Francesco Clerici

Directing

Francesco Clerici

Francesco Clerici is an award-winning documentary director. Since 2009, he has been collaborating with the Confédération Internationale des Cinémas d’Art et d’Essai and with contemporary artist Velasco Vitali, as well as teaching courses and lessons for schools and universities (Università degli studi di Milano, Università degli studi di Parma, Università Bicocca di Milano, IULM Milano, Roma Tre, …

Known For

BeyondBeyond · 2025
Beyond
★ 6.52025
MovieDocumentary
​Beyond begins with Alex Bellini's 2017 Vatnajokull glacier expedition, a life-changing experience. In Jan. 2025, Alex returns to the expedition sites to seek answers and interpret the meaning of what happened eight years earlier with new eyes. Through this reconstruction, the documentary aims to contribute to universal reflection on the meaning of exploration and the concept of limits.
Anatomy of a PortraitAnatomy of a Portrait · 2026
Anatomy of a Portrait
2026
MovieDocumentary
Fernanda Wittgens joined the Brera Museum in 1928, and after a few years she was its director. Courageous and visionary, during the war she saved artworks from the bombings, aided political opponents of Fascism and Jewish families in fleeing the regime, and was imprisoned for her actions. After Italy’s liberation, she rebuilt the Brera and championed its being open and accessible to one and all. Yet despite her groundbreaking policies, she was forgotten after her death. This film seizes on that absence. Calling on the actress Sara Drago, who lends her face and voice to Wittgens in her letters, and the art historian Giovanna Ginex, the filmmakers create a collaborative space in which the past, the present, and their interpretations are intertwined. Fernanda, albeit invisible, is a living presence.
The HuddleThe Huddle · 2020
The Huddle
2020
MovieDocumentary
Though separated by a stretch of sea, Glasgow and Belfast share elements of political, sporting and religious culture rooted in the difficult, unresolved events faced by the Irish community during the twentieth century. The Huddle tells the stories of two Irish communities brought together by a devotion to the Celtic Football Club, and a shared faith in football. Exploring the contradictions between two cities facing radical ideological divides yet brought together by full stadiums, these are the interwoven and personal accounts of journalists, musicians, political militants, IRA fighters-all united by their love of football-on what it means to be Irish.
La Paz del FuturoLa Paz del Futuro · 2022
La Paz del Futuro
★ 5.02022
Movie
La Paz del Futuro is a film about the personal, political and artistic journey of Janet Pavone, an American muralist who joined the Sandinista revolution Nicaragua of the 1980s. Janet and her fellow muralists are today invited to restore their most monumental work almost 25 years after its completion: the Quiabu mural at the Esteli military base. Showing different historical moments through extensive use of archival materials and new footage, La Paz del futuro paints an "on the road" portrait of what remains of a series of murals and a revolution, and at the same time proposes a reflection on public art, politics and the passage of time: a look to the past from the future.
La vocazione di perdersiLa vocazione di perdersi · 2024
La vocazione di perdersi
★ 7.02024
MovieDocumentary
�米 (Mî)米 (Mî) · 2020
米 (Mî)
2020
MovieDocumentary
14 August, sunrise. In the south of Milan, the most international city of Italy, three figures wake up at dawn and are brought to work. They are the silent guardians of a great Italian agricultural tradition that has undergone profound changes in the last century.
BeyulBeyul · 2026
Beyul
2026
MovieDocumentary
The Himalayas, a vast natural barrier steeped in holiness and myth, are home to the legendary Beyul, or "hidden valleys". Among these there is the Zanskar Valley, now threatened by climate change.
Gillo Dorfles. Objects/CharactersGillo Dorfles. Objects/Characters · 2017
Gillo Dorfles. Objects/Characters
2017
MovieDocumentary
A portrait/self-portrait of Gillo Dorfles as seen through his favourite objects: in an intimate, gentle narrative, hanging inside a home, his home – a space both real and symbolic, mental and physical. GilloDorfles talks about the things he holds most dear, a mix of historical and artistic culture and everyday objects, family mementoes and original sculptures, memories and insights. It is an attempt to give shape, image and sound to the monumental intangibility of Gillo Dorfles’ thoughts, memories and desires.

Filmography

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Anatomy of a PortraitAnatomy of a Portrait · 2026
Anatomy of a Portrait
2026
MovieDocumentary
Fernanda Wittgens joined the Brera Museum in 1928, and after a few years she was its director. Courageous and visionary, during the war she saved artworks from the bombings, aided political opponents of Fascism and Jewish families in fleeing the regime, and was imprisoned for her actions. After Italy’s liberation, she rebuilt the Brera and championed its being open and accessible to one and all. Yet despite her groundbreaking policies, she was forgotten after her death. This film seizes on that absence. Calling on the actress Sara Drago, who lends her face and voice to Wittgens in her letters, and the art historian Giovanna Ginex, the filmmakers create a collaborative space in which the past, the present, and their interpretations are intertwined. Fernanda, albeit invisible, is a living presence.

Director