TAKE #13 EN

#13 SOUTH TYROL

M A G A Z I N E F O R F I L M P R O F E S S I O N A LS 2 0 2 1

IN FOCUS

#IDMFILMFUNDING

Sisters for Life

Nuanced Female Characters: Linda Olte’s Adoption Drama Sisters

DOSSIER

PRODUCTION

Un Certain Regard: Film Festivals – Emerging Stronger from the Crisis

Lovely Boy by Francesco Lettieri: A Trap Star’s Journey of Self-Discovery in the Mountains

A magazine by

Issue – Year

IDM FILM FUND & COMMISSION

#13 2 0 2 1

FULL SERVICE POST-PRODUCTION PICTURE POST

SOUND POST

ON SET DIT DATA SERVICE ON SET VFX SUPERVISION DATA BACKUP DAILIES EDITING SUITES CONFORMING VISUAL EFFECTS GRADING MASTERING

SOUND EDITING SOUND DESIGN ADR RECORDING FOLEYS SOUND MIX

SERVICE PRODUCTION PLANNING AND ORGANISATION STUDIO / ON LOCATION SHOOTING VIRTUAL PRODUCTION CO-PRODUCING FROM SCRIPT TO FINAL DELIVERY SUBSIDY APPLICATIONS IDM FILM FUND ITALIAN TAX CREDIT

MERAN/O | BERLIN | COLOGNE | LEIPZIG | STUTTGART soon in: LISBON | PUNE

Italy

CINE-CHROMATIX.IT AMMIRAFILM.COM

FOREWORD

Welcome

In recent months, it’s been exciting to observe how efficiently film crews have adapted themselves to new production conditions and Covid safety regulations – and to witness the incredible energy and resilience with which they have resumed and successfully completed their projects. We’ve also seen a whole host of innovative, exciting initiatives, such as new hybrid or completely digital event formats for both festivals (e.g. the Berlinale with the European Film Market) and industry events (e.g. the tenth edition of IDM South Tyrol’s INCONTRI Film Conference).

We’ve had the pleasure of congratulating two South Tyrolean film professionals for their achievements: Thomas Prenn won Best Actor in a Leading Role at the Austrian Film Awards for his performance in Evi Romen’s Why Not You and director Maura Delpero was finally presented with her Women in Motion award in person at the Cannes Film Festival, having won it back in 2020. We’re also delighted for Austrian director Peter Brunner, whose feature film Luzifer was supported by IDM Film Fund & Commission and celebrated its premiere at the Locarno Film Festival.

After having to cancel our second funding round in May 2021, our film fund is now eagerly awaiting the next funding calls, which have already been confirmed. Producers

can submit their projects as usual via the IDM Film Fund & Commission’s online portal for the calls in September 2021 and January, May and September 2022. As a regional funding body, we take our huge responsibility – especially for our local film industry – extremely seriously and, after these difficult months, we are more determined than ever to remain a reliable partner.

I’m looking forward to greeting you in person again at upcoming industry events, first and foremost at the Venice International Film Festival. I am also delighted to share with you that a production shot and funded in South Tyrol will be represented at the Venice Days: Lovely Boy

by Francesco Lettieri will be screened out of competition as the closingnight film. Congratulations!

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DEAR FILM PROFESSIONALS,

Sincerely, Vera Leonardelli D I R E C T O R B U S I N E S S D E V E LO P M E N T I D M S Ü DT I R O L – A LT O A D I G E

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IMPRINT

CO N T E N T

MAGAZINE FOR FILM P R O F E S S I O N A LS # 1 3 2021 PUBLISHER IDM Südtirol – Alto Adige Film Fund & Commission Via Macello 73 39100 Bolzano T +39 0471 094 000 film@idm-suedtirol.com film.idm-suedtirol.com Facebook: idmfilmfunding Instagram: idmfilmfunding

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EXECUTIVE EDITOR Birgit Oberkofler MANAGING EDITORS Alessia De Paoli, Barbara Weithaler CONCEPT Exlibris www.exlibris.bz.it EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Florian Krautkrämer EDITOR, PUBLISHING MANAGER Valeria Dejaco/Exlibris EDITORIAL DESIGN Nina Ullrich www.designnomadin.com ART DIRECTION Philipp Aukenthaler www.hypemylimbus.com TRANSLATIONS & PROOFREADING Exlibris (Claudia Amor, Valeria Dejaco, Helene Dorner, Cassandra Han, Milena Macaluso, Charlotte Marston, Federica Romanini) PHOTOS If not credited otherwise: IDM COVER PHOTO Daniels Neguliners/Fenixfilm/ Albolina Film ILLUSTRATIONS Oscar Diodoro (34–40), freund grafic design (57) PRINTER Südtirol Druck Snc Via Ifinger 1 I-39010 Tscherms www.suedtiroldruck.com

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Three Perspectives on South Tyrol

PRODUCTION #3: EVA-MARIA

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Interview: Director Lukas Ladner on Intimacy, the Desire to Have a Child, and Disability

O N LO C AT I O N

Shot in South Tyrol / FINAL TOUCH / Top 5 / 3 Questions for… / Funding Updates / Innovation

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NEWS

S C R I P T D E V E LO P M E N T

RACCONTI: The IDM Script

Lab

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P R O D U C T I O N # 1 : LO V E LY

Francesco Lettieri Uproots a Trap Musician from Rome and Takes Him to the Silence of the Mountains BOY

ANDREA MORANDI

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PRODUCTION #2: SISTERS

Latvian-South Tyrolean Co-Production: an Adoption Drama

by Linda Olte FABIAN TIETKE

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DORIS POSCH

48

LO C A L TA L E N T S

Breaking Down Structures: Director Nancy Camaldo MARIANNA KASTLUNGER

DOSSIER

Un Certain Regard. Festivals in the Pandemic Age / INCONTRI Film Conference 2021 FLORIAN KRAUTKRÄMER

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ON THE ROAD WITH…

Drone Specialists in the Mountains: Alpsvision MARIANNA KASTLUNGER

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P R O D U C E R TA L K

Andrea Occhipinti on Streaming as an Opportunity for Arthouse Cinema ALESSANDRA DE LUCA

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S P OT L I G H T

Eva Lageder C LO S I N G C R E D I T S

Christine Dollhofer Answers the TAKE Film Questionnaire / Preview

E D I TO R I A L

IDM

TAKE #13

Film Fund & Commission

Recently, I’ve been relishing every opportunity to watch a film on the big screen and to meet friends, business partners and industry contacts in person. Perhaps it’s been the same for you, but I’ve found that I’m enjoying these face-to-face encounters a lot more than I thought possible 18 months ago.

Festivals and other industry events are far more than business meetings that can be easily moved online. Instead, they are part of our social fabric – a way of making new contacts, sharing ideas and indulging in long discussions about the premieres you’ve just seen or your next project. For his dossier starting on p. 34, Florian Krautkrämer, Editor-inChief of TAKE, researched how film festivals fared during the pandemic, how they made arrangements for their commercial and social aspects to be experienced digitally, and how festival organizers are currently gearing up for an increasingly digital future.

The three productions presented in this issue, all funded by IDM, center on young people who have used their resilience to find a way through difficult life circumstances: a drug-addict trap music star in Francesco Lettieri’s Lovely Boy (set

report, p. 20), a Latvian girl from a broken home in Linda Olte’s adoption drama Sisters (production report, p. 28), and the strong-willed protagonist in the documentary Eva-Maria, who is determined to become a mother despite her disability (interview with director Lukas Ladner, p. 42).

This issue also presents members of the local film industry, including the young director Nancy Camaldo (p. 48) and the drone specialists at Alpsvision (p. 50).

I’d like to end with an announcement on behalf of the Film Fund & Commission. In light of the ever-increasing frequency of digital events and in order to make our website even more exciting, TAKE will be published exclusively as an online magazine from 2022. From next year, visit film.idm-suedtirol. com for reports, interviews and feature articles of the same high quality, only even more up to date – and all from the comfort of your PC, tablet or smartphone. We hope you will keep enjoying our content online!

Yours, Birgit Oberkofler H E A D F I L M F U N D & CO M M I S S I O N I D M S Ü DT I R O L – A LT O A D I G E

CONTACT IDM Südtirol – Alto Adige Film Fund & Commission BIRGIT OBERKOFLER Head Film Fund & Commission T +39 0471 094 277 birgit.oberkofler@idm-suedtirol.com RENATE RANZI Coordinator Film Location (maternity leave) T +39 0471 094 252 renate.ranzi@idm-suedtirol.com CLAUDIA HAUG Coordinator Film Location (maternity leave substitute for Renate Ranzi) T +39 0471 094 246 claudia.haug@idm-suedtirol.com

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DEAR READER,

EVA PERWANGER Film Funding T +39 0471 094 282 eva.perwanger@idm-suedtirol.com BEATRIX DALSASS Film Funding T +39 0471 094 272 beatrix.dalsass@idm-suedtirol.com ALESSIA DE PAOLI PR & Film Location T +39 0471 094 266 alessia.depaoli@idm-suedtirol.com BARBARA WEITHALER PR & Film Location T +39 0471 094 254 barbara.weithaler@idm-suedtirol.com SOPHY PIZZININI Film Location T +39 0471 094 279 sophy.pizzinini@idm-suedtirol.com LUISA GIULIANI Film Commission T +39 0471 094 294 luisa.giuliani@idm-suedtirol.com

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O N LO C AT I O N

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FILM

D I R E C TO R

Head Full of Honey (2018)

Til Schweiger

LO C AT I O N

Helmuth Rier

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Prösels Castle, Völs am Schlern/Fiè allo Sciliar

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O N LO C AT I O N

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FILM

D I R E C TO R

Have Faith (2020)

Giorgio Pasotti

LO C AT I O N

Gloriette Guesthouse/Tiberio Sorvillo

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Gloriette Guesthouse, Oberbozen/Soprabolzano

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O N LO C AT I O N

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FILM

D I R E C TO R

A Hidden Life (2019)

Terrence Malick

LO C AT I O N

Festung Franzensfeste/Georg Hofer

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Franzensfeste Fortress, Franzensfeste/Fortezza

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NEWS

S H OT I N S O U T H T Y R O L

F I N A L TO U C H

Mordach

A noi rimane il mondo

S H OT I N S O U T H T Y R O L

Cuma Ozan (Mehmet Kurtuluş, seen left in the picture) is on a trip of self-discovery in the village of Mordach when Laura Brunner, the daughter of the most important man in the valley, is found dead. As the last person to have seen her alive, Cuma is the prime suspect.

