FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Media Contact: Hilary Hart October 21, 1999 415.929.5022; publicity@sfiff.org NEW ITALIAN CINEMA EVENTS RITORNA A SAN FRANCISCO San Francisco Film Society Premieres Eight New Italian Films San Francisco, CA - N.I.C.E. (New Italian Cinema Events), featuring seven new films by Italy's most exciting young directors, the latest work by veteran filmmaker Marco Bellocchio and a rare screening of an early film by Pier Paolo Pasolini, will be presented at the AMC Kabuki 8 Theatres in San Francisco November 15-21 by the San Francisco Film Society, in association with the Italian Cultural Institute under the auspices of the Consulate General of Italy. For the fourth straight year, N.I.C.E. enhances the Film Society's growing palette of year-round activities, with an all-new selection of features to be screened in Italian with English subtitles, each accompanied by an Italian short film. Following the major European film festivals earlier this year, a jury of Italian and American film critics and journalists selected eight of the best Italian entries. In addition to the screenings in San Francisco, the films will be shown in New York. Several of these films will be receiving their North American premieres. While announcing the schedule today, Rachel Rosen, Associate Director of Programming, said that the Film Society was particularly pleased to renew its association with N.I.C.E. because "the annual showcase of new Italian cinema provides a unique opportunity for San Francisco audiences to explore the newest talent from Italy in depth. The atmosphere at the screenings is especially exciting. All the directors come to present their films, and these are among the first times they've screened their films for the public, so the dialogue between filmmakers and audience is really dynamic." Amelia Antonucci, Director of the Italian Cultural Institute, concurred that "this is the best selection of contemporary Italian cinema and I'm thrilled that San Francisco audiences will have their first opportunity to view the newly restored print of MAMMA ROMA." Closing night festivities on Sunday, November 21 will include a special screening of Pier Paolo Pasolini's MAMMA ROMA, the presentation of the City of Florence Award to the favorite film voted by audiences in San Francisco and New York, and a Closing Night Party at Pasta Pomodoro. The city of Florence created the Award in 1992 in order to gauge the response of American audiences to new Italian productions. American distributors have recognized the significance of their choices, and several of the previous winners have received distribution in the United States. Monday, November 15 Special Opening Night Film 7:30 THE WET NURSE (La balia) Directed by Marco Bellocchio. Starring Fabrizio Bentivoglio and Valeria Bruni Tedeschi. 103 min. In this humane and deeply sensitive adaptation of a Luigi Pirandello short story, Bellocchio explores the emotional entanglements and pressures that build when a well-to-do professor and his wife recruit an illiterate young woman to be a wet-nurse to their firstborn child. Beautiful photography and powerful performances underline the delicate emotions of the story. Tuesday, November 16 7:00 AUTUMN (Autunno) Directed by Nina di Majo. Starring Nina di Majo and Pietro Alessio di Majo. 95 min. A quirky and moving portrait of three generations facing the emptiness of the modern world. Costanza loves to write, but has trouble studying for her exams or envisioning her future, constantly fighting with her parents and boyfriend. Costanza's aunt begins dating someone new, but is obsessed with the man from whom she is separated. Matteo is a teenager who lives across the street, stifled by a wealthy but loveless home. Everyone is so busy with their own problems that communication becomes increasingly difficult. Preceded by THE TWO RED DOLLS (Le due bamboline rosse) Directed by Alessandro Ingargiola. 11 min. 9:30 A TIME TO LOVE (Il tempo dell'amore) Directed by Giacomo Campiotti. Starring Ciaran Hinds and Natacha Regnier. 110 min. A film that dares to concern itself with a feeling rather than one character. To achieve the sense of what love is, Campiotti focuses on three different couples in three different periods of time and at three different stages of love. The film's forceful camera work communicates the excitement and joy of an emotion that can be as painful as it can be liberating. Preceded by THAT DAY (Quel giorno) Directed by Francesco Patierno. 10 min. Wednesday, November 17 7:00 A TIME TO LOVE (Il tempo dell'amore) see Tuesday, Nov 16 9:45 AUTUMN (Autunno) see Tuesday, Nov 16 Thursday, November 18 7:00 IN THE BEGINNING THERE WAS UNDERWEAR (In principio erano le mutande) Directed by Anna Negri. Starring Teresa Saponangelo and Stefania Rocca. 