Global Courant
“Prince Aden,” a new drama by Italian directing duo Gianluca and Massimiliano De Serio, known internationally for their immigration-themed “Seven Acts of Mercy,” is among projects selected by Locarno’s Alliance for Development initiative.
The platform, now in its 8th year, is geared towards fostering co-productions between France, Germany, Italy and Switzerland.
Inspired by the book “Partigiani d’Oltremare,” by Italian historian Matteo Petracci, the De Serio twins’ new colonial-era film follows the vicissitudes of a 16-year-old Somali named Aden Sicré who in 1935 becomes a soldier in the Italian army that invaded Ethiopia on Mussolini’s orders. In an unexpected turn, he becomes hailed as a war hero by the Fascist regime. Then a few years later Aden and other African fighters played a pivotal role in the partisan struggle against fascism in Europe.
The Aug. 4-6 Alliance 4 Development goes beyond being a mere co-production platform since it allows for time to evaluate projects in the development phase and includes events and opportunities for producers to meet with regional film commissions and funds, culminating with an awards ceremony. It is also open to producers from other countries where French, German, and Italian are spoken.
“This year’s selection presents a variety of genres, themes, and visions in a dynamic balance between emerging and more established filmmakers,” said project manager Francesca Palleschi in a statement. She also noted that more than half the projects are helmed by female directors.
The 11 projects selected for Alliance 4 Development 2023 are:
“Calm,” by Sara Fattahi; produced by Sabine Moser and Oliver Neumann (FreibeuterFilm GmbH, Austria)
“ll principe Aden” (Prince Aden), by Gianluca and Massimiliano De Serio; produced by Alessandro Borrelli (La Sarraz Pictures, Italy) in coproduction with Luis Urbano (O Som EA Furia, Portugal) and Lionel Massol (Films Grand Huit, France)
“Irina Makinskaia” (working title), by Alexandra de Saint-Blanquat; produced by Omar El Kadi and Nadia Turincev (Easy Riders Films, France)
“La Passion d’Aline” (The Passion of Aline), by Rokhaya Marieme Balde; produced by Linda Vogel, Cyril Schäublin, Chantal Scheiner (Seeland Filmproduktion GmbH, Switzerland)
“La P’tite” (The Young One), by Despina Athanassiadis; produced by Quentin Daniel (Wombat Films, France)
“Mila/Maria,” by Andrina Mračnikar; produced by Alexander Dumreicher-Ivanceanu & Bady Minck (AMOUR FOU Vienna, Austria) and Daniel Hočevar (Vertigo Ljubljana, Slovenia).
“Objects,” by Ann Oren; produced by Kristof Gerega, Sophie Ahrens, Fabian Altenried (Schuldenberg Films, Germany).
“Pas Ta Maman,” by Michèle Flury; produced by Jochen Laube, Fabian Maubach and Felix Schreiber (Sommerhaus Filmproduktion, Germany).
“To Put Out One Fire,” by Jela Hasler; produced by Olivier Zobrist (Langfilm, Switzerland)
“Urania,” by Pier Lorenzo Pisano, produced by Domenico Procacci and Laura Paolucci (Fandango, Italy)
“Who/Man,” by Lorenz Merz; produced by Michela Pini (8horses, Switzerland).
Recent standout titles spawned by the program include Berlinale 2023 entries “Music” by Angela Schanelec and “L’Amour du Monde” by Jenna Hasse; “Chicken for Linda” by Chiara Malta and Sébastien Laudenbach (Cannes ACID & Annecy 2023); “Continental Drift” by Lionel Baier (Quinzaine des Réalisateurs, Cannes 2022); and Semret by Caterina Mona, which debuted on the Piazza Grande at Locarno last year.
The 76th edition of Locarno will run Aug. 2-12.
