Filming Italy – Los Angeles Fêtes 10th Edition With Bold Slate of Films and Events Celebrating Italian Film and Culture

Tiziana Rocca, Isabella Ferrari

The 10th edition of Filming Italy - Los Angeles created and directed by Tiziana Rocca, Agnus Dei, in collaboration with the Italian Cultural Institute of Los Angeles directed by Emanuele Amendola, kicks off on February 19 through February 22, 2025 in Los Angeles, in partnership with APA (Audiovisual Producers Association), under the auspices of the Consulate General of Italy in Los Angeles and in collaboration with ITA (Italian Trade Agency).

Filming Italy - Los Angeles, in addition to promoting Italy as a film set and bridge between Italian and American culture, supports Italian cultural growth through its cinema, the internationalization of Italian audiovisual products, and cross-cultural relations among various filmmakers, producers and artists.

Tiziana Rocca, festival founder and artistic director comments, "I am very happy to announce this tenth edition of Filming Italy - Los Angeles, a very important milestone for a festival that year after year has established itself as a bridge between Italy and America for the promotion and enhancement of Italian cinema abroad. And we continue to do so precisely during the Film Awards Season in Los Angeles - between the Golden Globes and the Oscars - so as to give ever greater prestige and notoriety to all the works that we are gradually adding to our program, including world premieres, restored classics, television series, short films and Italian docu-films, many of which are still unreleased worldwide. Thanks to the digital platform, which has been supporting us in enhancing the best Italian productions for six years now, these titles will be available in all American states. And since women always play a central and prominent role at Filming Italy, it is a great pleasure to have an ambassador and an exceptional patroness like Isabella Ferrari and Diana Del Bufalo. And then of course there will be no shortage of master classes and panels with many Italian and international guests and artists, with whom we will talk about cinema and address particularly current and relevant issues on the trend and status of the audiovisual market."

Senator Lucia Borgonzoni, Undersecretary of State at the Italian Ministry of Culture, says, "The 2025 edition of Filming Italy brings again a rich program of events, designed with the ambitious goal of celebrating and promoting the excellence of our cinema and its protagonists to the American public. We applaud the team of Filming Italy - Los Angeles, which this year celebrates an important milestone in recognition of a path that has made it one of the most eagerly awaited moments in the sector, an event that represents a development opportunity for the entire industry and confirms itself as an extraordinary showcase."

The Consul General of Italy in Los Angeles, Raffaella Valentini states, "We celebrate this year the 10th anniversary of the 'Filming Italy' Festival, a central event for Italian cinema in Los Angeles in the awards season. Thanks to the international contributions of all our talents, who are involved both in front and behind the scenes in the audiovisual sector, the link between Italy and the United States is ever stronger."

Emanuele Amendola, Director of the Italian Cultural Institute of Los Angeles,  adds, "The tenth edition of Filming Italy - Los Angeles reconfirms itself as an important event for the promotion of Italian cinema in the United States. It not only strengthens Italy as a film set and bridge between the two cultures, but also fosters dialogue between directors, producers and artists. This Festival represents an opportunity to enhance and internationalize our film industry, a sector that the Institute has always supported with particular attention. In addition, Filming Italy - Los Angeles stands out again this year for its commitment to environmental sustainability, actively participating in the fight against deforestation and supporting green projects. In a context marked by serious global ecological challenges, and at a particularly difficult time for the city of Los Angeles after the devastating fires earlier this year, together with the Festival we renew our solidarity with the victims of the fires and our commitment to the protection of the planet and a more sustainable future."

The ambassador of the Festival will be Isabella Ferrari, an award-winning performer who in her long career has collaborated with directors such as Scola, Sorrentino and Özpetek in works that have marked the history of Italian cinema. The actress will receive the Filming Italy Los Angeles Women Power Award, and Paolo Sorrentino's film Parthenope will be screened for the occasion.

Diana Del Bufalo will be the patroness of the 10th edition. An actress, singer and presenter, Diana has established herself in the world of film and television for her eclectic and out-of-the-ordinary talent.

Serving as honorary presidents of the Festival are two pillars of Italian and Hollywood filmmaking, Michele Placido and Dolph Lundgren. Placido will also receive the Filming Italy Los Angeles Award and his latest film, Eterno visionario, will be screened for the occasion.

