11/07/2024 - The first film written by, directed by and starring the writer behind The Eight Mountains will world premiere in Locarno as a pre-opening event

Following the success of his book The Eight Mountains (awarded the 2017 Strega Prize) and the film of the same name it inspired, The Eight Mountains [+see also:
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interview: Felix van Groeningen & Char…
film profile], by Belgian directors Felix Van Groeningen and Charlotte Vandermeersch (which scooped the Jury Prize in Cannes 2022 and four David di Donatello trophies in 2023, including one for Best Film), the 46-year-old Milan-born writer Paolo Cognetti is making his debut behind the cameras with A Flower of Mine [+see also:
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film profile], which he also wrote and stars in.

Set to be presented in a world premiere, as a pre-opening event on 6 August in the 77th Locarno Film Festival’s Piazza Grande line-up, the film sees the writer returning to the alpine landscape of The Eight Mountains in the company of his inseparable dog Laki, except this time it’s for a documentary exploring the Monte Rosa Massif by way of breathtaking scenery and encounters with those who haven’t just found a home but a veritable “place of connection” in the mountains.

The protagonist of A Flower of Mine is the most visceral subject of Cognetti’s poetics: the mountain which the author previously explored in the documentary Sogni di Grande Nord [+see also:
trailer
film profile], directed by Dario Acocella, which saw him following in the footsteps of Christopher McCandless from Into the Wild through the incredible and remote landscapes of Alaska. This time, Paolo Cognetti’s journey unfolds in closer proximity to the viewer, to speak intimately, introspectively and unpredictably about his mountain.

Helping to conclude this journey is the brilliant singer-songwriter Vasco Brondi, who’s like a brother to Cognetti and who, on this occasion and for the very first time, is responsible for an entire film score. In addition to composing the film’s original music, Brondi has also written and performed a brand-new song, Ascoltare gli alberi, which plays out at the end of the documentary. A Flower of Mine, meanwhile, the track we hear in the final part of the film, which inspired its title, has for some time been one of the most popular songs put forth by Andrea Laszlo De Simone, a Turin-born singer-songwriter and musician who won this year’s César for Best Original Music thanks to The Animal Kingdom [+see also:
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interview: Thomas Cailley
film profile], making him the first Italian to claim this prestigious prize.

A Flower of Mine is produced by Samarcanda Film, Nexo Studios, Harald House and EDI Effetti Digitali Italiani with the support of the Film Commission Vallée d'Aoste. Nexo will be distributing the film in Italy on 25, 26 and 27 November before also distributing it worldwide.

(Translated from Italian)