90 min. Imma is an incurable romantic who lives in Genoa, barely eking out a living with a series of very odd jobs. In both love and work, she always ends up in absurd situations. Then one day, Imma's water heater has a gas leak, and a handsome fireman comes to her rescue. Mixing elements of Italian comedy with English realism, Anna Negri has created a unique, ironic look at romanticism and the relations between men and women. Preceded by FOREVER (Per sempre) Directed by Chiara Caselli. 12 min. 9:30 THE PRICE (Il prezzo) Directed by Rolando Stefanelli. Starring Stefano Dionisi and Chiara Caselli. 114 min. Romano has a chance to make some money transporting hashish from Amsterdam to Italy, but he wants a woman to go with him to make it seem like he's on vacation. When his girlfriend refuses to become involved, Romano asks Alba, with whom he once had a passionate but tortured affair, but he doesn't tell her the real reason for the trip. In an atmosphere of deceit and romantic disillusionment, the lies implicit in love quickly surface. Preceded by THE CIRCLE (Il cerchio) Directed by Flavio Moretti. 7 min. Friday, November 19 7:00 THE FIRST TIME (La prima volta) Directed by Massimo Martella. Starring Micaela Ramazzotti, Max Malatesta and Giovanni Ghersi. 110 min. Interwoven stories explore the tumultuous emotions and varying situations of six adolescents' first sexual experiences. For some it is unforgettably beautiful; for others it is something to forget as soon as possible. These six stories, full of rich details of each character's family, friends, school and work, create a vivid portrait of the emotional lives of today's youth. Preceded by GLAMOUR EXPRESS Directed by Max Croci. 4 min. 9:30 THAT'S IT (Ecco fatto) Directed by Gabriele Muccino. Starring Giorgio Pasotti and Barbara Bobulova. 100 min. In this comic take on obsessive jealousy, 20-year-old Matteo still lives with his parents and has yet to finish school. Then he meets Margherita. She is older, confident and independent. Matteo soon moves into Margherita's apartment, but he just can't seem to stop thinking about her old boyfriend or where she might go at night. Preceded by WHAT IF I WERE (Facciamo che io ero) Directed by Vincenzo Scuccimarra. 4 min. Saturday, November 20 2:45 THREE STORIES (Tre storie) Directed by Piergiorgio Gay with Roberto San Pietro. Starring Sandra Ceccarelli and Fabio Nova. 85 min. Paolo, Giovanni and Martina meet in a therapeutic community for drug addicts. There, they each face many difficulties, but the real test comes when they leave the community to find employment and establish regular lives. Inspired by Neo-Realism, shot with a cast of non-professional actors and based on research and interviews with former addicts, THREE STORIES is an intimate and humane portrayal of people trying to find a reason and a way to live in the modern world. Preceded by CRA-CRA Directed by Marco Pozzi. 10 min. 5:00 THAT'S IT (Ecco fatto) see Friday, Nov 19 7:10 THE PRICE (Il prezzo) see Thursday, Nov 18 9:45 IN THE BEGINNING THERE WAS UNDERWEAR (In principio erano le mutande) see Thursday, Nov 18 Sunday, November 21 2:30 THE FIRST TIME (La prima volta) see Friday, Nov 19 5:00 THREE STORIES (Tre storie) see Saturday, Nov 20 7:00 Special Closing Night Film and City of Florence Award Presentation MAMMA ROMA Directed by Pier Paolo Pasolini. Starring Anna Magnani and Ettore Garofolo. 1962, 110 min. Conceived as a vehicle for the charismatic Anna Magnani, Pasolini's second film is a tragedy about a former prostitute on the outskirts of Rome, fighting, pushing and scheming to escape her place in life and create a better one for her teenage son. It is an uncompromising portrait of class and gender power, a melodrama of maternal obsession tinged with Pasolini's Marxism and Catholic guilt, that caused protests and riots upon its release and remains a delicate and beautiful work. 9:45 Closing Night Party at Pasta Pomodoro, 1865 Post Street (next to the Kabuki) Individual tickets ($7.50), CineFilo passes (8 films/$40) and Closing Night tickets (Film/Award $8.50; Film/Award/Party $35) available in person at the Film Society (1521 Eddy Street) and Cavalli Italian Bookstore (1441 Stockton Street), and by phone 415.929.5043, fax 415.921.5032 and online www.sfiff.org starting November 1. Discounted tickets available for Film Society and Italian Cultural Institute members. For information 415.931.FILM or www.sfiff.org. Presented by the San Francisco Film Society, in association with the Italian Cultural Institute under the auspices of the Consulate General of Italy. back to news page