Francesco Patierno

During the Covid-19 lockdown, a film crew is shooting an adaptation of Camus' La Peste. Reality and fiction start to blur between each other.

Maroso Golfetto, a firm manager from Veneto, is known for his frequent yelling at his employees, who are either immigrants or Southern Italians. He regularly appears on the local TV channel to denounce the evils of immigration, and his popularity extends to children. His speeches resonate more deeply with people than those of Lucia, their anti-racist schoolmistress. One morning, a miracle occurs: by invoking the help of God to rid Veneto of its immigrants, all the immigrants disappear. However, is this truly a blessing?

In 1948, a fan letter arrived for director Roberto Rossellini from Ingrid Bergman, one of Hollywood’s biggest stars; after a meeting in New York, Rossellini invited Bergman to Italy to work on a project. Meanwhile, Anna Magnani, one of Italy’s biggest stars and Rossellini’s longtime lover, was furious. When the Rossellini/Bergman project was announced as a tale set on Stromboli, one of the volcanic Aeolian Islands, Magnani quickly set up her own Aeolian project, financed by Hollywood, to be called Volcano. Italy’s tabloids simply went wild: the prospect of these two great divas battling it out with rival productions was breathlessly followed, especially as it became clear that the Rossellini/Bergman relationship was more than professional. Francesco Patierno has created an engrossing, revealing and highly entertaining chronicle of this cinematic battle royal.

The film is a historical and socio-anthropological portrait of the provincial capital of Campania, Naples, and the organised crime that afflicts it, and is the fruit of months of rummaging through the treasures of Rai Teche, the archives of the Italian state broadcaster. Surprising vintage footage, most of it never shown before, finds a visceral connection with the original music and songs written by Meg.

The moving life and international career of actress Valentina Cortese is acted out by eight Italian actresses who interpret parts of her biography. A rich assortment of stock footage and film clips creates a vibrant portrait of our Diva.

A British Intelligence Officer in Naples at the end of World War II: Norman Lewis's acknowledged masterpiece about a war-torn city and its unforgettable humanity.

Umberto Maria Durloni is a successful lawyer and a socialite who likes parties and a lavish life. He's got it all, except any ethical qualms.Only a step away from the top, his perfect world crumbles, showing him the brutal do downside to his life.