Now in its seventh edition, Sicily Agrigento Film Festival The light shines again and from it From July 21 to 23To the Valley of the Temples in Agrigento takes us back to the open air cinema with some of the best short films in the world. The event, supported by the Valle dei Templi Archaeological and Landscape Park, director Roberto Sciarratta and artistic director of the festival, Marco Gallo, will take place at Casa Barbaduro and at the Temple of Juno on the final evening.
After a selection of more than 500 works in competition from 50 countries around the world, 29 finalists from the four current categories will compete for the Dimitra Doro, the golden statue that made the award the best work in each category: Best Short Film, Documentary, Video, and Animated Short. Among these are 17 Italians and 12 foreigners with 10 countries represented with Italy: Lebanon, France, Spain, the United States, the Netherlands, Australia, Brazil, the United Kingdom and Russia.
There are well-known faces among the finalists, comedian Frank Matano, actor in a short film with Giovanni Esposito, the video “Another Summer” for Diodato reached the finals in the video clip section, the short film “Being a Mom” directed by Jasmine Trinca starring Alba Rohrwacher As well as important issues such as “The Special Meeting” written and directed by Alberto Segre, which tells of the meeting between Senator Liliana Segre and an important politician.
Among the 29 finalists, several made it to the finalists at the David Di Donatello, Cannes, Venice, Rome and Berlin Film Festivals, and also made it to the finalist of the short film “Worcha” at Sundance. There are four directors who have already participated or won an award in Sicilymovie: Davide Vigore in 2020, Valerio Vestoso in 2017, Nicola Piovesan in 2017 and Spain’s Jose Vega, winner of the 2020 edition. A high-quality jury composed by Maricetta Lombardo, twice David Di Donatello and 5 Nastrie D’Argento, film producer Angelisa Castronovo, director Nicola Palmieri, Pepe Mano and Antonio Barron are both film promoters with various film reviews about Sicily. In addition to the four statues, awards will be given for Best Director, Screenplay, Editing, Sound, Soundtrack, Actor and Actress. The partnership is confirmed with the Curella Foundation and Banca Sant’Angelo, who support the initiative and the important issues linking the festival to social issues.
“We are also this year together with the Agrigento Film Festival because we are convinced that culture is a key driver for the development of our region,” explains Carmelo Pescopo, President of the Curella Foundation. Excellent and we hope to make our contribution by sponsoring the festival.”
“Banca Sant’Angelo and the Curella Foundation have always been at the forefront in promoting and supporting the most honest cultural initiatives” Banca Popolare Sant’Angelo CEO, Ines Curella added, “We strongly believe in the Agrigento Film Festival which opens a national window on the province in which the Bank was born It represents one of the best products to promote our land.”
The big news this year is called Casa Barbadoro, for the evenings of July 21 and 22 there will be tastings in the style of Diodoros, products of the Valley of the Temples, dessert with granita served by artisan Sicilian pastries Bonfissuto, an exclusive event for a fee by reservation that will combine cinema, food and wine What is required in this version by artistic director Marco Gallo:It is a new format that I wanted to try after the success of the exhibition Agrigento Culinary, cinema and food and wine are two worlds so highly appreciated by the public and I am sure that thanks to the extraordinary sensitivity of the proposed short films, they can and will appreciate the return of cinema under the stars. The level has grown a lot and I am glad that despite the difficulties we were able to propose an international film festival for her again this year I can only thank director Roberto Sciarratta And our partners who did not back down in a moment of difficulty“.