But he has a secret: For years, he’s been working as an undercover investigator in Frankfurt’s clan world. His superior asks him to investigate the murder alongside rookie small-town police officer Toni Brandner (Sarah Bauerett, right). The two-part TV series Mordach is a production by UFA Fiction and ARD Degeto for ARD and was directed by Roland Suso Richter based on a screenplay

by Thomas Berger. It was filmed in South Tyrol (including in and around Bruneck) and Trento in June 2021.

ARD Degeto/UFA Fiction/R. S. Richter

Murder in the Valley

F I N A L TO U C H

Altrove Films

Art and Resistance

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There’s a collective element to everything we do – even writing. In his documentary A noi rimane il mondo – Wu Ming and the art of radical resistance, South Tyrolean director Armin Ferrari examines the experimental storytelling of artists and activists from Bologna. His film explores the work of the “Wu Ming” (“no name”) writers’ collective, which was established there in the 1990s, capturing their avant-garde – and sometimes militant – approach to literature, art and politics. Throughout their history, the group of authors has managed to avoid the cameras and, after 25 years, this is the first film to be made about them. Besides Wu Ming, Ferrari’s film dives deeper into Italy’s artistic and cultural underground.

The project was overseen by production company Altrove Films from Trento. Producer Roberto Cavallini, who is well connected within the South Tyrolean film scene, brought Bolzano-based Albolina Film on board as the service producer and assembled a crew largely consisting of South Tyroleans. The film was also shot in the province. One key scene involving the online group that uncovers fake news under the pseudonym “Nicoletta Bourbaki” was filmed in the library at Neustift Monastery near Brixen. Another shooting location was the site of the former Nazi transit camp in Bolzano, where partisan Giorgio Marincola was held before eventually being murdered by an SS unit in Val di Fiemme.

As Ferrari’s directorial debut and Marina Baldo’s editorial debut, this exceptional project received support in areas including editing, post-production, festivals and distribution as part of “FINAL TOUCH #6: Intense Feedback from Experts”, an initiative by IDM and Bolzano Film Festival Bozen. “The experts gave us some very useful feedback on our rough cut,” says Roberto Cavallini. “Now we’ve completed the edit and are entering post-production – and we can’t wait for the premiere in fall.”

NEWS

TO P 5

Suspense #shotinsouthtyrol TO P 5

Lailaps Pictures/X Filme/Spauke

Five Nail-Biters

SERIES

Wild Republic (2021) Markus Goller PRODUCTION Lailaps Pictures (DE), X Filme (DE), Handwritten Pictures (DE) LOCATIONS Pustertal Valley, Dolomites STORY A group of youth offenders participating in a resocialization program at the foot of the Alps flees into the mountains after their counselor’s unexplained death.

DIRECTOR

FILM

The Girl in the Fog (2017) Donato Carrisi PRODUCTION Colorado Film Production (IT) LOCATIONS Karersee Lake, Kaltern, Meran, Welschnofen, Sarntal Valley, Bolzano STORY Special investigator Vogel is supposed to solve the disappearance of a girl in a remote mountain village. In doing so, he heavily involves the media in his investigation.

Colorado/Zambelli

DIRECTOR

FILM

Endabrechnung (2016) Umut Dağ PRODUCTION Allegro Film (AT) LOCATIONS Meran, Marling, Tscherms, Nals, Ultental Valley, Passeier Valley STORY After a burnout, Inspector Höllbacher retreats to Meran, his hometown. When a pair of lovers is shot dead, his nemesis is assigned to investigate.

obs/ZDF/Oppitz

DIRECTOR

FILM

House of Shadows (2012) Rossella De Venuto PRODUCTION Interlinea Film (IT) LOCATIONS Missian, Brixen, Oberbozen, Bolzano STORY Megan’s husband Leo inherits his family’s old Italian palazzo, where sinister shadows of the past resurface.

Interlinea Film

DIRECTOR

FILM

The Iceman (2016) Felix Randau PRODUCTION Port Au Prince Films (DE), Echo Film (IT) LOCATIONS Moos im Passeier, Pfitschtal Valley, St. Jakob, Schnals STORY 5000 years ago: When Kelab returns from hunting, he finds his entire clan dead. Driven by revenge, he makes his way through the Ötztal Alps.

Port au Prince/Rattini

DIRECTOR

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NEWS

THREE QUESTIONS FOR...

FUNDING

Peter Brunner

Funding Updates

Luzifer, the Austrian director’s unconventional horror film, premiered in competition at the Locarno Film Festival.

You filmed in idyllic locations near Brixen in South Tyrol – what role did the landscape play in your film?

PB In my films, the landscape and scenery are like an extension of the characters themselves. I choose them just as intuitively as I do my actors. We found the brilliant Monika Hinterhuber in the Tauferertal Valley. She plays a veterinarian and a confidante of the main character – and is also a vet in real life. Together, we brought calves into the world and dehorned bulls.

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Which locations are the best for making horror films?

A filmmaker’s relationship with their chosen location is a very personal one and shapes the atmosphere on set and in the film. Some locations are shrouded in mystery and have a life of their own, which you can use as inspiration and learn from. Luzifer is not a typical horror film. It focuses on people and their relationships and draws inspiration from a true story of an exorcism.

good friends Filmproduktion/Martin Rattini

Peter Brunner, Director and Screenwriter

Ewald Grum

THREE QUESTIONS FOR...

Shooting in South Tyrol: Andreas Prochaska's two-part TV series Im Netz der Camorra (2021).

PB

What is your personal recipe of success for a horror film?

PB When I was 13 years old, I got a Michael Myers tattoo while my classmates were sitting a math exam. I was always very interested in extreme, controversial films and the theme of the outsider. A successful film manages to bring an experience to life, giving it the power to change someone and bring solace. If it is rooted in truth, the audience will take it seriously. Cinema is a collaborative process and we need an audience that wants to be actively involved. I want viewers to have the courage to lose themselves in the mystery.

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► LUZIFER (Ulrich Seidl Filmproduktion) received 295,000 euros of production funding from IDM Film Fund & Commission.

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F U N D I N G U P D AT E S

IDM Film Fund & Commission has provided production funding as well as development and pre-production funding to film and television projects for ten years. Recently, the experiences gained during this time were used to update and revise IDM’s funding application guidelines with effect from 2021. In addition to the Green Shooting Certificate ( ► p. 53), the new application guidelines feature two other important changes.

The first addresses gender mainstreaming and marks a step towards increasing diversity in productions. A balance between men and women among the filmmakers involved in a production – especially in key positions in the areas of production, screenplay, direction, acting, composition, editing, set design and music – is now one of the funding selection criteria for film projects.

The other major update made by IDM to the guidelines aims to provide greater support to young filmmakers across all areas of film production, by creating a new funding type for short films and short-form series, including web series and artistically sophisticated films.

More information: film.idm-suedtirol.com

NEWS

I N N O V AT I O N

Film in the Alps I N N O V AT I O N

Film in the Alps In addition, filminthealps.com features a movie calendar for the whole of South Tyrol – a practical feature in a region where the cinema landscape is not limited to the larger, central cities, but is also very much alive and well in villages and side valleys. That’s great in theory, but it’s not easy in terms of organization: “I could go to the cinema in Klausen, Brixen, Bolzano or Bruneck, for example. But by the time I’ve looked through the websites and programs of all the venues, it’s too much of a hassle, so I just turn on Netflix,” Kerschbaumer says with a grin. The filminthealps.com calendar remedies this shortcoming and shows a collected list of what’s playing locally, from blockbusters to small festivals.

You can filter the films by category, rate them, comment on them – and put them on a watch list to receive reminders as soon as they start playing in theaters. “That’s probably the feature I’m most excited about myself!” laughs De Biasi. www.filminthealps.com

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“South Tyrol has a fantastic film community, and more people should know about it,” says Martine De Biasi.

It was this conviction that brought her together with her colleague Lisa Maria Kerschbaumer to create the Film in the Alps platform, which was born out of two different project ideas from the two South Tyrolean directors. The website connects local cinemas and film lovers, and also offers a peek behind the scenes of local film production.

There are two main sections: Kerschbaumer reviews films shot here locally and De Biasi runs a podcast where she interviews people from the industry once a month in German, Italian or English. She kicked off with conversations with director Evi Romen, ZeLIG film school director Heidi Gronauer, sustainability expert Philip Gassmann on the topic of green filming, and film critic and author Chiara Zanini, who draws attention to all-male festivals in Italy under the hashtag #tuttimaschi (“all men”).

Manuela Tessaro

Founders Kerschbaumer (left) and De Biasi, Film in the Alps platform: an online meeting place for South Tyrolean film fans.

THE INITIATORS Lisa Maria Kerschbaumer got into film in a roundabout way and initially worked on major film sets, such as Terrence Malick’s A Hidden Life. Her own film The Little Cowboy won the Best Short Film award at the Dolomitale Festival.

Martine De Biasi studied film editing at the ZeLIG documentary film school, but always wanted to go into directing. Her debut Becoming Me won the audience award as well as the jury award for best documentary at the 33rd Bolzano Film Festival Bozen.

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S C R I P T D E V E LO P M E N T

R A CCO N T I

IDM Script Lab

Where Stories are Refined RACCONTI Script Lab By

M A R I A N N A K A S T LU N G E R

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S C R I P T D E V E LO P M E N T

R A CCO N T I

IDM Script Lab

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This year, instead of comprising in-person workshops (left), the script lab consisted of three online meetings, which according to Creative Advisor Angelica Cantisani (right) worked surprisingly well.

“It really went extremely well: There was no awkwardness at all at this year’s RACCONTI even though it had to take place online because of the pandemic,” says a satisfied Angelica Cantisani, summing up the ninth edition of the script lab organized by IDM Film Fund & Commission. “We usually prefer in-person sessions, of course, partly in order to promote South Tyrol as a film region,” continues Cantisani, who has been working as the script lab’s creative advisor for some years now, bringing with her a breath of innovation. Thanks to a targeted restructuring, with a tailor-made package made up of three online workshop phases (of four days each) alternating with phases of individual writing, the group succeeded in completing an interesting journey in spite of the participants’ physical distance.

The script lab is held in English, and includes analytical sessions on the work of fellow participants as well as individual feedback from experts. Paradoxically, the Covid19 situation and closures were actually helpful in this instance: “Thanks to online meetings, we were able to bring in professionals who live far away and are sometimes not available otherwise,” says Cantisani. This experience was valuable despite the various uncertainties, and staying open to a hybrid structure for the script lab could be a good idea going forward, depending on the needs.

For even though personal contacts, as well as experiences and impressions made in the South Tyrolean venue, are a big part of RACCONTI’s appeal (“and may ignite sparks of writing inspiration,” Cantisani adds), the script lab’s main focus, nonetheless, remains on giving scripts the right polish and honing the production strategies of the selected participants’ projects.

