27/11/2013 - Of the eight projects presented last year for adaptation from books to film at the TorinoFilmLab, two are in the process of being adapted

The youngest of the TorinoFilmLab projects – the one dedicated to the cinema adaptation of literary pieces of work (AdaptLab, 2^nd edition) – is growing and bearing its first fruits. Out of the eight projects presented last year (read the news story), two novels are in the process of being adapted: "La legge di Fonzi" by Omar di Monopoli and "Scusate la polvere" by Elvira Seminara. The first, an adaptation by French screenwriter and director Gaëlle Denis, will be taken out of Apulia and reset in France. It already has a producer, La Voie Lactée. The second, which is being worked on by Greek screenwriter Elizampetta Ilia-Georgiadou and has been renamed Etiquette, will most probably take place in Switzerland (talks are under way with Swiss producers).

In the mean time, the programme, under the direction of French Isabelle Fauvel (Initiative Film) is expanding: 12 projects were presented this year on day 2 of the TFL Meeting Event (25-27 November), four based on Scandinavian novels, four on Italian ones, and four more chosen by respective screenwriters. Among these, Dark Roses by Chinese heritage Danish Marianne Hansen (from the book "Buster's Ears" by Swedish writer Maria Ernestam), a dark comedy on a daughter who hates her mother and wants to kill her, but when the latter dies, is consumed with guilt. When I Grow Up by Greek writer and reporter Despina Ladi (from "La mia banda suona il porn" by Italians Paolo Baron and Raffaella R. Ferré), a comedy on two porn translators who fall in love. River Without Shores by Alto Adige native Philipp Mayrhofer (from novel "The Ship" by Hans Henny Jahnn), a film noir with a romantic backdrop entirely set on a boat in the middle of the sea. The film already has a French producer (Ferris & Brockman) and a German co-producer (Baby Blue Pictures). The Blue Notebook, which French writer Isabelle Colombat is adapting from a novel for teenagers she wrote herself ("Bienvenue à Goma"), based on the experience of a reporter in Africa, following the traces of France’s involvement in the Rwandan genocide.  

The TFL Writer's Room is also growing. The programme is dedicated to cross-media projects and is in its third edition. Two proposals have been put forward this year (four next year): Hack by British Lee Thomas, the story of hacker culture seen through a combination of online films, photos and audio recordings, and Midnights by Anna Reeves, which explores the ethical ambiguities of bio and nanotechnologies through films, a television series, a novel and a videogame. Writer's Room was developed in collaboration with Power to the Pixel.

(Translated from Italian)