31 May 2022

Biografilm has come of age and faces the world

At its eighteenth edition, the festival offers coming-of-age narratives, reflects on the culture of violence, reaffirms LGBTQIA+ rights, strengthens the link between film and writers and proposes stories about sport as a vehicle for sociability. 

Closing night with Fann Ard Ardant.

Celebration of Lives award to Alba Rohrwacher, Jeremy Thomas, and to the directors Diana El Jeiroudi and Orwa Nyrabia.

 

Biografilm festival, which will be held in Bologna from 10 to 20 June and available throughout Italy on MYmovies from 12 to 22 June, is coming back with an edition teeming with contents and live events. 

A total of 90 films are scheduled in the various sections. The International Competition includes the most recent and interesting documentary productions, whereas the competition section "Biografilm Italia" proposes the best Italian unpublished documentaries. The competition sectio "Europa oltre i confini" (Europe beyond the borders) includes European fiction films, turning  an eye to the whole world. As usual, Contemporary Lives offers an illuminating view on current events thanks to the great dedication of European documentary filmmakers. "Biografilm art & Music" section is also back, with its exciting stories of lives dedicated to art and music. In addition, as already announced, Biografilm 2022 will host three important tributes: the memory of Gianni Celati, the "documentary poet", an "Ancarani Marathon", with the works of the Italian video artist and director, and Cousins: "Viaggi nel grande cinema", dedicated to the Northern Irish director. 

As per tradition, audience will also assist to "The Celebration of Lives Awards", the prizes that Biografilm Festival awards to the great storytellers of our time who have left an important mark on contemporary history with their lives and works. The prize will be awarded to the actress Alba Rohrwacher, to the producer Jeremy Thomas and to the directors Diana El Jeiroudi and Orwa Nyrabia.

The broad and diverse Biografilm program gives space to so much food for thought and so many different interpretations. The different sections are bound together by a deep and pretty multifaceted reflection on how violence affects people's daily lives. It is a journey that dwells upon causes and effects and deals with the subject of the current war.  From Ukraine to Syria, from Libya to Gaza: personal stories intertwine with broader perspectives and show us the deleterious effects of a culture of hatred and violence.

There will also be stories of lives that testify to the social need for asserting civil rights; stories of diversity, resilience, courage, such as the intimate journey of gender transition of 4 friends in Nel mio nome. The film will be broadcast in Italian premiere at Biografilm after its success at the Berlin Film festival. The actor and political activist Elliot Page is one of the executive producers. The theme of freedom of expression of LGBTQIA+ people also returns with the Italian preview of Instructions for Survival, while the documentary Silvia's Game, in world premiere, takes us into the world of a sex worker across stereotypes, prejudices and the search for freedom. 

Biografilm 2022 also dedicates a special section to several films about the lives of some great contemporary writers with the BPER Banca "Cinema and Writers" playlist. It is a precious opportunity to discover or rediscover important literary authors who have left their mark on our society, thanks to the deep and authentic intimacy that documentaries can generate. 

Another thematic strand emerging from the program concerns stories that demonstrate the value of sport as a vehicle for social redemption and a tool for integration and community building.

As already announced, the documentary dedicated to Lady Diana and edited only from archive footage, The Princess by Ed Perkins, will kicks off Biografilm on June 10.

The festival will end on June 20 in presence of the wonderful Fanny Ardant. She will present the film I giovani amanti, of which she is the protagonist, and will meet the audience of Biografilm.

 

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