Currently, IDM is already selecting a fresh batch of projects for the next edition: RACCONTI #10 will again feature three exciting emerging voices. To be eligible, they need to have a project already in development, an independent producer attached to it, and a desire to perfect their film while taking into account market demands and possible development partners. The participants will be able to follow sessions dedicated to script development, visual style, financing plans and distribution, before the lab concludes with a final pitch to industry professionals at IDM’s INCONTRI Film Conference. The experts lending their know-how to the tenth edition will be just as internationally renowned as the two main tutors who participated in RACCONTI #9: Eszter Angyalosy, a Hungarian writer and development editor for HBO, and Eilon Ratzkovksy, a producer with decades of experience. The tenth edition kicks off in November 2021 with the first workshop; the other two sessions will take place in early 2022.

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S C R I P T D E V E LO P M E N T

R A CCO N T I

IDM Script Lab

Fresh Voices: The Projects Developed in RACCONTI #9 CO W B O Y

NO BAGGAGE

LET’S DO AS IF

Valentin is terrorized by the very idea of dodgeball – and everything else “normal” kids in his South Tyrolean village enjoy. So he buries his head in adventure books, prepared to escape if anything resembling a real adventure should arise. Or so he thought.

Then a cowboy named Billy kidnaps him into a secret, fantastic world of misfits called the Free World and the inhabitants expect him to step into his late father’s cowboy boots. But can a little kid actually save the Free World from the evil Shadow Rider?

Jeanne is a nun in her 40s who has been living in a convent for a decade.

She decides to return to her childhood home in a small village in the French countryside, where she reunites with her younger sister Caroline, who runs the family hotel and can’t believe her eyes when she sees Jeanne enter the lobby. They will have to learn to accept each other’s lifestyle.

Linda is ten years old, stutters, and is painfully shy. Her parents are about to break up, and she wants to prevent them from doing so. She decides to realize her father’s dream of having a son to play football with, and also to become a dancer, as her mother always wanted. She wins a contest and takes everyone to Rome, the city where her parents met, hoping that they will finally be able to resolve their marital problems.

WRITTEN AND DIRECTED BY: Lisa Maria Kerschbaumer, who previously directed the web series Crimetube South Tyrol (2017) and the short film The Little Cowboy (2019) PRODUCED BY: Cassandra Han/Enrosadira Pictures

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RACCONTI participants with advisors and IDM employees during an online workshop (right). Hybrid formats could be a good option for future industry events.

Tom Sommerlatte, director of Summers Downstairs (2015) and Bruder Schwester Herz (2019) PRODUCED BY: Iris Sommerlatte/Osiris Media WRITTEN AND DIRECTED BY:

WRITTEN AND DIRECTED BY: Cristina Puccinelli, journalist, cinema coach, artistic and casting director, as well as the director of several award-winning shorts

FLASHBACK

2020

IDM FUNDING C A L LS 2022 TYPES OF FUNDING Production Funding Development and Pre-Production Funding Short Film Funding film.idm-suedtirol.com

© Martin Rattini

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Die geförderten Projekte des Jahres

LO P RR OEDM U CI P TS I OUNM # 1

LO F I LRME M I P S U M

LO D I RREECMTO I PRS U M

LoremBoy Lovely Ipsum (2021)

Lorem Ipsum Francesco Lettieri

Back to Basics Francesco Lettieri tells the story of a young man who has lost his way. A visit to Lovely Boy’s South Tyrolean set

By

ANDREA MORANDI Photography

R O B E R TO CO V I

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LO R E M I P S U M

PRODUCTION

Francesco Lorem Ipsum Lettieri, Giuseppe Fiore Lorem Ipsum Indigo Film

LO R E M I P S U M

Lorem Ipsum

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S LO C R IEPMT I P S U M

In Lovely Boy, Francesco Lettieri's protagonist Nic (Andrea Carpenzano) gets lost in the chaos of nights spent clubbing in Rome and ends up in a drug rehab facility in the mountains.

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PRODUCTION #1

FILM

D I R E C TO R

Lovely Boy (2021)

Francesco Lettieri

Suddenly, silence. The hubbub of the city disappears, and all sound seems to sink into the valley. After just a few steps, the only thing you hear is the sound of tree branches swaying in the wind. Little else. Nothing, in fact. Everything seems a bit unreal in Gufidaun, above the small town of Klausen, a little more than thirty kilometers from Bolzano. But it is in fact an entirely other world, where the frenzy of the digital age no longer exists. Or never arrived, to be precise. The last outpost of civilization as we know it is the Hotel Gnollhof. There’s a parking lot, some people: an isolated spot that’s been tamed.

Beyond that, it’s just trees and silence: wilderness. We leave the world behind, one meter at a time. And the forest takes center stage as we are swallowed up.

After some minutes of walking, we arrive at an abandoned house. Here, the small group of people we came to meet is busy at work: it’s the crew of Lovely Boy, the new film directed by Francesco Lettieri, produced by Indigo Film in collaboration with Vision Distribution and Sky, with the support of IDM Film Fund & Commission.

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With its creaking stairs and old mattresses, the abandoned Stammer Hotel above Klausen fascinated the crew.

SCRIPT

PRODUCTION

Francesco Lettieri, Giuseppe Fiore

Indigo Film

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“In the Roman part of the film, we witness Nic’s existential emptiness; but here we see his return to the essentials, to relationships, to human beings.”

Director Lettieri on the South Tyrolean set.

“No, the location is not accidental. In fact, the geography is very important to the narrative of my film,” says Lettieri, looking around during a lull in the action. “And to think that I came here to South Tyrol to ski when I was a child, but, apart from the slopes, I knew next to nothing about this region. And yes, I must say it was quite a lovely surprise.” Far removed from everything, from all the hustle and bustle, it’s like witnessing a hole in time, sitting on a wooden bench in front of the old house with an ancient, faded sign: Stammer.

EMPTINESS AND RELIEF

The house called Stammer was a hotel that shut down one day fifteen summers ago, bidding farewell to the last tourist before facing a series of winters that have made it what it now is, amid creaking stairs and a thick cellar smell that doesn’t leave you even after you’re gone.

“Lovely Boy is divided into two parts,” Lettieri continues, “two parts that carry equal weight. We see the protagonist, Nic, in Rome, lost in the chaos of aggressive concerts, clubbing nights and various substances, before ending up here, in a community of recovering drug addicts.” Nic, aka

Lovely Boy, is a singer. He’s a star in Rome’s trap music scene, sucked into a spiral of self-destruction after achieving success. Nic is played by Andrea Carpenzano who, with tattoos on his face and restless glances, wanders around the set looking for the right position, an almost alien figure inside the old Stammer Hotel.

An alien as utterly foreign as the crew must appear to the lady from the neighboring farmhouse, who observes everything with a detachment that may seem naïve, but in fact exudes wisdom. “Because this is a place that forces you to examine yourself, to face yourself,” Lettieri reflects. “In the Roman part of the film, we witness Nic’s existential emptiness; but here we see his return to the essentials, to relationships, to human beings. As a filmmaker, I felt the same relief upon coming up here: After shooting a lot of anxiety-provoking scenes in the city, I found myself in this wild place where nothing seems to happen; but which in truth is the only place where things are real.”

In addition to here at the Stammer Hotel, Lovely Boy was also shot at Meran train station and two other locations near Klausen. It represents Indigo’s first foray into South Tyrol. “Yes, we finally managed to shoot here this

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Lovely Boy (2021)

Francesco Lettieri

NICCOLÒ AKA LOVELY BOY is a star of the Roman trap scene, with tattoos on his face, heaps of raw talent and little regard for the rest of the world. His dizzying rise to stardom is followed by an equally dizzying fall. The film alternates between present events and sequences from the previous year: One part of the narrative is the story of his success in the music scene and on social media, and his gradual descent into the abyss of drug addiction. The other follows his difficult path to recovery in a rehab facility in South Tyrol. The present and the past are in constant dialogue with each other, letting the audience into Niccolò’s two parallel lives: the frenetic and increasingly extreme one in Rome, and the one in South Tyrol, full of stillness, introspection and human revelations. Lovely Boy is an Indigo Film production (Nicola Giuliano, Francesca Cima, Carlotta Calori), directed by Francesco Lettieri, who also penned the screenplay together with Giuseppe Fiore. Filming in various locations in South Tyrol took place in May of 2021 with the participation of various local professionals. The project received 250,000 euros of production funding from IDM Film Fund & Commission.

With tattoos on his face and restless glances, Andrea Carpenzano, who plays Nic, is an almost alien figure inside the old, rural hotel.

time,” nods Nicola Giuliano, a producer at Indigo and an Oscar winner for Paolo Sorrentino’s The Great Beauty.

“We’ve been trying for many years. We’ve always wanted to shoot here, and I’m happy to be here with a film that means a lot to all of us. As soon as Francesco saw these locations, he immediately fell in love with them and we came up here to shoot. Production needs have always been important to us, but artistic needs carry even more weight. And we immediately hit it off with Francesco: We instantly understood each other. He’s capable of combining a strong realistic representation with a dramaturgical approach that doesn’t eschew a classical storytelling structure.”

T H E M U S I C O F A N X I E T Y, T H E S I L E N C E O F E V E N I N G

Just as Giuliano finishes his sentence, a sudden gust of wind kicks up. Above our heads, the white clouds stand stark against the blue sky, creating a sort of impressionist painting that seems to change from moment to moment.

“I’m a man of the sea, you know,” he smiles, “Neapolitan.

But I’ve always been crazy about the mountains. It hit me

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SCRIPT

PRODUCTION

Francesco Lettieri, Giuseppe Fiore

Indigo Film

like a thunderbolt when I first saw Fred Zinnemann’s film Five Days One Summer, starring Sean Connery. That was the moment I discovered that mountains are a whole world apart, perhaps truly the only place in which one can profoundly confront oneself, with no alibis.”

Lunchtime leads the small group of people outdoors, scattered haphazardly among wooden benches and randomly created seating. In the era of sharing at any cost, lost in a social media frenzy to post everything as soon as it happens, this improvised, shared meal smacks of a distant, almost childlike happiness, when little was needed except the company of others. “And to think that Lovely Boy was set elsewhere originally,” says Indigo’s Carlotta Calori, “but after the scouting, Francesco was so pleased with the locations and fascinated by the atmosphere that he decided to set part of the film right here in Klausen.”

Not far from the set, amid the crew moving from one corner to another and resuming work, we meet Elisa Nicoli, the second A. D., who is quite familiar with these places, having been born and raised in Bolzano, then moving on to

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“We've finally managed to shoot in South Tyrol – with a project that means a lot to all of us.”

