Biennale College Cinema in Italy Hosts Workshop for 12 Global Film Projects

8 November 2024 | Source

The 13th Biennale College Cinema, held in Venice, Italy, concluded its first workshop (Oct. 7–17, 2024) with a pitch session featuring 12 projects from 12 countries, including Italy, Nigeria, USA, and Vietnam. Four projects will advance to production, with results to debut at the 82nd Venice International Film Festival 2025.

Venice Film Festival

Italy

The 13th Biennale College Cinema program, organized by La Biennale di Venezia, held its first workshop from October 7 to 17, 2024, in Venice, Italy. The program culminated in a pitch session on October 17 at Ca’ Giustinian, where 12 selected projects were presented by teams of directors and producers from diverse countries, including Kenya, Italy, the USA, and Cambodia.

The workshop is a crucial stage in the Biennale College Cinema initiative, which fosters emerging filmmakers worldwide. Of the 12 projects, nine were selected from the Biennale College Cinema – International call and three from the Biennale College Cinema – Italia call. These calls received 277 applications, with the international one launched in May 2024 and the Italian one in January.

The selected projects included a mix of debut and sophomore feature films, such as "1 Woman, 1 Bra" (Kenya/Nigeria), directed by Vincho Nchogu, and "Agnus Dei" (Italy), directed by Massimiliano Camaiti. Other notable entries were "Summer 1999" (Vietnam), directed by Hang Luong Nguyen, and "The Booking" (USA), directed by Gabriella Moses.

Selected Projects:

"1 Woman, 1 Bra" / Vincho Nchogu / Kenya-Nigeria (1st feature)
"Agnus Dei" / Massimiliano Camaiti / Italy (2nd feature)
"Badland" / Mounir Derbal / Italy (1st feature)
"Becoming Human" / Polen Ly / Cambodia-USA (2nd feature)
"Last Time, Again" / Di Zhang, Mariusz Rusiński / China-Canada (1st feature)
"Orange Peel" / Anita Rivaroli / Italy (1st feature)
"Saving the Day" / Serhat Karaaslan / Turkey-France (2nd feature)
"Secret of a Mountain Serpent" / Nidhi Saxena / India (2nd feature)
"Summer 1999" / Hang Luong Nguyen / Vietnam (1st feature)
"The Booking" / Gabriella Moses / USA (2nd feature)
"The Family" / Hanna Jalali / Ukraine-Iran (1st feature)
"Vanishing Bones" / Simon Rieth / France (2nd feature)

Up to four teams will be invited to subsequent workshops in December 2024 (in Venice) and January 2025 (online) to finalize their projects. The selected teams will receive €200,000 for production, an increase from previous years. The resulting films will debut at the 82nd Venice International Film Festival in 2025.

The eight projects that do not advance will still benefit from feedback and opportunities, with three invited to participate in the Venice Gap Financing Market in 2025.

Biennale College Cinema continues to strengthen its international reach, supported by the Italian Ministry for Cultural Heritage and Activities, Vivendi, Gotham Film & Media Institute, and TorinoFilmLab, under the leadership of director Alberto Barbera and head of the program Savina Neirotti.