The Festival is proud to support Women In Film 's fundraiser for the Entertainment Community Fund (ECF) Wildfire Relief, aimed at providing support, necessities and financial assistance to women (and other constituents) in the entertainment industry who have been directly affected by the recent wildfires in California.

Among this edition's highly anticipated guests: Gabriele Muccino, who will receive the Filming Italy Los  Angeles Best Director Award for Fino alla fine; Gianni Amelio, who will present his latest film, Battlefield; Alec Baldwin, who will receive the Filming Italy Los Angeles Creativity Award and will star in a masterclass together with Gabriele Muccino; the actress winner of four Emmys, a Golden Globe, three Screen Actors Guild Awards, and BAFTA, Grammy, and Oscar nominees, Alfre Woodard, who will receive the Filming Italy Los Angeles Women Power Award; this year's Golden Globe winner for Best Supporting Actress and nominee in the same category at the upcoming Academy Awards, Zoe Saldana; award- winning performer Isabella Rossellini, who will receive the Filming Italy Los Angeles Best Performance Award for her performance in Conclave; Sharon Stone, who will receive the Filming Italy Los Angeles Creativity & Art Award; actor Carlos Diehz, who will receive the Filming Italy Los Angeles Best Performance Award for his performance in Conclave; Billy Zane, who will receive the Filming Italy Los Angeles Best Performance Award for his performance in Waltzing with Brando; the actress known for her roles in The chilling adventures of Sabrina and Fate: The Winx Saga, Abigail Cowen, who will receive the Filming Italy Los Angeles Spotlight Award; Fabrizio Bentivoglio, who will receive the Filming Italy Los Angeles Best Performance Award for the film Eterno Visionario; Claudia Pandolfi, who will receive the Filming Italy Women Power Award for her performance in The Boy with the Pink Pants; Pietro Castellitto, who will receive the Filming Italy Los Angeles Best Actor Award for Diva Futura; Édgar Ramírez, who will receive the Filming Italy Los Angeles Best Performance Award for his latest performance in Emilia Pérez; Elena Kampouris, who will be presented with the Filming Italy Rising Star Award; Giacomo Giorgio, who will receive the Filming Italy Los Angeles Best Performance Award for his performance in Carosello; Pupi Avati, who will receive the Filming Italy Los Angeles Award for Zeder; the star of Parthenope, Celeste Dalla Porta, who will receive the Filming Italy Women Power Award; Arisa, who will receive the Filming Italy Los Angeles Best Original Song Award for her song “Canta ancora,” the soundtrack to the blockbuster film The Boy with the Pink Pants; director Marco Perego, who will receive the Filming Italy Los Angeles Creativity Award for his short film, Dovecote, starring Zoe Saldaña, Marcello Fonte and Gaia Scodellaro; Adam Pearson, who will receive the Filming Italy International Award for A Different Man; Netflix CEO Ted Sarandos, who will receive the Filming Italy Excellence in Cinema Award for the series The law according to Lidia Poët.

This year, Filming Italy - Los Angeles will be completely live, without giving up the digital platform that has gained more than 600,000 viewers in past editions. The platform, created for the occasion by MyMovies, will feature restored classics in the Classic section, TV series, docu-films, short films and first works by female directors. Meeting the expected parameters of security and computer protection with Hollywood Grade DRM, online screenings will be available in the following states and regions: California, New York, Virginia, Maryland, Arizona, District of Columbia, Florida, Nevada, Oregon, Michigan, Indiana, Ohio, Texas, Pennsylvania, Massachusetts, New Jersey, Connecticut, Hawaii, Washington, North Carolina, Georgia, Tennessee, Colorado, Idaho, Illinois, Bremen, Minnesota, Missouri, England, Scotland, Iowa, Kentucky, Louisiana, South Carolina, Alabama, Arkansas, Mississippi, Montana, New Hampshire, Utah, Vermont, Buenos Aires Province, Buenos Aires, Victoria, State of Amazonas, Ontario, Bavaria, Lower Saxony, Ile-de-France, Masovian Voivodeship, Delaware, New Mexico, West Virginia, Zulia, Minsk Region, Decentralized Administration of Thessaly.