Producer Nicola Giuliano on location.

Padua and Rome before returning home. “I love film.

Always have,” she says. “I have a degree in editing. Some years ago, knowing that finally some films would shoot here in South Tyrol, I came back because I wanted to get into it.

My first experience was a few years ago on the set of Giacomo Battiato’s Max and Hélène. I was in the photography department, but my main interest was in directing. So, after having managed extras for a while on the various sets that have shot in our region, my very first A. D. job arrived, thanks to Lovely Boy – an experience that is proving to be really intense. Carpenzano? A wonderful actor, and also very nice. He never gets stressed on set, even in the most difficult moments.”

Before Lettieri resumes shooting, we meet up again with him to clarify one last aspect of the film, which is not exactly a minor one: the music. “Carpenzano plays a trap musician. By necessity, we therefore had to build a repertoire and aesthetic around him that would make him credible. Andrea knows the Roman music scene well, and he’s even friendly with some of the trap artists. So he

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Lovely Boy (2021)

Francesco Lettieri

“An experience that is proving to be really intense.”

South Tyrolean Assistant Director Elisa Nicoli.

xyz

studied up on everything before we started filming, starting with the Dark Polo Gang.” The Roman group is one of the most popular in the controversial trap genre, a sub-genre of rap with Italian-language lyrics which originated from American hip hop. Major artists such as Sfera Ebbasta and Ghali have been highly popular among a very young Italian audience for a few years now. “But be warned: I’m not making a movie about trap,” Lettieri continues. “Rather, Lovely Boy is about the inner journey of a young man. I worked with influential producer Paco Martinelli on the soundtrack: He wrote some unreleased tracks that break away from Italian trap. We tried to make something that wouldn’t sound old once the film comes out, trying to create a separate genre that mixes emo, pop, rap and trap.”

As soon as he finishes the sentence, Lettieri disappears into

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the Stammer Hotel once more to complete one of the key scenes of the film, which he reveals to us during the interview, but about which we will of course remain silent. The day is coming to an end. Evening falls slowly upon the last moments of the shoot and, after saying goodbye to everyone, we descend meter by meter, in order to re-enter the chaos of traffic, amid the noise and the cars, the words and the message notifications, trying to preserve the emotions we felt as long as possible. And in that very moment, with the old faded writing on the wall of the Stammer still in my mind, the words of Peter Handke pop into my mind, without me having called them: “The external silence of evening transforms slowly into the inner warmth of the T#13 body.”

SCRIPT

PRODUCTION

Francesco Lettieri, Giuseppe Fiore

Indigo Film

TA K E # 1 3

A whole world apart: The abandoned Stammer Hotel in Gufidaun was a place full of silence and marked a stark contrast with the loud, energetic buzz of the Roman portion of the shoot.

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Sisters (2022)

Linda Olte

A bold cinematic debut, a tender adoption story – and an example of a lowfriction Italian-Latvian co-production Linda Olte’s Sisters

By

FA B I A N T I E T K E Photography

TO M S M A J O R S D A N I E LS N E G U L I N E R S MICHAEL LINTNER

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With their mother in prison, two young sisters, Anastasija and Diana, are living in an orphanage in Latvia.

When an American family considers adopting both of them, they’re faced with a difficult decision. While Diana is immediately gung-ho about a life in the U.S., Anastasija is more hesitant, unconvinced that she even wants to be adopted at all. In the midst of their struggle to make a decision, Anastasija finds out that her birth mother has been released from prison some time ago – and all avenues seem reopened to the life for which she has always longed. But her mother has too many difficulties in her own life to be able to be there for Anastasija.

Sisters (Māsas) is Linda Olte’s feature film debut, with the director having previously worked primarily for Latvian television. Filming wrapped up in the first week of June, with a shoot in South Tyrol, most of which involved interiors. The film is a co-production between the Riga-based production companies Fenixfilm and Deep Sea Studios, and Bolzano-based Albolina Film.

PRODUCTION

Linda Olte

Fenixfilm / Deep Sea Studios / Albolina Film

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SCRIPT

Sisters Julija (Katrina Kreslina, top left), Diana (Gerda Aljena, top right) and Anastasija (Emma Skirmante, right): an array of interesting, conflicted adult and young female characters.

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PRODUCTION #2

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Sisters (2022)

Linda Olte

The production history of Sisters begins with another project. Producer and director Matīss Kaža needed mountains for his Latvian western Wild East (earlier working title Where the Road Leads), and his cinematographer Aleksandrs Grebnevs knew the South Tyrolean mountain landscape from his university days. The production applied for funding from the South Tyrolean Film Fund (IDM) and Kaža hired Albolina Film, which offers production services in addition to its own productions, for the shoot in South Tyrol. The collaboration went swimmingly, and the idea for a joint project was born. Once again, Grebnevs was involved: In 2019, he introduced Matīss Kaža to director Linda Olte.

During the development process, the European infrastructure for film development proved its worth: The production won the Italian Baltic Development Award, established just three years ago and sponsored by MiC, the Lithuanian Film Centre, the Estonian Film Institute and the National Film Centre of Latvia. The award was announced last year at the When East Meets West co-production forum in Trieste. The screenplay, meanwhile, was partly developed during a workshop organized by the Sources 2 program. Last fall, the team submitted the project

Pictured: the South Tyrolean set for Sisters. Shooting with a Latvian and Italian crew required trust between the production partners.

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to the Warsaw co-production market for European children’s films called Kids Kino Industry. And funding for Sisters came from South Tyrol’s IDM, the National Film Centre of Latvia, Eurimages and the Italian Tax Credit.

Principal photography first began on March 20, but a crew member tested positive for Covid right after the first day of shooting, shutting the production down. The shoot restarted on April 18 with some difficulties – crew agreements had to be readjusted because scheduled crew members had already been booked by other projects – but then sailed through the remaining 30 or so days without further incident. Both Wilfried Gufler of Albolina Film and Matīss Kaža emphasize the importance of having a mixture of basic trust and clear agreements between the partners during all of these co-production negotiations. The most important ground rule, Gufler says, was location: The Latvian team coordinated everything in Riga, while Albolina Film was responsible in South Tyrol.

Just how smoothly the project went is reflected in the fact that it was only minor details that caused any friction at all. Differing ideas about catering was one of them, and varying descriptions of departmental tasks, depending

SCRIPT

PRODUCTION

Linda Olte

Fenixfilm / Deep Sea Studios / Albolina Film

SISTERS (Māsas) was directed and written by Linda Olte and is based on the true story of two sisters. Anastasija, 13 years old, and Diana, 9, are growing up in a Latvian orphanage. An American family wants to adopt them, but they find out that their mother, Alla, has been released from prison. Anastasija tries to build a relationship with her mother and, unlike Diana, does not wish to leave her home country. She has to make a difficult decision for herself and her younger sister because it is against the law for sisters to be separated. Sisters is being produced by Debora Nischler from Albolina Film (Bolzano) in co-production with Matīss Kaža, Una Celma and Dace Siatkovska from Fenixfilm (Latvia). The film received 190,000 euros of production funding from IDM Film Fund & Commission. The drama is due to be released in cinemas in spring 2022.

Director Linda Olte has always edited her projects herself, so handing over “her baby” for editing will be a new experience.

on the country of origin, was another. Kaža emphasizes that the real learning process with all these issues was that there is always a stark difference in film productions from one country to the next; you have to be aware of that, even if you think you’re working on the same set. For the most part, the solution was relatively simple. Only one difference was really noticeable: the different customs and regulations between Italy and Latvia regarding working hours per day.

While in Latvia 12 hours per day are common, the cap in Italy is 10 hours. However, in the end, this difference was simply factored into the shooting days and did not play any further role.

The biggest challenge facing the crew during this pandemic period was travel. When asked how Covid affected the shoot, Wilfried Gufler’s first response is that the pandemic made “everything more difficult and more expensive.” But he goes on to say that over the course of the emergency, they developed a way of dealing with the situation. The team was tested frequently and FFP2 masks were worn during filming to the greatest extent possible.

Gufler adds that “It’s not so dramatic once people are shooting and stay in their microcosm; the travel phases are more of a problem. Once the crew is housed together in a hotel, it’s easy to handle.” Matīss Kaža also recalls many discussions about crew travel and the constantly changing rules about who had to present which document where and

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Night shoot in Riga (left); Latvian producer Matīss Kaža.

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Sisters (2022)

Linda Olte

when, or how recent Covid tests had to be. Finally, just when they thought they were through with the worst of it, another lockdown loomed shortly before the end of filming.

Despite all this, listening to the co-production partners talk now – during a break between shooting and post-production – the virus cannot have had much effect on the mood during the shoot. Wilfried Gufler raves about the “fresh, fantastic production,” Matīss Kaža is enthusiastic about the atmosphere on set and the respectful attitude toward producers and filmmakers in Italy. The latter are clearly seen “more as artists and not so much as part of an industry” there, he says. In retrospect, director Linda Olte is also impressed by how smoothly the shoot went. She says this has to do on the one hand with a certain pragmatism, which is due in no small part to the budget, and on the other hand with the well-rehearsed duo of cinematographers, Latvian Aleksandrs Grebnevs and South Tyrolean Harald Erschbaumer. For everyone, the diversity of languages on set was a source of great fascination. While the working language was English, many conversations took place in Latvian, Italian or Russian.

The break after the shoot is likely to be short-lived, especially for the director. Olte has often been responsible for editing her own work as well as directing it and intends

to complete a rough cut by the end of August. Handing over “her baby” at that time will be new, but also the right thing to do, she adds during the interview. The co-production continues in the post-production phase: The composer and sound designer will both come from South Tyrol. The film should be ready for submission to 2022 festivals by the end of the year.

Producer Kaža notes that the pandemic has raised the hurdles in terms of release. The backlog of productions that could not be screened at festivals in the last 18 months because they were cancelled or could not be released in cinemas because they were closed, is noticeable to distributors and sales agents. As for Latvia, they already have a contract with a television station and there is definitely interest among distributors, so Kaža is confident that the film will find its way, in spite of the pandemic and the usual reluctance to release first films.

The Sisters production is an example of how co-productions between European countries that do not have a long tradition of such projects can run smoothly. Europe’s script-development infrastructure and film funding both play a part in this, as do the personal relationships that have been formed through training programs and profesT # 13 sional contacts.

Film set in Riga (left); South Tyrolean producer Wilfried Gufler, who was very impressed by the “fresh, fantastic production.”

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SCRIPT

PRODUCTION

Linda Olte

Fenixfilm / Deep Sea Studios / Albolina Film

Producer Debora Nischler.

“I was hooked straightaway”

Shooting in Latvia with South Tyrolean cameraman Harald Erschbaumer.

