The fifth edition of the “Castrovillari Film Festival – Festival del Cortometraggio d’Autore” was held from 25 to 27 August 2023 in Castrovillari and the Pollino National Park area.
Another very successful edition, which recorded the highest numbers of the festival both in terms of audience participation and in the number of short films submitted, which amounted to no less than 2,070 from 99 countries all over the world. Among the 15 short films screened in the competition there were 1 world premiere and 2 national premieres.
In addition to the evenings dedicated to the official short film competition, the scheduled activities were divided into Cinema Events, including meetings, master classes and workshops, and Events dedciated to Discover the Territory and the Artists of the Pollino National Park area:
CINEMA EVENTS
– Special ‘Calabrian Artist of the Year’ award to Aldo and Severino Iuliano
– Masterclass with directors Lorenzo Tardella and Emanuela Muzzupappa
– Masterclass “Sound as a Visual Element” with Luca Mendicino
– Masterclass “Tracciare una Linea” with Andrea Gatopoulos
– Meeting with director Aldo Iuliano and screenwriter Severino Iuliano
– World premiere of the short film “Camera Oscura” by Antonio Morra
EVENTS DEDICATED TO DISCOVER THE TERRITORY AND ITS ARTISTS
– “In Natura – Laino Borgo and the Lao river” excursion with Andrea Vacchiano, Pollino National Park guide
– Tasting of local food “A Tavola con il Pollino”, in partnership with Catasta Pollino and Tenute Celimarro
– Summer opening Castrovillari Museum System
– Event “MNEMOSYNE: Doctrines of Salvation in Magna Graecia. An archaeological perspective” with Dr. Filippo Demma
– “Aquarium”, exhibition by Deborah Graziano
The prizes awarded by the competition were as follows:
SPECIAL AWARD CALABRIAN ARTIST OF THE YEAR (in collaboration with Calabria Film Commission): Aldo and Severino Iuliano
BEST SHORT FILM: “Aqueronte” by Manuel Muñoz Rivas
GRAND JURY PRIZE: “Asterión” by Francesco Montagner
JURY SPECIAL MENTION: “Budapest Silo” by Zsófia Paczolay
BEST CALABRIAN SHORT FILM: “When You Wish Upon a Star” by Domenico Modafferi
YOUNG JURY AWARD: “Happy New Year, Jim” by Andrea Gatopoulos
AUDIENCE AWARD: “Scale” by Joseph Pierce
BEST DIRECTOR: Manuel Muñoz Rivas for “Aqueronte”
BEST SCREENPLAY: Joseph Pierce and Nicolas Pleskoffor “Scale”
BEST ACTOR: Nicusor Pasca for “Puiet”
BEST ACTRESS: Asja Nadjar for “Swan in the Centre”
BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY: Inti Briones for ‘”The Melting Creatures'”
BEST EDITING: Davide Palella for “Sonnenstube”
BEST SOUND COLUMN: Lung Dart for “Scale”
SPECIAL SOUND AWARD sponsored by SoundHub: “Sonnenstube” by Davide Palella
The prestigious international jury consisted of 10 members: Vytautas Katkus (Lithuania), one of Lithuania’s most talentend and popular emerging director and cinematographers, his short films have been presented at the Cannes Film Festival and the Venice Film Festival, Emanuela Muzzupappa (Italy), Calabrian director of the short film ‘Accamora’, selected at the Venice International Critics’ Week, Antonija Belazelkoska (North Macedonia), actress of the short film North Pole presented at the Cannes Film Festival, Lorenzo Tardella (Italy), director and screenwriter winner of the David di Donatello 2023 for Best Short Film, Antonio Romagnoli (Italy), director and screenwriter from Calabria, author of the feature film ‘Polvere’, Dylan Pailes-Friedman (USA), Brooklyn-born director whose works have been screened at prestigious festivals such as the Maryland Film Festival, International Film Festival Rotterdam, Cork International Film Festival, and New Hampshire Film Festival, Lorenzo Pallotta (Italy), director of the feature film “Sacro Moderno” presented at the Rome Film Festival, Matteo Delai (Italy), director and artistic director of the Desenzano Film Festival, Tommaso Frangini (Italy), director selected twice at the Venice International Film Critics’ Week.
A total of 14 guests attended the festival, including Lorenzo Tardella (director David di Donatello 2023), Emanuela Muzzupappa (director selected for the Sic di Venezia 2020), Andrea Benjamin Manenti (director of photography, selected 6 times at the Venice Film Festival), Aldo and Severino Iuliano (director and screenwriter selected for Venice this year), Antonio Morra (director who presented the world premiere of his short film “Camera Oscura”), Antonio Romagnoli (director of the film “Polvere”), Sara Scalera (director of the short film “La Piccola Estate”), Alessandro Cosentini (Calabrian actor seen in “Il Paradiso delle Signore” and “L’Allieva”), Domenico Modafferi (director from Calabria), Matteo Delai (artistic director of the Desenzano Film Festival), Andrea Gatopoulos (director and producer selected at the Cannes Film Festival), Luca Mendicino (sound technician), Domenico Lo Polito (mayor of Castrovillari) and Ernesto Bello (councillor for culture and implementation of Castrovillari Città Festival).