The opening film of the 10th edition of Filming Italy - Los Angeles will be Until the End by Gabriele Muccino. Among the films that will be screened during the Festival: Francesco Costabile's Familia; Pietro Castellitto's Diva Futura; Paolo Sorrentino's Parthenope; Gianni Amelio's Campo di battaglia; Francesca Comencini's Il tempo che ci vuole; Alessandro Siani's Io e te dobbiamo parlare; Michele Placido's Eterno visionario; Alessandro Genovesi's 10 giorni con i suoi with Fabio De Luigi and Valentina Lodovini; Pupi Avati's Zeder; Eros Puglielli's Cortina Express with Christian De Sica, Lillo and Isabella Ferrari; Marco Perego's Dovecote; Una storia nera by Leonardo D'Agostini; Sei fratelli by Simone Godano; Iddu by Fabio Grassadonia and Antonio Piazza; Terapia di gruppo by Paolo Costella; Arsa, fiction feature by the duo MASBEDO (Nicolò Massazza and Iacopo Bedogni); C'è ancora domani by Paola Cortellesi; The Boy with the Pink Pants (U.S. premiere) by Margherita Ferri; Trainers by Andrea Jublin; From the Top of a Cold Tower by Francesco Frangipane; And If My Father by Solange Tonnini; Me and the Dry by Gianluca Santoni; The Bet. Una notte in corsia by Giovanni Dota; Non riattaccare by Manfredi Lucibello; Un altro ferragosto by Paolo Virzì; Vangelo secondo Maria by Paolo Zucca; and Zeder by Pupi Avati. Also presented will be the RAI Fiction series: Stucky with Giuseppe Battiston; the 14th season of Don Matteo; and Mike with Claudio Gioè.

Among the documentaries: Domenico Modugno. The Italian Who Changed the World by Maite Carpio; Duse - The greatest, for the 100th anniversary of the death of Eleonora Duse, in which director Sonia Bergamasco takes us on an investigation of the actress who changed the actor's craft forever; Pino Daniele: Nero a metà by Marco Spagnoli; and The Genius of Gianni Versace by Salvatore Vincent de Paul Zannino.

In the CLASSIC section , dedicated to restored great classics, four restorations made by the CSC - Cineteca Nazionale in 2024 will be screened: 1963's Le ore dell'amore starring Ugo Tognazzi and directed by Luciano Salce, a director who with a pungent gaze managed to turn current views of history and society upside down; 1961's La notte by Michelangelo Antonioni, a director who more than others in postwar Italian culture became the guiding star of international auteur cinema and a crucial point of reference for many contemporary filmmakers; Mario Bava's Sei donne per l'assassino (Six Women for the Murderer) from 1964, a film that opened the strand of the thriller genre in Italy; Dino Risi's Il giovedì (Thursdays) from 1967, made on the occasion of the centenary of Walter Chiari, the film's protagonist, which has become increasingly topical over time for the family dynamics recounted with lightness and a hint of melancholy.

In collaboration with Cinecittà, the following will be screened: Ciao Marcello, Mastroianni l'antidivo, a docu-film by Fabrizio Corallo that gives us a rich and entertaining look at the many nuances of Mastroianni; and Il mestiere di vivere, a documentary by Giovanna Gagliardo that recounts the last, hectic day in the life of Cesare Pavese. In the sports section sponsored by CONI in collaboration with Cinecittà: La valanga azzurra, a documentary by Giovanni Veronesi that recounts a glorious page of Italian sports in the 1970s.

On the occasion of its 120th anniversary, Titanus will present two works in restored versions (thanks to a careful adaptation to contemporary audiovisual formats) that represent a true cultural heritage not only for our country, but also internationally. The two 1955 films, which thus turn 70 years old in 2025, are: La bella mugnaia by Mario Camerini with Sophia Loren, Marcello Mastroianni and Vittorio De Sica; and Un eroe dei nostri tempi by Mario Monicelli with Alberto Sordi and Franca Valeri. A third title will also be screened: L'ultimo gattopardo - Ritratto di Goffredo Lombardo, a 2010 documentary directed by Giuseppe Tornatore that pays tribute to producer Goffredo Lombardo.