“There are certain projects that you instantly know you want. Sisters was one of those. When Matīss Kaža emailed me the brief synopsis and teaser, I immediately thought that it was the Latvian answer to Nora Fingscheidt’s German hit System Crasher. I was hooked straightaway by Linda Olte’s naturalistic storytelling and the flashes of playfulness that contrast with her film’s depiction of social hardship.

The internal and external conflicts experienced by the characters are universal and far from unique to the film’s setting of Riga. At Albolina Film, we want to pursue a feminist agenda and broach the issues of racism, emancipation and social background. Sisters meets these objectives several times over with its young, talented female screenwriter and director, who tackles the theme of social origin – and its array of interesting adult and young female characters.

My use of the word ‘interesting’ rather than ‘strong’ is deliberate here. I think it’s a real shame that people have a habit of referring to lead female characters as ‘strong’.

Interesting characters are sometimes weak, conflicted and ambiguous – or, in other words, free from stereotypes. A good example of this is the film’s main character, Anastasija. She is cheeky and frenetic, intelligent and caring. And because of her tough childhood, she is more mature and hard-nosed than a 13-year-old should be. But, at the end of the day, she is just a child, who sits alone in a playground at night and yearns for a parental figure. Or her older sister Julija, whose neglect of her own baby raises the question of transgenerational patterns of behavior. What are these patterns caused by? Are they down to nature or nurture? Social background or the lack of financial security? And, finally, there’s Anastasija’s mother, who herself is so unstable that she is unable to offer her children any stability – which is a taboo in a society like ours that expects mothers to sacrifice themselves for their children.

Sisters’ strength as a social drama lies in its ability to portray a different reality and to call hasty judgments into T#13 question.”

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Caroline Renzler

Debora Nischler (Albolina Film) on why she was eager to co-produce Sisters

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DOSSIER

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Emerging Stronger from the Crisis

Cancelled, postponed, gone digital: The pandemic has plunged Europe’s film festivals into their biggest crisis.

Now they’re restructuring – and seeking the right format for the future Focus on Film Festivals By

F LO R I A N K R A U T K R Ä M E R Illustrations

OSCAR DIODORO

DEAR READER,

When this issue of TAKE comes out, the Venice International Film Festival will be just around the corner, Cannes will have managed to present its films with some delay (and strict safety measures), and the one-off Berlinale summer festival will have also taken place. So it seems like everything is slowly getting back to normal. But the past year will leave a mark on the upcoming festivals for a long time to come.

When suddenly faced with the choice of dropping out altogether or offering a curated online program, most festivals

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used the involuntary break to stop for a moment and question what their actual mandate is. Against the backdrop of all the restrictions, interruptions, failures and detours that have plagued festivals for over a year now, we want to use the opportunity to likewise take stock in this dossier – and reflect on the tasks, passion and mission of film festivals.

Florian Krautkrämer TAKE #13 Editor-in-Chief

F E S T I V A LS

Emerging Stronger from the Crisis

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DOSSIER

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Emerging Stronger from the Crisis

Un Certain Regard.

Festivals in the Pandemic Age

In 2020, the Berlinale was still lucky. The world’s largest public festival normally kicks off in February, shortly after Sundance and Rotterdam, followed by numerous festivals of all sizes and then, a few weeks later, Cannes Film Festival. But there’s been no normality since February 2020. And so, for quite some time the Berlinale was the last event of its kind to be held in cinemas, sold out to the last seat and without hygiene measures or protective masks. Only in retrospect did it become clear what a close call it was: The program was carried out completely, despite a two-week postponement to the end of February, in the same moment that some countries were already closing their borders. And it’s intriguing to imagine how long it will take before we return to the feeling of normality that still prevailed in the cinemas back then: queues of waiting people and a bustling European Film Market. Because, since then, festivals have been hit by their greatest crisis ever. Nothing can shake a festival as much as the prohibition of a physical presence – neither digitization nor splitting off of sections, neither scandalous films nor ill-considered comments made by directors nor last-minute cancellations by filmmakers.

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Film festivals are much more than a mechanism for screening films. Depending on their size and focus, they take on important tasks that would be nearly impossible to perform otherwise. The A-list festivals such as Berlin, Cannes and Venice, together with Sundance and Toronto, are first and foremost industry events. They are a venue for the film industry to present its latest works. Festival awards can be pivotal for the careers of filmmakers. They facilitate the creation of new films and increase the visibility of older ones. Far more films are shown at the accompanying markets than in the actual festival program. The focus here is not only sales and deals for completed projects, but also on establishing new contacts: editors meet directors, producers from different countries get to know each other in order to co-produce in the future. Film is a people business – and that is more evident at a festival than anywhere else.

An online version of an illustrious festival cannot therefore be a permanent option. The 2020 Cannes International Film Festival was cancelled for this very reason.

Croatian producer Ankica Jurić Tilić emphasized this at IDM’s INCONTRI Film Conference, whose Focus panels were devoted to Eastern European countries (► INCONTRI

DOSSIER

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Emerging Stronger from the Crisis

Film is a people business – and that is more evident at a festival than anywhere else.

box opposite). For Jurić Tilić, the great strength of festivals sometimes lies far removed from the actual cinema hall: “The lively exchange in bars, in the main festival hotels and at receptions is at least as important as the co-production meetings that many festivals now offer,” she says.

A N A S TO U N D I N G LY Q U I C K A D A P TAT I O N

Alberto Barbera, the Venice Film Festival’s artistic director, made a similar point at an INCONTRI panel dedicated to the future of festivals: “I’m sure that in-person festivals will become even more important in the future because in recent months it has become clear what has been lost through an online-only version,” Barbera said. For the A-list festivals and the films they show, this is marketing, first and foremost: the walk down the red carpet, the crackling excitement of waiting and presenting, the press conferences and the atmosphere created when thousands of people with similar interests stay in the same place. None of that can be reproduced online.

Piera Detassis, president of the Academy of Italian Cinema, which bestows the David di Donatello award, agreed with Barbera. “Our awards went online in 2020,”

The industry event of South Tyrol’s film fund (IDM) was dominated by the pandemic this year. Through various panels, the conference – held entirely online – addressed topics such as the new situation facing film festivals and award ceremonies, most of which were cancelled or switched to online versions last year.

The lockdown rekindled the debate between streamers and cinemas, a topic that was also discussed on a panel. The panel members – producer Anita Elsani, director of Luce-Cinecittà Nicola Maccanico, and the CEOs of two streaming providers – quickly agreed that it was in the interest of films and audiences not to push this divide any further, but to create complementary offerings.

Philipp Hoffmann from Kino on Demand and Andrea Occhipinti, founder of Lucky Red and the Italian VoD platform MioCinema, both worked directly with cinemas: It’s not about poaching each other’s territory, but about benefiting from each other, the CEOs stressed.

It is too early to predict how the market will develop, given the last few months when numerous high-profile films are awaiting theatrical release. What is certain, though, is that more flexibility is needed in the face of new offerings and realities. The importance of being agile also became clear in the two film talks with producer/director Marco Manetti and Nils Dünker and Jorgo Narjes, the producers of the series Wild Republic (►production background on Wild Republic: TAKE #12).

INCONTRI kicked off by focusing on Eastern Europe as a production location. The producers underlined how important co-productions are for their countries – and how they always offer the chance to leave the beaten track and discover something new.

They made it clear that physical festivals held on-site were fundamental for initiating such contacts.

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T h e 2 0 2 1 I N CO N T R I Film Conference

F E S T I V A LS I N S O U T H T Y R O L

► BOLZANO FILM FESTIVAL BOZEN www.filmfestival.bz.it/de

► DOLOMITALE FILM FESTIVAL www.dolomitale.com

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Emerging Stronger from the Crisis

The red carpet, the crackling excitement, the press conferences and the atmosphere created when thousands of people gather in the same place: None of that can be reproduced online.

Detassis said, “and since then I’ve felt a need in the industry for a closeness that was previously unheard of on such a scale – as well as a desire to focus more on the essentials going forward.”

“The ceremonies will have to make changes that reflect that,” added Matthijs Wouter Knol, director of the European Film Academy, “but the awards will maintain their importance.”

Yet it’s truly astounding – and a tremendous achievement – how quickly the film festivals were able to adapt to the new situation and stream their films, something very few had any previous experience doing. Venice was the only one of the three major festivals that had been offering an online section for several years, allowing festivalgoers to buy a limited number of tickets for films in the Orizzonti section, and stream them at home. A solution that many others had to become quickly accustomed to.

Just a few weeks after the 2020 lockdown, the first online festivals appeared where you could buy access to the films for a limited amount of time. Many festivals did not limit themselves to screening the actual films, but also showed introductions and discussions, trying to maintain what actually sets them apart: interaction between cinema, creatives and the public.

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They relied on an infrastructure that was pre-existing but still led a niche existence, showing their films via Vimeo or Festival Scope – both platforms through which on-demand video has been accessible for some time. Later on, specialized new offerings developed specifically out of the lockdown experience, such as Cinema Lovers in Germany.

If one disregards the lack of on-site exchange, the experience that festivals and audiences have gained with online festivals is actually quite good. That’s especially true for events that target a specific community of interest, such as festivals showing LGBTQ films or those curated by and for minorities: Here, this kind of fallback option is important to keep the regular audience and the community together through the discourse around the films.

W H E R E F I L M C U LT U R E M E E T S

An online solution is far from possible for every event, however. Festivals that specialize in screening old 35-mm films, for example, will have to wait until they can once again show their treasures in cinemas. And there’s also a danger associated with creating an expectation that festivals should always offer part of their program online.

Critics warn against buying into the idea of greater reach – something that might seem particularly attractive for

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Emerging Stronger from the Crisis

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Festivals responded incredibly quickly by showing introductions and discussions online in order to maintain interaction between cinema, creatives and the public.

smaller, local festivals: This artificial mode of permanent availability ultimately also deprives a festival of its exclusivity.

Lukas Pitscheider is the director of Dolomitale, the Film Festival of the Dolomites, whose competition focuses on Alpine films and takes place annually at the end of September. Pitscheider is convinced that the demand for in-person film events will be huge as soon as regulations allow for it again. “Our goal is to bring people together, pull them away from the small screens,” he says. Because the Dolomitale takes place in September, the 2020 festival occurred, albeit with restrictions and safety measures. “We had even planned a drive-in cinema for the sake of safety – we were simply terrified of having to do the festival online,” Pitscheider laughs. Interestingly, his organizing team was contacted by numerous streaming service providers. “But, I mean, we don’t even have a cinema yet! It’d be hard to reconcile the idea that a long-term goal of our work is to open a cinema locally (in the town of Ortisei, ed.) – and then switch to streaming,” says the director, whose 2021 festival is just around the corner.

