CINECITTÀ ITALIAN DOC SEASON comprises three remarkable documentaries that break boundaries and challenge expectations. Acclaimed at international film festivals including Sundance, Venice, Amsterdam’s IDFA, and Copenhagen’s CPH:DOX, one is an epic and enthralling docu-encyclopaedia exploring life’s essential elements, one is a powerful yet simply done human-interest story, and one is a beautifully inobtrusive observational documentary. Although each film follows its own path, altogether they challenge our concept of the craft of documentary filmmaking.
Source material ranges from first-person interviews to precious archive material sourced from the Istituto Luce film archive (preserved and curated by Cinecittà, this immense archive of Italy’s film and photographic heritage celebrated its 100th anniversary in 2024). The result is a season of poetic, absorbing, and genre-defying works of nonfiction. Each screening will be accompanied by a Q&A with the filmmakers.
The 4th edition of CINECITTÀ ITALIAN DOC SEASON comprises:
UK Premiere: THE CASTLE + Q&A
Dir: Danny Biancardi, Stefano La Rosa, Virginia Nardelli (Italy/France)
Nominated for the CPH:DOX Award, this observational documentary follows four 11-year-olds who live in an old, struggling neighbourhood in Palermo. The children explore an abandoned kindergarten: a place believed to be haunted so everyone avoids it and uses it as a dump – but they decide to transform one of its abandoned rooms into their secret hideaway. This becomes a safe space where they can escape the gaze of others, share their fears, and let their imagination run free without feeling judged. (Sat 5 July 15:30)
London Premiere: GEN_ + Q&A
Dir: Gianluca Matarrese (Italy/France/Switzerland)
Written by Donatella Della Ratta, Gianluca Matarrese
What do women and men who dream of having a child have in common with those who seek to reconcile their assigned gender with their gender identity? A champion at Thessaloniki Documentary Film Festival and nominated for the “World Cinema: Documentary Grand Jury Prize” at Sundance, it follows a maverick doctor at a Milan hospital who champions fertility treatments and gender transitions, defying both government restrictions and corporate interests in a quest to help patients realize their true selves. (Sat 5 July 18:00)
UK Premiere: BESTIARES, HERBARIA, LAPIDARIES + Q&A
Dir: Massimo d’Anolfi, Martina Parenti (Italy/Switzerland)
Divided into three acts – animals, plants, stones – this epic docu-encyclopaedia explores life’s essential elements through distinct storytelling styles. Each of the three segments is a tribute to a specific genre of documentary filmmaking. Built around archive footage, the first part sees scholars analyse the recording and classification of animals and their behaviour. The second, shot in the botanical gardens of Padua in Italy, argues that plants surpass and overshadow humans in almost every respect. The third act reflects on the role stones play in war and destruction, as well as in commemoration. Having premiered at Venice and IDFA, this poetic and visually beautiful film encapsulates often overlooked yet integral aspects of our existence on Earth. (Sun 6 July 15:00 inc 15min comfort break after act two).
5 – 6 July 2025 at London’s Bertha DocHouse