Massimo Gaudioso

Tale of Tales

The Queen of Selvascura risks everything to be a mother; the King of Roccaforte falls in love with the voice of a mysterious girl; the King of Altomonte becomes obsessed with a flea and neglects his daughter.

Io Capitano

Longing for a brighter future, two Senegalese teenagers embark on a journey from West Africa to Italy. However, between their dreams and reality lies a labyrinth of checkpoints, the Sahara Desert, and the vast waters of the Mediterranean.

Dogman

Marcello, a small and gentle dog groomer, finds himself involved in a dangerous relationship of subjugation with Simone, a former violent boxer who terrorizes the entire neighborhood. In an effort to reaffirm his dignity, Marcello will submit to an unexpected act of vengeance.

Gomorrah

An inside look at Italy's modern-day crime families, the Camorra in Naples and Caserta. Based on a book by Roberto Saviano. Power, money and blood: these are the "values" that the residents of the Province of Naples and Caserta have to face every day. They hardly ever have a choice and are forced to obey the rules of the Camorra. Only a lucky few can even think of leading a normal life.

Welcome to the South

Alberto, post office manager of a small town in Brianza, under pressure of his wife Sylvia, is willing to do anything to get the transfer to Milan. Even pretending to be disabled to climb in the ranking. But the trick does not work and as punishment, he is transferred in a small town in Campania, which to an inhabitant of the north is equivalent to a nightmare ...

The Catholic School

Three well-off young men—former students at Rome’s prestigious all-boys Catholic high school San Leone Magno—brutally tortured, raped, and murdered two young women in 1975. The event, which came to be known as the Circeo massacre, shocked and captivated the country, exposing the violence and dark underbelly of the upper middle class at a moment when the traditional structures of family and religion were seen as under threat.

18 Presents

Elisa is only forty when an incurable disease takes her from her husband and their daughter. Before her heart stops, Elisa finds a way to stay close to her: a gift for every birthday up to her adult age, 18 gifts to try to accompany her child's growth year after year.

Non ti pago

Ferdinando inherits a lottery office from his father. He fantasises about making it famous with a millionaire prize. The winner, however, will be his employee Mario, to whom Ferdinando's father "went in a dream".

Reality

A dark comedy centering on the lives of a Neapolitan based family whose father, a fish merchant, is so infatuated with the reality TV show "Grande Fratello" (the Italian version of "Big Brother") he starts living his life as if he were on it.

First Love

Vittorio is looking for a woman who matches his ideal. Through a classified ad he meets Sonia, a sweet, pleasant, intelligent girl. However, she weighs 125 pounds -- which according to Vittorio is way too much. A goldsmith by trade, Vittorio is obsessed with the desire to shape Sonia's body and mind as does a fire with gold. Almost imperceptibly Sonia becomes a passive participant and the relationship grows into a reciprocal masochistic game. When the two lovers isolate themselves in a country house in the Veneto hills, they dangerously lose touch with reality and the rest of the world.

It Was the Son

The Ciraulo family lives in the miserable district of Palermo called "Zen". When one of their children dies in a shootout between mafia gangsters they receive compensation and buy a luxury black Volvo. Things go wrong when Trancredi, another son, takes the car out and damages the car door.

È nata una star?

Marco, a shy teenager, learns that he has... what it takes to be a great porn star, but he doesn't know how to tell his parents. Hell breaks loose when a neighbor finds a porn video of him and leaves it in his parents' mailbox.

The Embalmer

Peppino, a diminutive taxidermist with a reputation for sleaziness, meets Valerio, a handsome if artless much younger man fascinated by the trade. Peppino offers him a large salary to be his assistant—the job burgeoning into a budding friendship he mistakes for something more. When Valerio gets a girlfriend, their fledgling romance will be threatened by an insanely jealous third wheel.

Little Tito and the Aliens

Professor Biondi is a depressed scientist. After his wife's death, he lives isolated from the world in the Nevada desert, near Area 51. He supposedly works on a top-secret project for the US government, but in actuality, he spends his days on the couch, listening to the sound of the Universe. His only contact with the outside world is Stella, who organizes alien-themed weddings for tourists on the prowl for extra-terrestrials. One day the Professor receives a message from Naples: his dying brother is entrusting him with his two children, so that they may live with him in America.

Hey Joe

In 1944, American sailor Dean Barry arrives in Naples, a city destroyed by bombing after the liberation of Italy. Dean meets Lucia, a young and very poor girl with whom he falls madly in love. Two years later, at the end of his service, Dean has to return to New Jersey and Lucia remains in Naples, alone and pregnant.

The Past Is a Foreign Land

A promising law student from a good family is driven by a cool cardsharper into a downward spiral of criminality, discovering a part of himself he had never known.

Il grande Boccia

Tatanka

Michele and Rosario, childhood friends, grow up in Marcianise, a town in Campania where the laws of the Camorra prevail over those of the state. However, the two men have different destinies: Rosario becomes a crime boss, while Michele, after being arrested for murder and released from prison, discovers the world of boxing thanks to his trainer Sabatino (Giorgio Colangeli). Seeking a definitive change of life and emancipation, Michele moves to Berlin, where he is introduced to the underground boxing circuit.

Strangeness

During a trip to Sicily in 1920, Luigi Pirandello meets two gravediggers-turned-playwrights rehearsing a play with their amateur dramatics. Pirandello takes an interest in the odd couple, having been suffering from writer's block while working on his eventual masterpiece, Six Characters in Search of an Author.

L'abbiamo fatta grossa

Yuri Pelagatti is a stage actor who is left jobless after a traumatic separation that resulted in his inability to remember his lines. Arturo Merlino is a shabby “investigator” who chases cats escaped from their homes. When Arturo and Yuri cross paths, Yuri is under the mistaken impression that Arturo is a consummate professional. He contracts Arturo to follow his ex-wife in order to find proof of her infidelity. But when he accidentally comes into the possession of a mysterious suitcase containing 1 million Euro, a series of hilarious troubles and daring adventures will result in an unpredictable finale…

Mid-August Lunch

Gianni is a middle-aged man living in Rome with his imposing and demanding elderly mother. His only outlet from her and the increasing debt into which they are sinking, are the increasingly frequent quiet sessions at the local tavern. As an Oriental saying goes, 'Moments of crisis are moments of opportunities'. These appear during the celebration of the holiday of Ferragosto on 15 August. That's when everybody leaves town to have fun. Opportunity knocks on Gianni's door in the most unexpected way.

Light of My Eyes

Antonio is a fallen angel, a rootless chauffeur who relates only to the lonely heroes in the science fiction novels he grew up with. Only through a chance meeting with Maria, a woman struggling to hold onto her daughter and her business, does he discover a hope that's been in his detached existence.

La scuola più bella del mondo

Sabato, domenica e lunedì

Like every Saturday, Rosa Priore prepares the ragù for Sunday while her husband Peppino paces nervously around the kitchen, arguing about every little thing. When Sunday arrives, the entire Priore family gathers around the table and Mrs. Priore wears a beautiful blue scarf given to her by her neighbor, the thoughtful accountant Ianniello, who lavishes compliments on Donna Rosa and her cooking. After yet another compliment, Peppino explodes and accuses them in no uncertain terms of having an affair. Sunday is ruined, but will the family be able to pull themselves together on Monday?

Lolita Lobosco

Deputy Chief Lolita Lobosco returns to her hometown, Bari, to direct a team of men only. In a world stubbornly ruled by males, she chooses to remain herself against all odds, and uses her skills and devotion to fight prejudices.