Larger local festivals needed to find other solutions: Bolzano Film Festival Bozen opted to go online in 2021, after the event had to be cancelled a year earlier because it

fell right into the first lockdown in April. “It was a phase of total shock,” recounts festival director Helene Christanell.

“After all, we had already prepared everything and had committed to the audience, films and sponsors.” They kept trying to work out a way to do it right up until the end of November, when they finally gave up and cancelled it completely. The 2020 festival would have been the 34th, now 2021 is number 34. While the event couldn’t be held in person again this year, Christanell’s team had more time to prepare for going online. They were also able to draw on the experience of other festivals and use Pantaflix, a proven streaming partner.

A public festival like Bolzano aims its program mainly at the local people. Going online made it possible to reach significantly more viewers in the region who might not otherwise have made the trip to the South Tyrolean capital to watch a film. One important feature of the Bolzano Festival is dialogue between audience members and creatives, which easily arises within the intimate setting of the Film Club cinema in the city center, before and after the screenings. For this reason, the festival pre-recorded film talks and posted them online with the films; they’re still available on the festival website. “But without the prospect of an on-site festival, an online event isn’t

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DOSSIER

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Emerging Stronger from the Crisis

“I'm sure that in-person festivals will be even more important in the future because it has become clear what has been lost through an online-only version,” says Alberto Barbera, the Venice Film Festival's artistic director.

attractive,” Christanell says. “One of our goals is to attract new, young audiences to cinema so it’s a tremendously important hub for encounters between film, audiences and guests.”

Gaining the interest of new cinema audiences and thus spreading the idea of film culture is another important role for film festivals, and one that is not to be underestimated. And it is also a way to stand out from the streaming crowd, as Matthijs Wouter Knol pointed out at the INCONTRI panel. The Berlinale traditionally attaches great importance to outreach, an idea that led to the founding of the Forum of New Cinema and, in recent years, the Talents section, a vibrant meeting place for up-and-coming filmmakers.

For Carlo Chatrian, the Berlinale’s new artistic director, it was therefore a priority to organize an open-air program for this year’s Berlinale selection, which was screened for industry members only to a very limited extent in March, in addition to the Film Market, which took place online for five days in March this year. The streamed Film Market received a very positive response from both buyers

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and producers: The latter received a minute-by-minute evaluation of who had watched their films. The Berlinale will certainly continue this online program as a supplement in the coming years. But the summer open-air program will hopefully remain a one-off – “even if it’s a home game, so to speak,” joked Chatrian at the INCONTRI panel, whose many years of experience as director of the open-air Locarno Film Festival helped him bring a lot to the table.

Local audiences are enormously important for the Berlinale, more so than for other A-list festivals. A film screened here can attract up to 20,000 attendees; the enormous volume of films programmed each year is only possible because of strong audience interest and numerous venues throughout the city. “In future, we must consider how to make these social gatherings possible,” Chatrian indicated. Meanwhile, this year’s Berlinale jury awarded the Golden Bear to Radu Jude’s Bad Luck Banging or Loony Porn, one of the first films set against the backdrop of the current pandemic in which the protagonist is seen with a mask on her face most of the time – a clear indication of changing T # 13 realities, even on screen.

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PRODUCTION #3

FILM

D I R E C TO R

Eva-Maria (2021)

Lukas Ladner

«Making this film was a very emotional process.»

Interview

DORIS POSCH Photography

ANDREAS JAKWERTH

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An interview with director Lukas Ladner about his film Eva-Maria, the complexity of wanting a child, and the cinematic portrayal of those with disabilities

PRODUCTION

TA K E ##11 3

Golden Girls Filmproduktion & Filmservices / Bunny Beach Film

“Many people in my generation question whether they want children or can afford to have children at all.

But for Eva-Maria, the decision was crystal clear. That makes her the antithesis of our generation – and I found that exciting.” Director Lukas Ladner, photographed for TAKE in Innsbruck.

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PRODUCTION #3

FILM

D I R E C TO R

Eva-Maria (2021)

Lukas Ladner

Lukas Ladner is not just a director. In fact, when this story starts, he is working as a personal assistant to Eva-Maria Proßegger. When she decides to have a baby, Ladner is inspired to shoot a cinematic portrait of her: Eva-Maria. The film is an in-depth study of all the phases the young woman went through, from her initial impulse to have a baby to the experience of parenthood for someone with a physical disability. In this interview, Lukas Ladner gives us insights into his intimate and multifaceted relationship with Eva-Maria, a relationship that was crucial to the filmmaking process. He also talks to TAKE about the potential and limitations of documentary filmmaking: the search for an adequate film language, how to capture subtle forms of discrimination, and alternative approaches to the homogenous portrayal of people with disabilities in film.

How did you come to make a film about a woman with a physical disability and her desire to have a child?

LUKAS LADNER My primary intention was not to make a film about that topic, but rather about how people with disabilities are represented on screen. Eva-Maria and I watched films about people with disabilities as a lead-in and had many discussions about the depictions. The striking thing TAKE

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was that the focus is always on the disability itself: not only is it greatly exploited visually but it is also made the central conflict. If you watch several of these films, you start asking yourself why the protagonists don’t simply fall in love or rob a bank – in other words, why disabled people aren’t allowed to do the same things we allow ourselves to do all the time in fictional works. So for a long time, I wanted to make a short fictional film in which I cast people with disabilities without focusing on the disability. But then Eva-Maria told us she wanted to get pregnant. She prepared us – her personal assistants – for the fact that she was going to take this step. This was the ideal opportunity for me to work on the themes we had discussed together.

When we talk about the traditional depiction of people with disabilities in film – or lack thereof –, there’s always the question of how to portray them cinematically.

LL One of the first questions I asked myself was how to show this formally. I made it a rule not to show the disability itself, but rather to always keep the entire person in mind: Don’t show the wheelchair by itself, don’t show the technical aids alone. Rather, stay with the subject, and film

PRODUCTION

Golden Girls Filmproduktion & Filmservices / Bunny Beach Film

It’s crucial for the film that you were involved with the central character on many levels and in different relational constellations. How did you deal with the situation of being a personal assistant and filmmaker simultaneously?

LL On the macro level, the film is based on the fact that I’m ubiquitous. I wanted to take advantage of the opportunity to be there all the time, in my role as assistant: We felt we had the potential to observe as many steps as possible of Eva-Maria’s journey and to avoid having to retell it. But it also means that your whole life is aligned with this film.

Oftentimes you’re on pins and needles, waiting for these little moments to arrive quickly. On a micro level, it’s like a form of multitasking, where you have to switch between

TA K E #1 3

at eye level if possible. Avoid looking down on Eva-Maria.

The point is not to exhibit the things that are perceived as exotic from the outside. It was very helpful that I had already worked for Eva-Maria for nine months. So that was already part of my world and I was able to embrace that with a certain normalcy.

Golden Girls Filmproduktion/Lukas Ladner

EVA-MARIA is a theatrical documentary by Golden Girls Filmproduktion & Filmservices in co-production with Bunny Beach Film (Arash T. Riahi, Daniel Dlouhy, Peter Drössler, Sabine Gruber, Lukas Ladner). Lukas Ladner wrote the treatment and directed the film. Much of the post-production was realized in South Tyrol, at the Cine Chromatix Italy facilities in Meran. IDM Film Fund granted 12,000 euros of production funding.

Protagonist Eva-Maria Proßegger with Lukas Ladner, who went from personal assistant to making an intimate film portraying a very personal decision.

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PRODUCTION #3

FILM

D I R E C TO R

Eva-Maria (2021)

Lukas Ladner

different tasks within short intervals. I experimented a lot while shooting; I kept looking at the footage and tried to learn from it.

Do you have the feeling that your affinity with Eva-Maria and the closeness you created ultimately benefited the film?

LL Most definitely. This was one reason why I shot on my own in the beginning: It’s a very intimate theme and I wanted to create as much closeness as possible. So that together we could find out what was comfortable for us, what was too much for us, and what it meant to keep our distance with the camera without losing anything. That’s a very emotional thing. And I found it rather difficult to portray this intimacy on film.

The film follows all the chronological stages of Eva-Maria’s journey, from her initial desire to have a child until the time when her son is 18 months old. The theme of whether one should bring a child into the world is very present: It’s borne out of an intense idealism that, in retrospect, may no longer exist in the same way. Was the idea behind it that Eva-Maria could act as a role model?

LL The intention was to provide a positive counter model, of course. But it wasn’t about raising her to the level of a role model. We were mostly focused on bringing together all the narrative strands: the themes of motherhood, family, childhood. And to give a clear idea that you can take a stand as you wish: You can be for it, but you can also be against it.

It was important to me to depict Eva-Maria’s thought processes and to show why motherhood is so important to her.

Many people in my generation question whether they want children or can afford to have children at all. But for Eva-Maria, the decision was crystal clear: She wanted a child, that was her goal. That makes her the antithesis of our generation – and I found that exciting.

When you started filming, the desire to have a child was already very concrete. How did you decide that the film wouldn’t end with the birth of Eva-Maria’s son, but rather that the phase of life as the mother of a small child would be included in the film?

LL It felt important to us to include this aspect of the narrative: The question is, what does it mean to raise a child, as a woman with a disability? No one can imagine it accurately, because everything is hypothetical beforehand, and people have their own prejudices and expectations. Seeing how

46

confidently Eva-Maria manages motherhood on her own was extremely good for the film. It made for a good ending.

The titular name Eva-Maria evokes Catholic associations for the film – and in addition to the empowerment of a wise person with unwavering optimism, the film also contains subtle overtones that echo onerous social conventions and discriminatory mechanisms that have existed for generations.

LL While the film was intended to show empowerment, it was not intended as a propaganda piece. It was meant to depict the complexity of life. Eva-Maria’s optimism is truly impressive – as is watching discrimination roll off her back.

We incorporated some subtle elements of discrimination in the film but then removed them again because no viewer could really perceive them as discrimination. These things often seem like non-issues from the outside. I knew that Eva-Maria didn’t grow up in a sheltered bubble; she struggled with discrimination and structural problems. But that wasn’t so easy to capture.

In that quest, did you find yourself seeking something sensationalistic?

LL That’s always the hard part of documentary filmmaking.

One hopes every day that the world will end, and that one can film it. But, of course, that’s a very fundamental ethical question: How far do I delve into these moments, to what extent do I probe, just how much do I want to put my protagonists through? These questions have to be resolved on an individual basis, from project to project, from person to person. In this case, I probed gently now and again, but if I had the feeling that there was a boundary, that Eva-Maria didn’t want to talk about it, it was absolutely fine with me.

