Pinocchio Nero

Millennium News is the title of a series of television news programmes, written, narrated and filmed by a group of former street boys and girls from Nairobi’s slums, each dedicated to the eight famous Millennium Development Goals (MDG’s), promoted by the United Nations with the aim of defeating poverty within 2020.

The documentary tells a compelling and emotionally charged story that unfolds along the Tiber River starting in 1999, following the lives of two families of eel fishermen who have lived and worked for generations on an urban stretch of the river, near the Grande Raccordo Anulare ring road in southern Rome. On one side are Cesare and Alfredo, known as the “Rosci”, two brothers who embody the tradition and pride of a family that has always been linked to ancient river traditions. On the other side are their historic rivals, Nando and Franco, known as the “Ciccioni”, who live with their elderly mother, Sister Irene, a central figure who acts as the emotional and moral hub of the family. However, everything changes with the arrival of Anwar, a young migrant from Bangladesh, who is able to open up the millennial flow of the river to contact with new cultures.