To strengthen and consolidate the regional audiovisual sector by also supporting local talents and attracting important national and international productions. Work on the Regione Calabria audiovisual law – which will give the sector and the Fondazione Calabria Film Commission a leading role in regional development policies – is proceeding with these two strategic objectives. But whilst law making can take time, the cinema machine has already started moving, eversince the new course of the Fondazione Calabria Film Commission was inaugurated in August 2015 with the slogan Calabria, Terra da girare – A land for filming.

There are many national productions that we will be seeing on TV soon, like the Rai drama series “Tutto il mondo è paese”, dedicated to the innovative reception policies of the mayor of Riace Mimmo Lucano, the docu- film “I cacciatori di Calabria”, realized in collaboration with Rai due, the “4 restaurants” format with chef Alessandro Borghes and the television series for the international market announced by Sky, “The Miracle”, written by Niccolò Ammaniti.

This acceleration in productions is also due to LU.CA., the innova- tive collaboration agreement with the Basilicata region inaugurated, we should remember, by supporting a short film, “The Millionairs”, by Claudio Santamaria who chose the Parco Nazionale del Pollino for his directing debut.
While Santamaria returned to his homeland for his directing debut, Jonas Carpignano, another Calabrian talent, not only lmed and set the aforementioned “A Ciambra” there but last November he opened a branch of his production company Stayblack Productions in Calabria, which has received contr

ibutions for carrying out the scouting for two new international projects: “Alfa” and “Geppetto”.

Many works by young creatives in the region have received support from the Calabria Film Commission in just over a year. These include the short “Penalty” by Aldo Iuliano from Crotone (Golden Globe 2017 and Best Short 2017 I Love GAI at the 74th Venice Film Festival), “Il Padre d’Italia” by Fabio Mollo (Golden Globe 2017 Best Actress Isabella Ragonese), “Racconto Calabrese” by Renato Pagliuso, the documentary “Uscirai vivo” produced by the Kinema cultural association in Girifalco, “Judas” by Pierluigi Sposato, the short by Gianluca Loffredo “Quasi domani” (screened in Venice in the Mibact’s Migrarti section), the short “Bismillah” by Alessandro Grande, the short “Il nostro sangue” by Gino Palummo, the diploma performance by a group of Pupils from the Centro Sperimentale di Cinematografia [Experimental Cinema Center] guided by Gianni Amelio.

With the rst public notice for attracting national and international audiovisual and theatrical productions to the territory of the Calabria region, 14 productions have been funded that are getting ready to film in the region over the next few months: seven feature films (“Versace” by Billie August produced by Oberon Produzioni; “Figli”, by Giacomo Campiotti produced by BIBI Film; “Rapiscimi”, by Gianluca Gargano produced by Alba Produzioni; “Sarà bello” by Paola Columba, produced by Baby Film; “Ciccio Paradiso” by Rocco Ricciardulli, produced by Sergio Nuzzo; “L’altra via” by Francesco Lodari, produced by Picture Show; “White Flowers” by Marco De Angelis and Antonio Di Trapani, produced by Solaria Film), five documentaries (“Sons of Mafia” by Sophia Luvarà produced by DocLab; “Arberia” produced by A.c.a.r.i. and Massimo Ivan Falsetta; “Waiting for the Steven” by Davide Morabito produced by Red Rock Goat; “Caronte” by Nunzio Gringeri produced by Onirica;“CCC-Calabria Cometo Cambridge” by Berardo Carboni, produced by Piroetta) and two web series (“Le avventure di pomodoro rosso” by Alessandro Gordano, produced by Lago Film and “Calabrifornication” by Salvatore Romano produced by Marvaso Production). Moreover, in the rst few months of the year, a notice will be published regarding support for the development of screenplays.

CLAUDIO SANTAMARIA/Where the Heart lies
 “I am very fond of the Pollino National Park” says Claudio Santamaria “and I always thought that if I was going to film something it would be there. I used to go there as a boy and I really liked its timeless atmosphere which is also particularly suitable for my noir story that I filmed without any dialogue, adapting it to the cartoon of the same name by Thomas Ott”. Santamaria filmed in October 2016 and the support he received from the region was total: “I already had a producer (Editor’s note: Gabriele Mainetti, who had previously directed Santamaria in “Jeeg Robot”) and felt I had to make my movie as soon as possible. Despite the little time available the Film Commission provided me with a person for the location hunting who is also a guide in the Pollino national park, Fabio Limongi, who subsequently became an actor in the short. We went to Piano Ruggio from where it is possible to admire the whole panorama as far as Taranto. It is the only place in Italy where Bosnian pines grow, clinging to the rocks. A wonderful place that I used for the road you see at the beginning of the short”.