The Venice International Film Festival, the oldest film festival in the world and one of the most eminent, will celebrate its 78th edition in 2021 at Venice Lido from the 1st to 11th September.
The image chosen for the poster this year depicts “two people filming one another in a sort of dance, a playful duel – explains Lorenzo Mattotti – in a relationship mediated by the camera. It is a dance under the spotlights of a set, a movement of shared energies, a ritual of gazes. The image might be called Sguardi a confronto – A contest of gazes, at a time when the gaze is becoming more powerful as a new relationship between people. The two figures symbolize two different visions that meet and engage, examine and study one another, but are not in opposition: thanks to Cinema and its central role, creative, proactive”.
The 2021’s edition has a breathtaking high artistic value program, as anticipated during the press conference by the President of the Film Festival Roberto Cicutto and Director Alberto Barbera. It is amazes, once again and, it is exactly what we expect form this prestigious event that, from the first time in 1932, presents every year a selection of world-class films, bringing some of the most successful directors and actors of our time on the red carpet at Lido di Venezia. “Despite the Covid’s lockdowns we never stopped working. This year the average of the works is higher than usual. It is like this pandemic helped the creativity of all. Cinema is in good health despite the difficulties. – Barbera said. Indeed, just take a look at 78th Official Selection to be dazzled: 56 Counties are represented; 21 feature – lenght films Competition; 9 fiction, 8 Non Fiction and 1 Series Out of Competion; 19 films Orizzonti; 6 films and 1 virtual reality Biennale College Cinema; 2 Special Screening. The 78th ediction is packed with excellent names, starting from the directors: Pedro Almodovar,Jane Campion, Pablo Larrain, Paolo Sorrentino and following by iconic movie stars like Penelope Cruz, Kisten Stewart, Matt Damon, Ben Affleck, Willem Dafoe and more.
The full lineup of the 2021 Venice International Film Festival Official Selection is below:
VENEZIA 78 – COMPETITION
Madres Paralelas, dir: Pedro Almodovar
Mona Lisa And The Blood Moon, dir: Ana Lily Amirpour
Un Autre Monde, dir: Stéphane Brizé
The Power Of The Dog, dir: Jane Campion
America Latina, dir: Damiano D’Innocenzo, Fabio D’Innocenzo
L’Evénement, dir: Audrey Diwan
Competencia Oficial, dirs: Gaston Duprat, Mariano Cohn
Il Buco, dir: Michelangelo Frammartino
Sundown, dir: Michel Franco
Illusions Perdues, dir: Xavier Giannoli
The Lost Daughter, dir: Maggie Gyllenhaal
Spencer, dir: Pablo Larrain
Freaks Out, dir: Gabriele Mainetti
Qui Rido Io, dir: Mario Martone
On The Job: The Missing 8, dir: Erik Matti
Leave No Traces, dir: Jan P Matuszynski
Captain Volkonogov Escaped, dirs: Natasha Merkulova, Aleksey Chupov
The Card Counter, dir: Paul Schrader
The Hand Of God, dir: Paolo Sorrentino
La Caja, dir: Lorenzo Vigas
Reflection, dir: Valentyn Vasyanovych
OUT OF COMPETITION – FICTION
