Competitive sections
Piazza Grande
17 films, including 9 world premieres, will be screened in Piazza Grande, Locarno’s extraordinary open-air theater that accommodates a nightly audience of up to 8,000 people.
“Great popular cinema and more, will take center stage in the Piazza Grande. Between rediscoveries of classic cinema, such as Daniel Schmid's La Paloma (1974) restored and brought back to life, Federico Fellini's La città delle donne (1980) and an abstract and metaphysical thriller like Falling Stars by Richard Karpala and Gabriel Bienczycki already destined to be a cult film, the Piazza will welcome Sandra Hüller (Anatomie d'une chute), Ken Loach (The Old Oak), Deva Cassel and Yile Vianello (La bella estate), Edoardo Leo (Non sono quello che sono - The Tragedy of Othello di W. Shakespeare), Frederic Mermoud (La voie royale), the cult movie Theater Camp from Sundance and finally Cate Blanchett as executive producer of Noora Niasari's film Shayda starring Zar Amir Ebrahimi.” Giona A. Nazzaro (hereafter G.A.N).
Concorso internazionale
The Concorso internazionale explores new territories in moviemaking. This year’s selection of 17 titles, all world premieres and one as an international premiere, will be competing for the Pardo d’oro.
“From Quentin Dupieux and his edgy surrealism to Lav Diaz. From the sarcastic humor of Radu Jude to the night poetry of Sylvain Georges. From the mad inventions of Rainer Sarnet to the abstract psychedelia of Eduardo Williams. From the bittersweet comedy of Bob Byington to the Italian revelation of Simone Bozzelli. From the debut of Leonor Teles to the dreams of Ena Sendijarević. From the ominous and dark Tehran of Ali Ahmadzadeh to the tourist resorts of Sofia Exarchou. Not to forget Dani Rosenberg's praise of desertion and Annarita Zambrano's extravagant anarchy. And again, the voices of brand-new women such as Laura Ferrés and the Ukrainian Maryna Vroda, who has finally made it to feature film. Switzerland is represented by Basil Da Cunha, one of the most original voices, protagonist of the renewal of Swiss cinema. The world in all its expressions and manifestations is present in the Locarno selection. And therefore, cinema and all its possibilities. All still to be discovered.” G.A.N.
Concorso Cineasti del presente
The Concorso Cineasti del presente selection, dedicated to discovering the cinema of tomorrow, comprises 15 films: first and second features, all world premieres.
“As many as eight of the 15 films in the selection are directed by women. Once again, all the colors of cinema are represented: Wild erotic comedies (On the Go), surreal and metaphysical reflections on life and death (Hao jiu bu jian [Dreaming and Dying]), disturbing musings on the potential of desire and power (Touched), lunar thrillers (Xi du [West Border]), teenage coming-of-age novels in the form of a macabre dance (La Morsure), dreamy, ironic poems about the end of the world (Camping du Lac), reflections on the possibilities of cinema (Und dass man ohne Täuschung zu leben vermag), and forays into the present of the Indian subcontinent (Rimdogittanga [Rapture]) and Whispers of Fire & Water). Not to forget Family Portrait, the debut of the very talented Lucy Kerr. Among these talents, it is already possible to identify the cinema of tomorrow.” G.A.N.
Pardi di domani
The competition dedicated to short films by international emerging talents is flanked by that dedicated to Swiss short films, with the main prizes sponsored by Swiss Life, and by auteur shorts competition Concorso Corti d’autore to screen a total of 40 films, all presented as world premieres. The selection is completed by the collection of short films made during the Spring Academy, led this year by director Radu Jude.
“Pardi di domani is cinema designed for the future. Through the expressive power of the short format, disruptive voices of tomorrow's cinema undermine the security of forms, explode genres, explore unsuspected possibilities, and redefine the sphere of the political: the body as the true battleground of contemporaneity, memory as resistance, and the violence of society as the accused to be exposed eye to eye. And even more: the visions of Bertrand Mandico, the freedom of Syllas Tzoumerkas, the fierce poetry of Catarina Vasconcelos are just some of the great names that crown the selection among Corti d’autore” Eddie Bertozzi, Head of Pardi di domani Selection Committee.
