Corso Salani Award

White Lies tells the story of Alba, an artist who uses her art to explore a past that does not belong to her. A moving and intimate portrait of her search for identity, a journey that delves deep into family wounds. White Lies, among the projects selected at WEMW 2025, was presented at the last edition of the Festival dei Popoli, where it received 4 awards.

A stubborn and passionate filmmaker, Paul Vecchiali, on set until the very end, in a face-to-face across time. Antonio Pettinelli was a volunteer assistant director to Fellini and is an author and director of documentaries and reports. Paul à Mayerling – A portrait, his first feature film, was presented at the Pesaro Film Festival and the MedFilm Festival.

In the hidden corners of Serekunda, Gambia, a trash collector caring for his daughter Yama awaits news of his wife, who left them in search of better opportunities abroad. As the days pass, hope almost turns into religion. Lorusso’s previous film, Song of All Ends, was presented at the last edition of the TSFF.

Today, three of the last active penal colonies in Europe still exist in Sardinia. In these open-air workhouses, inmates serve their sentences, dividing their time between cell walls and labor. In the Penal Colony is a film that immerses itself in this exceptional space. The film won the Marco Zucchi Award at the Semaine de la Critique section of the Locarno Festival 2025.

Leila is the story of a little girl with aviator goggles, her father, and the mother who left behind an emptiness: a fairytale journey where imagination becomes the bridge to find one another again.
Leila, the latest film by Alessandro Abba Legnazzi, was presented in the “Panorama Italia” section at Alice nella Città 2025.

In a world dominated by chaos, Abel appears in the gazes of shepherds surviving on the borders of the wandering pastures between Sardinia and Palestine, silent witnesses of conflicting daily lives.
Fabian Volti, filmmaker and photographer works on audiovisual projects,visual research and documentary cinema. Abel, his debut feature-length, was selected at the IDFA in Amsterdam.

Charlotte lives in seclusion with her father in Trentino. She is mentally impaired and lives in a world of her own. When her father is hospitalised for a heart attack, Charlotte’s younger brother Leo returns to the village after a long absence and asks her to go to Switzerland with him. It is the beginning of an adventure, which will lead her to discover her true self.

Anna runs a farm in Sardinia. At night she lets go in sensual dances in the village bar and indulges in short-lived adventures. Until one day, the construction of a mega-resort on her land forces her to engage in the biggest battle of her life. Annapremiered at the latest Venice Days. *Born in Trieste: film whose project was pitched at When East Meets West

*Born in Trieste: film whose project was pitched at When East Meets West

A white hen, animal guide, takes us through a suspended and magical Mediterranean landscape. The film was made in complete autarky. Subject, production and 16mm processing were carried out by Warshadfilm – Tiziano Doria, Samira Guadagnuolo – in their Milanese laboratory.