The film is imbued with idyllic, richly traditional scenery from Tyrol. These mountain landscapes can appear confining to many – but in Eva-Maria’s life, they signify freedom. Did you have the intention of coding this landscape differently?

LL There are actually two reasons for that: First, it was my intention that the images I created should always have something to do with Eva-Maria. That’s why you never see the beautiful Old Town of Innsbruck – because Eva-Maria is never in the Old Town. I have always tried to follow her footsteps. But it’s true, I didn’t know for a long time how to deal with the mountains as a filmmaker myself, especially growing up in Tyrol. Aesthetically, these mountains are completely domesticated and remolded for touristic

PRODUCTION

Golden Girls Filmproduktion & Filmservices / Bunny Beach Film

purposes, therefore I’ve always rejected them. It wasn’t until I came back to Innsbruck after university that I tried to deal with them in a new way and to give them a different charge.

T #13

LUKAS LADNER was born in Innsbruck in 1991 and studied directing for film and television at the KONRAD WOLF Babelsberg Film University.

He graduated in 2017 from the program with his short film Treibgut. His first feature-length documentary, Eva-Maria, had its world premiere at the DOK.fest in Munich and was awarded the Diagonale Prize for Best Emerging Film in 2021.

Lukas Ladner is currently working on his next documentary project, a worker’s portrait on intimacy, as a start-up scholarship holder of the Austrian Federal Ministry of Arts and Culture (BMKÖS).

TA K E #1 3

Have any ideas for future projects emerged from your interaction with Eva-Maria?

LL What has long fascinated me about working as a personal assistant is this physical intimacy that one inevitably shares as part of certain professions, something which is perceived quite differently from the outside than it is from the inside. There’s friction between physical closeness and emotional distance, as one balances the self with one’s own clients and patients; this friction is not absolute but can always change into the opposite. That’s the subject of my next documentary. It will be a portrait about working with this intimacy, where I explore the question of its nature.

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Nancy Camaldo is a big fan of genre: “Interpersonal dramas and conflicts are everywhere: in private life and Mars landings, in sci-fi and historical films.”

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LO C A L TA L E N T S

D I R E C TO R

Nancy Camaldo

NANCY CAMALDO, 29, hails from South Tyrol and lives in Munich. She studied directing at the Munich University of Television and Film (HFF), where she wrote and directed several short films and commercials. Her short Skin premiered at the Clermont-Ferrand International Short Film Festival and was shortlisted for the BAFTA Student Film Award.

Her graduation film and first feature Windstill (above) screened at the 2021 Max Ophüls Prize Film Festival and the Bolzano Film Festival Bozen.

By

Photography

M A R I A N N A K A S T LU N G E R

N ATA L I A M A M A J

Lara and Ida’s relationship isn’t an easy one, but the dust finally seems to be settling. That is, until the story of the two sisters takes a surprising turn – and director Nancy Camaldo leaves audiences with an open ending in Windstill (2021), her graduation film from the University of Television and Film in Munich (HFF). “The film is a snapshot and can be interpreted as you wish,” says the Bolzano native. Its themes include lifelong dreams, the compulsion for self-actualization and the abundance of possibilities that ultimately paralyzes the main characters. These are “typical problems of an affluent society,” narrated cinematically by Camaldo with profound sensitivity and details that are meticulously developed.

Windstill is a lavish production for a graduation film. But Camaldo’s previous film Skin had done so well that the director and her producers at Munich-based Elfenholz Film decided to go bold by making a feature-length film with support from IDM, the German Federal Film Board and the BR. The film premiered at the Max Ophüls Festival. “I want to chronicle interpersonal dramas and conflicts,” Camaldo says, “They’re everywhere: in private life and Mars landings, in sci-fi and historical films.” She’s a big fan of genre, and it's quite possible that her official debut film will be a thriller.

The 29-year-old has always wanted to work in a creative field. “At first, I had doubts, because directing has been very male-dominated up until now. And I had no experience,” she recalls. But she followed her gut instinct, applied to the HFF and was successful. “You’ll always run into people who discourage you. But criticism is something you can take and turn into progress,” she says firmly.

Camaldo speaks in a calm and gentle manner, while at the same time being fully aware of her leadership role. “I do like to keep control of the deliverables, but don’t impose my methods on set. There are enough talented people there. My job is to encourage and involve them in order for my film to benefit,” she says.

“Directing is communication.”

And directing is a male domain no more. A new generation of women directors is at work, with a lot of potential to break down outdated structures. How, exactly? “By producing more female-driven scripts, having more diverse main characters. Why are female actors over 40 seen only in cliché roles? As if they shouldn’t age? Yet good stories could be told from their perspective,” says Camaldo. She also calls for more diversity in every department: “That’s the only way to create beautiT#13 ful films that speak authentically to the whole of society!”

TA K E #1 3

Elfenholz Film

Nancy Camaldo is passionate about studying the inner lives of her characters. In order to tell better stories, the director advocates for more inclusion in the film industry. Eye on Talent

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ON THE ROAD WITH…

SOUTH TYROLEAN SERVICE PROVIDERS

Alpsvision

Delivering images from the heights: modelmaker Michael Schmalzl and cameraman Alexander Fontana are Alpine drone specialists On the Road with… Alpsvision By

M A R I A N N A K A S T LU N G E R Photography

MICHAEL PEZZEI

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ON THE ROAD WITH…

SOUTH TYROLEAN SERVICE PROVIDERS

Alpsvision

TA K E #1 3

“Drones are already able to replace expensive helicopter shots or elaborate dolly shots.” Pilots Schmalzl (left) and Fontana preparing for a shoot in the Dolomites.

“The workday always starts with an espresso, irrespective of how varied our job otherwise is,” says Michael Schmalzl, licensed drone pilot. The athletic Val Gardena native is a self-confessed modeling enthusiast with a keen fascination for manual flying, especially in the film industry. His fellow pilot and cameraman Alexander Fontana nods appreciatively, smiling, when he hears the word “espresso.” The two became acquainted in 2016, when Schmalzl was looking for a fellow pilot for his company Alpsvision, which he had founded two years earlier. Now they’re business partners and their aerial shots for documentaries, TV and feature films are increasingly in demand.

They mainly operate in South Tyrol, but assignments outside the region are becoming more frequent. Their congenial, conversational tone suggests a strong, friendly bond on both a human and professional level. The Alpsvision duo combines expertise in model flying with an understanding of moving images. “It’s something quite standard for drone pilots today, yet it takes a shared notion of space and time to really work well together,” says Schmalzl. “And that’s what makes us tick.”

On this early summer morning – which is still a bit lacking in warmer temperatures – the Alpsvision team leads us up to the Falzarego Pass, amid the still-cloudy Dolomites, where Schmalzl and Fontana were often on the

road last year to capture chase scenes for the Magenta.TV series Wild Republic (►TAKE #12). At the moment, there is little activity on the still-somewhat-wintry pass between Cortina and Val Badia – the ideal place for some panoramic shots from above. Time to let the drone soar. A DJI Inspire 2 drone with X7 camera is scheduled to take off today: Fontana explains that it’s a “medium-sized model that has been successful in filmmaking because it can be used flexibly and is prepared for launch quickly,” as he unpacks it and fits it with the propellers. Flight time depends heavily on the specific flying style but can be as short as fifteen minutes. Ample charged batteries have been packed, in preparation for further flights.

A T E C H N O LO G Y F U L L O F A R T I S T I C P OT E N T I A L

The Alpsvision pilots prepare for takeoff, discussing their flight route: “It’s crucial to clarify everything in advance, and always consult closely with the director and DoP,” says Fontana. As the aircraft sets off in the direction of the Dolomite peaks, Schmalzl and Fontana are now intensely concentrated, steering and filming in silence. It doesn’t matter whether they’re capturing Alpine panoramas, as they are today, or filming actors on set: teamwork is always paramount. “Flying as a pair is much more efficient, creative and, above all, safer,” says Schmalzl. They know exactly

51

ON THE ROAD WITH…

SOUTH TYROLEAN SERVICE PROVIDERS

Alpsvision

Alpsvision's various models include a racing drone with VR goggles. But this is “a technique that has yet to become established in terms of cinematic narrative.”

52

ON THE ROAD WITH…

SOUTH TYROLEAN SERVICE PROVIDERS

Alpsvision

what to do, exchanging at most only brief inputs during navigation.

Occasional high-mountain gusts are no problem for these pilots, who have plenty of Alpine experience: “Movement within a three-dimensional space is very complex, but it also allows for a lot of wiggle room. You can see that clearly when a particular shot looks unexpectedly good,” Fontana says after landing. The cameraman holds drone technology in high regard: “The technology is becoming more and more stable, and many things are possible with little effort. In addition, this field also has great development potential as regards artistic and visual language.

When necessary, we also use more motorized drones that carry heavier cameras with cinema lenses,” he says.

A L P I N E E X P E R I E N C E A N D S T U N N I N G LO C AT I O N S

TA K E #1 3

One change of location and equipment later, and Schmalzl is now sitting in the countryside near the Capanna Alpina lodge, close to St. Kassian in Val Badia. He’s piloting a racing drone using VR goggles. This provides dynamic images with a “feeling of really being in flight,” during

which the horizon also rotates. “It’s a technique that has yet to become established in terms of cinematic narrative, though”, Fontana explains.

International productions value the Alpsvision duo above all for their expertise in Alpine terrain. Schmalzl and Fontana love to introduce their film partners to the most beautiful places they know and suggest unusual locations, such as they did recently for a South Tyrol segment of the ORF documentary Über Österreich. But they’ve also worked on a whole series of feature film projects, including Hill of Vision, Tramonto a Nord Ovest and Dreamcatcher, as well as for TV productions such as ARD’s Bozen Krimi, Blackout and, most recently, Mordach (►Shot in South Tyrol, p. 12).

Not all film productions rely on drones, of course. Therefore, the sector still ekes out a niche existence.

But with every completed project, it becomes clearer to Schmalzl and Fontana what else drones could do: “There’s a whole host of possibilities, some of which could even now replace expensive helicopter shots or elaborate dolly shots,” they note. How does the saying go? The sky’s T # 13 the limit.

“Flying as a pair is much more efficient, creative and, above all, safer,” which is why Fontana (left) and Schmalzl always work as a team.

