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DAVID DI DONATELLO 2011

We Believed, Benvenuti al sud lead David di Donatello nominations

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It was in a climate of widespread optimism towards Italian cinema (the domestic market share is roughly 40%) that the nominees were announced today for the 55th edition of the country’s top film awards, the David di Donatello.

"Our film industry is alive,” assured Gian Luigi Rondi, president of the Academy of Italian Film. "Proof lies in the fact that the jury [of 1,684 members] picked 27 films among the list of nominees".

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In a year teeming with celebrations for 150 years of Italian unity, We Believed [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Mario Martone
interview: Mario Martone
film profile
]
picked up the most nominations. Mario Martone’s feature film on the Risorgimento, which debuted at Venice 2010, has 13 nods, including Best Film, Director, Screenplay and Cinematography.

It is followed, with 10 nominations, by Luca Miniero’s Benvenuti al Sud [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile
]
, a huge domestic hit that earned €30m at the box office. It is going up for Best Film, Director, Actress (Angela Finocchiaro) and Actor (Claudio Bisio).

The shortlist for Best Film is rounded out by the comedy Basilicata Coast to Coast [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Rocco Papaleo
film profile
]
, the debut film by Rocco Papaleo, and Daniele Luchetti’s Our Life [+see also:
film review
trailer
making of
film profile
]
, with eight nominations each, and Claudio Cupellini’s A Quiet Life [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Claudio Cupellini
film profile
]
(four).

The filmmakers vying for Best Director are eight (due to many ex aequo nominations). Besides Martone, Miniero, Luchetti and Cupellini, they are Marco Bellocchio (Sorelle mai [+see also:
trailer
film profile
]
), Saverio Costanzo (The Solitude of Prime Numbers [+see also:
trailer
interview: Luca Marinelli
film profile
]
), Michelangelo Frammartino (The Four Times [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Michelangelo Frammartino
interview: Savina Neirotti
film profile
]
) and Paolo Genovese (Immaturi [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile
]
).

Best Actress sees a competition between Finocchiaro, Paola Cortellesi (Nessuno mi può giudicare [+see also:
trailer
film profile
]
), Sarah Felberbaum (The Little Gem [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile
]
), Isabella Ragonese (Our Life) e Alba Rohrwacher ( The Solitude of Prime Numbers ). Best Actor will have Bisio going up against Antonio Albanese (Whatsoeverly [+see also:
film review
trailer
making of
film profile
]
), Elio Germano (Our Life), Vinicio Marchioni (20 Cigarettes [+see also:
trailer
film profile
]
, which has an overall eight nominations) and Kim Rossi Stuart (Vallanzasca [+see also:
trailer
film profile
]
).

The nominees for Best Film from the European Union are: Mike Leigh’s Another Year [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Mike Leigh
film profile
]
, Tom Hooper’s The King’s Speech [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Tom Hooper
film profile
]
, Susanne Bier’s In a Better World [+see also:
trailer
film profile
]
, Juan José Campanella’s The Secret in Their Eyes [+see also:
trailer
film profile
]
and Xavier Beauvois’ Uomini di Dio [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Xavier Beauvois
film profile
]
.

The David di Donatello Awards ceremony will be held May 6 in Rome and will be covered live at 5 pm on RAI Movie, and recorded on RAI Uno and RAI International at 11:20 pm.

For the complete list of nominees, please click here.

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(Translated from Italian)

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