2007

The Villerupt Italian Film Festival ended its 30th anniversary edition this weekend in style, by giving its main prize, the Amilcar du Jury, to not one but two films. The jury headed by Pierre-Henri Deleau, the founder of the Director’s Fortnight in Cannes, awarded Davide Marengo’s Night Bus [+see also:
trailer
film profile] and Licu's Holidays by Vittorio Moroni.

With its prize for Licu's Holidays, a docudrama about a Bangladeshi immigrant in Italy, the festival based in a former French mining town populated with Italian immigrants emphasises its continued interest in immigrant issues. Moroni’s second feature after Tu devi essere il lupo becomes the third immigrant story in a row to take the top prize.

Marengo’s Night Bus is a more commercial mix of elements from different genres and stars the likeable Giovanna Mezzogiorno and Valerio Mastandrea. The latter also stars in Gianni Zanasi’s provincial comedy Don't Think About It [+see also:
trailer
film profile], which scooped up the festival’s Audience Award.

Ferzan Ozpetek’s astrologically-themed box office hit Saturn in Opposition won the Press Award, while the youth jury gave their award to another box office hit: the Sicilian changeling comedy Il 7 e l’8 [+see also:
trailer
film profile]. The Prix spécial du festival was awarded to I.T.C. Movie producer Beppe Caschetto, who produced Il 7 e l’8 and Don't Think About It, amongst others.

The festival’s 30th edition coincided with the 2007 Luxembourg and Greater Region Capital of Culture celebrations, though in that context the festival only benefited from greater promotional exposure rather than much needed financial aid, with one of the more expensive temporary screening structures traded in this year for a much smaller venue.

Nevertheless, Antoine Compagnone, the festival's delegate general, told Cineuropa he was very happy with this year’s edition, with between 35,000 and 40,000 people attending the festival, which makes it one of the major showcases of Italian film in the world.