GREEN SHOOTING A major benefit of filming using a drone is that it is both cheaper and more sustainable than shooting from a helicopter. As a film location, South Tyrol is increasingly advocating sustainable film sets as a way of protecting the sensitive parts of its Alpine landscape. To reward projects for being climate friendly, IDM Film Fund & Commission has been taking “green” measures on set into account during its funding decisions since 2021. IDM’s updated funding guidelines ( ► p. 14) now include the Green Shooting Certificate for sustainable filming in South Tyrol. This important new initiative was developed by IDM in close cooperation with other funding institutions, filmmakers and local service providers. When they apply for funding, production companies can voluntarily choose to comply with selected guidelines from a list of criteria, such as sustainable energy on set or climate-neutral transport. If they fulfill the requirements, they will be awarded the certificate. An independent institute checks compliance with the criteria. More information: film.idm-suedtirol.com

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P R O D U C E R TA L K

PRODUCER

Andrea Occhipinti

“Cinemas will not only survive, they will thrive” Interview with Andrea Occhipinti Interview

A L E S S A N D R A D E LU C A

The challenge? Creating a digital on-demand platform dedicated to quality cinema, not as an alternative to theaters, but complementary to them. A point of reference for an audience of cinema lovers, designed to reaffirm the social and cultural role of film in Italy. It was with this objective in mind that Andrea Occhipinti, managing director of Lucky Red, a company that produces and distributes arthouse titles in Italy and elsewhere, founded MioCinema.

On May 18, 2020, the platform connected the public, movie theaters and the digital universe for the first time with the premiere launch of Ladj Ly’s Les Misérables, a Cannes 2019 competition film.

After registering for free on the site, users can choose their local cinema of reference (from 150 participating cinemas) and buy the individual film directly. A percentage of the proceeds is allocated to the cinema.

Occhipinti, among the speakers on the panel entitled “Epic Battle or Sweet Romance? How cinema and streaming can coexist and prosper,” was one of the key participants in IDM’s tenth INCONTRI Film Conference, which was held online. He outlined the profile of his innovative project, which came into being just when the world of cinema was threatened by the pandemic.

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Is it possible for a streaming platform to restore the dialogue between spectators and cinemas that was interrupted by the restrictions imposed by the Covid-19 crisis?

Absolutely. Our purpose is not to ferry audiences away from cinemas to the platform, but to bring them back into the theaters. During the months of closure, we offered spectators the chance to see great films through a digital platform. It was created to enhance the offering of quality cinema, to keep the public informed, to put them in touch with directors, actors and critics, to present films in their original language, as well as retrospectives and reviews, exclusive events and masterclasses, and to support those titles that have limited chances of success in physical cinemas, where they are destined to disappear after just a few days.

ANDREA OCCHIPINTI

Which were the most-watched films?

Les Misérables by Ladj Ly, Bad Tales by the D’Innocenzo Brothers and Matthias & Maxime by Xavier Dolan, followed

by Bart Freundlich’s After the Wedding, Francesco Bruni’s Everything’s Gonna Be Alright, Philippa Lowthorpe’s

AO

PRODUCER

Andrea Occhipinti

TA K E #1 3

“Our platform advertises the films shown at the participating cinemas and the cinemas advertise the platform.” Producer and distributor Andrea Occhipinti has established an arthouse streaming platform.

Lucky Red

P R O D U C E R TA L K

ANDREA OCCHIPINTI is the founder and president of Lucky Red, a film production and distribution company founded in 1987. Via Lucky Red, Occhipinti has brought internationally renowned filmmakers to Italy and distributed the works of some of the most important contemporary directors, from Paolo Sorrentino to Wes Anderson. Starting in 2016, Lucky Red ramped up its production activity, bringing successful films to cinema and winning, in 2019, the David di Donatello as Best Producer for On My Skin. In partnership with Indigo Film, Lucky Red founded the international distribution company True Colours. In 2020, Occhipinti conceived the digital platform MioCinema.

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P R O D U C E R TA L K

PRODUCER

Micro Film/Silviu Ghetie

Andrea Occhipinti

Audience preferences also highlight the appreciation for film previews.

AO In fact, since last February we have been proposing monthly exclusive titles: “originals” available only on MioCinema, films and documentaries from major international festivals, such as Listen by Portuguese director Ana Rocha de Sousa, which won the Leone del Futuro and the Orizzonti Jury Prize at the 77th Venice Film Festival, and Apples, the directorial debut of Greek director Christos Nikou, who opened the Orizzonti section at the same year’s festival.

The discovery of new auteurs and thematic relevance are the main criteria for selection.

MioCinema also offers a space for documentaries.

A new collaboration with ZaLab, a cultural laboratory that has been active for some time in the production and distribution of free, independent and social cinema, is testimony to the importance of documentaries for our platform.

With this partnership, we want to enhance the value of a film genre that has always been an area of experimentation and growth, and which rightfully forms part of a platform dedicated to auteur cinema.

Lucky Red

AO

Berlinale winner Bad Luck Banging or Loony Porn (top) and documentary The Dissident on the murder of Jamal Khashoggi are both available for streaming by arthouse fans.

Misbehaviour, Olivier Nakache and Eric Toledano’s The Specials, Christian Petzold’s Undine and Pablo Larraín’s Ema. Other films that did well more recently were The Dissident directed by Oscar winner Bryan Fogel and financed by the Human Rights Foundation, the story of the murder of the Saudi journalist of the Washington Post, Jamal Khashoggi; and Bad Luck Banging or Loony Porn by Romanian director Radu Jude, which won the last Berlinale. Overall, this list clearly shows that cinema lovers also use streaming platforms and simply watch a wide range of films in different ways – one does not preclude the other. Our service advertises the films shown at the participating cinemas and the cinemas, in turn, advertise the platform. We’ve therefore created what we set out to do: a network for arthouse fans.

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How many users does MioCinema have?

We achieve a peak number of visitors, up to 50,000, when we offer live events with directors and actors. Our numbers are of course not comparable to those of the big streaming services, but it’s interesting to note that when we offer a strong arthouse title like The Dissident the results are really good.

AO

The new landscape created by the lengthy closure of cinemas calls for greater flexibility on the part of the players in the audiovisual industry.

AO More than ever, it is necessary today to optimize the distribution of films through more flexibility. Each film has its own path, its own history and its own potential. Some titles have little chance of emerging in an increasingly crowded market but may have a decisive chance on online platforms; others distributed in theaters could benefit from a preliminary release on the platforms and vice versa. Over the past year, distributors have been concerned about the shortening of the windows separating a film’s theatrical release from its subsequent exploitation, but it is necessary to distinguish between those films that have the possibility of remaining in theaters for several weeks – maybe sixty titles, all in all – and those that do not. I am firmly convinced that socializing is a primary and unavoidable need of human beings and we have been sorely lacking in social life over the last year and a half. Going to the cinema is a truly social

P R O D U C E R TA L K

PRODUCER

S P OT L I G H T

Andrea Occhipinti

Eva Lageder

The MioCinema platform provides a new way of streaming that does not cause arthouse cinemas to lose out on anything.

act and therefore I don’t like to imagine that cinemas will survive. I prefer to state that they will thrive, also thanks to the new conditions we have established. Cinemas must be places capable of offering great experiences with a wide variety of content that ranges in many directions.

How do you think that the role of platforms like Amazon, Warner or Disney will change in the future?

Will they still invest in the big screen?

AO The audiovisual industry is still not back to normal and everyone is trying to figure out the right solutions. All of the studios that started with a streaming service are fending off the likes of Amazon and Netflix by restructuring. Amazon bought MGM because it has a huge archive of titles that it wants to make use of, but I hope it will never stop believing in cinematic releases. Various distribution models can coexist and complement one another! And the business of cinemas is still very strong: While in the U.S., for example, TVOD (transactional video on demand, which allows users to buy single films instead of offering a subscription model, ed.) is very successful, this is not the case in Europe and the rest of the world, where earnings from T #1 3 cinemas are still significant.

41, is currently seeking co-producers for a new documentary project produced by BAGARRE Film.

Personal is about migrant women working in a South Tyrolean hotel and how they keep the tourism industry running, virtually unseen. “A lot of viewpoints are incorporated into this project through the diverse backgrounds of the all-female team, which really enriches the film,” Lageder explains.

Lageder attended the ZeLIG documentary film school in Bolzano and started her career as a camera and sound operator, taking on other on-set roles as well. As an early member of the South Tyrol Film Association (FAS), she lobbied successfully for the creation of a film-funding entity in South Tyrol.

In 2017, a new sphere opened up for Lageder: South Tyrolean director Ronny Trocker and his sister, director Carmen Trocker, were looking for support for their company BAGARRE Film. With them, she produced Ronny Trocker’s second feature Human Factors. After Covid-related obstacles and an online premiere at Sundance, the film was shown to audiences for the first time in an open-air theater at the Berlinale in June. “That feeling of actually being in the cinema is so very special,” Lageder enthuses.

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EVA LAGEDER ,

www.bagarrefilm.com

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C LO S I N G C R E D I T S

QUESTIONNAIRE

PREVIEW

Christine Dollhofer

TAKE Goes Digital

QUESTIONNAIRE

Christine Dollhofer Answers the TAKE Film Questionnaire WHAT WAS THE LAST FILM YOU SAW?

I’ve just got back from Cannes and the last film I saw there was France by Bruno Dumont. But I also saw Titane by Julia Ducournau, who became the second woman to win the

Violetta Wakolbinger

Palme d’Or in the festival’s history – wow!

WHICH SERIES IMPRESSED YOU MOST?

It’s difficult to choose just one! But recently, I was blown away

by We Are Who We Are by Luca Guadagnino.

WHAT FILM HASN’T BEEN MADE THAT YOU THINK SHOULD BE?

I’d rather leave it up to the filmmakers to surprise me!

WHAT DO YOU WANT TO STOP SPENDING MONEY ON?

A car. I prefer public transport.

WHAT’S THE LAST PHOTO YOU TOOK?

CHRISTINE DOLLHOFER was born in Wels (Upper Austria) and has been working in the film industry since 1990, predominantly as a film curator and in the artistic direction and organization of various film festivals, but also as a consultant, lecturer and jury member. She was director of the Filmcasino cinema in Vienna from 1992 to 1997 and co-artistic director of the Diagonale festival in Graz from 1997 to 2003. In 2003, she founded the Crossing Europe film festival in Linz, which she still directs today; she has also been a delegate for the San Sebastián International Film Festival since 2011. Dollhofer will join the Vienna Film Fund as its director on November 1, 2021.

PREVIEW

TAKE Goes Digital

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The very last photo I took is of a Wi-Fi password. But the one before that is of the fireworks during the July 14 French national holiday celebrations in Cannes.

Captivating stories, honest interviews, the most important news from the industry and the latest about the local film landscape: so, everything as always, but – starting in 2022 – in digital form! TAKE is turning into an online magazine. All content will be available on the IDM Film Funding website: film.idm-suedtirol.com

05.–10.04.2022 filmfestival.bz.it

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