Il Bambino Nascosto, dir: Roberto Ando
Les Choses Humaines, dir: Yvan Attal
Ariaferma, dir: Leonardo Di Costanzo
Halloween Kills, dir: David Gordon Green
La Scuola Cattolica, dir: Stefano Mordini
Old Henry, dir: Potsy Ponciroli
The Last Duel, dir: Ridley Scott
Dune, dir: Denis Villeneuve
Last Night In Soho, dir: Edgar Wright
OUT OF COMPETITION – NON-FICTION
Life Of Crime 1984-2020, dir: Jon Alpert
Tranchées, dir: Loup Bureau
Viaggio Nel Crepuscolo, dir: Augusto Contento
Republic Of Silence, dir: Diana El Jeiroudi
Hallelujah: Leonard Cohen, A Journey, A Song, dirs: Daniel Geller, Dayna Goldfine
Deandré#Deandré Storio Di Un Impiegato, dir: Roberta Lena
Django & Django, dir: Luca Rea
Ezio Bosso. Le Cose Che Restano, dir: Giorgio Verdelli
OUT OF COMPETITION – SERIES
Scenes From A Marriage (Episodes 1-5), dir: Hagai Levi
OUT OF COMPETITION – SHORT FILMS
Plastic Semiotic, dir: Radu Jude
The Night, dir: Tsai Ming-liang
Sad Film, dir: Vasili
SPECIAL SCREENINGS
Le 7 Giornate Di Bergamo, dir: Simona Ventura
La Biennale Di Venezia: Il Cinema Al Tempo Del Covid, dir: Andrea Segre
HORIZONS EXTRA
Land Of Dreams, dirs: Shirin Neshat, Shoja Azari
Costa Brava, dir: Mounia Akl
Mama I’m Home, dir: Vladimir Bitokov
Ma Nuit, dir: Antoinette Boulat
La Ragazza Ha Volato, dir: Wilma Labate
7 Prisoners, dir: Alexandre Moratto
The Blind Man Who Did Not Want To See Titanic, dir: Teemu Nikki
La Macchina Delle Immagini Di Alfredo C, dir: Roland Sejko
HORIZONS
Les Promesses, dir: Thomas Kruithof
Atlantide, dir: Yuri Ancarani
Miracle, dir: Bogdan George Apetri
Pilgrims, dir: Laurynas Bareisa
Il Paradiso Del Pavone, dir: Laura Bispuri
The Falls, dir: Chung Mong-Hong
El Hoyo En La Cerca, dir: Joaquin Del Paso
Amira, dir: Mohamed Diab
A Plein Temps, dir: Eric Gravel
107 Mothers, dir: Peter Kerekes
Vera Dreams Of The Sea, dir: Kaltrina Krasniqi
White Building, dir: Kavich Neang
Anatomy Of Time, dir: Jakrawal Nilthamrong
El Otro Tom, dirs: Rodrigo Pla, Laura Santullo
El Gran Movimento, dir: Kiro Russo
Once Upon A Time In Calcutta, dir: Aditya Vikram Sengupta
Rhino, dir: Oleg Sentsov
True Things, dir: Harry Wootliff
Inu-Oh, dir: Yuasa Masaaki
HORIZONS SHORT FILMS – COMPETITION
Don’t Get Too Comfortable, dir: Shaima Al Tamimi
Techno, Mama, dir: Saulius Baradinskas
4 AM, dir: Mehdi Fikri
Sandstorm, dir: Seemab Gul
Heltzear, dir: Mikel Gurrea
Los Huesos, dirs: Cristobal Leon, Joaquin Cocina
Hair Tie, Egg, Homework Books, dir: Runxiao Luo
Il Turno, dir: Chiara Marotta
Fall Of The Ibis King, dir: Josh O’Caoimh
New Abnormal, dir: Sorayos Prapapan
La Fête Des Roberts, dir: Léahn Vivier-Chapas
The Last Day, dir: Momi Yamashita
HORIZONS SHORT FILMS – OUT OF COMPETITION
Ato, dir: Barbara Paz
Diario Di Una Passeggiata, dir: Giuseppe Piccioni
BIENNALE COLLEGE – CINEMA
Al Oriente, dir: José Maria Aviles
Nuestros Dias Mas Felices, dir: Sol Berreuzo Pichon-Rivière
La Santa Piccola, dir: Silvia Brunelli
The Cathedral, dir: Ricky D’Ambrose
Mon Pere, Le Diable, dir: Ellie Foumbi
La Tana, dir: Beatrice Baldacci
BIENNALE COLLEGE CINEMA – VIRTUAL REALITY
Lavrynthos, dirs: Fabito Rychter, Amir Admoni
By Katya Marletta