Italy

It's known as the Italian Sundance for short-films, an annual showcase of precious little gems up in the mountains and under the snow: Cortinametraggio is as interesting as its beautiful surrounding, in Cortina d'Ampezzo, the “pearl of the Dolomites,” in the Italian Alps. Cortinametraggio – a word play on Cortina and cortometraggio, or short-length movie, wrapped its 18th edition on March 25th 2023, with unequivocal success.

Gru is definitely rising. After weeks of slumping revenues, Minions: The Rise of Gru has brought a breath of fresh air.

Not a single film, over seven days, made it through the one million euro mark. The craziest heat wave in decades, with its terrible drought, is influencing lifestyles around the peninsula.

Back in 1973 legendary Roman folk singer Gabriella Ferri gave life to one of Italy's summer anthems by definition. “Tutti ar mare, tutti ar mare, a mostra' le chiappe chiare”, she sang with her distinctive hoarse voice, inviting everyone to go to the beach, to show off their “pale buttocks”.

If not for Doctor Strange 2, the Italian box office would have marked one of the worst weeks since the beginning of the year. But Marvel Studios' latest blockbuster worked like a magnet, attracting over a million fans and bringing some oxygen to the asphyctic market.

Many questions arose in the mind of Italian cinema-goers when confronted with the latest Covid measures. Since May 1st face masks have become “highly recommended” rather than mandatory in all social activities, from eating and drinking in restaurants and clubs, to shopping or visiting a museum.

The overall ranking of films at the Italian box office for the first half of the 2021/2022 season is out. A hard blow for Italian productions: only one Italian film managed to gain a space in the top ten: Me contro Te, released last August, a teen comedy starring the two young YouTube stars Sofia Scalia and Luigi Calagna.

After weeks of absolute domination, The Batman falls to the fourth position in Italy, while Corro da te, a romantic comedy by Riccardo Milano starring Pierfrancesco Favino and Miriam Leone, grosses another €509. 000 and lands on the lowest step of the podium, taking in a total of two million euros.

If there's one debut Italian cinema didn't wish for, that's the “Super Green Pass”. The reinforced Covid certificate, valid only for vaccinated or healed people, becomes mandatory to enter any of the 3.

“We all have to stay at home, we have to do it for everyone's sake and welfare, let's do it all together, albeit separate,” says Italian actor Alessandro Gassman (star of  I bastardi di Pizzofalcone TV series) and son of legendary Italian actor Vittorio Gassman. “It's a difficult moment, a complicated one, strange days indeed we're living, and yet I'm convinced that we shall overcome it if we follow the rules.