Door of the House Who Will Come Knocking
Maja Novaković
SRB-BiH, 2024, col., 84’
Serbian – Bosnian o.v.
Italian premiere
An elderly man works exhausting hours alongside his horse. A story about man and grief as a universal human experience. At the Door of the House Who Will Come Knocking is the director’s debut feature-length documentary: it premiered at the Sheffield DocFest in 2024, where it won the Grand Jury Award in the International Competition.
- Tuesday 21
Cinema Ambasciatori
At 14:00
A Year in the Life of a Country
Tomasz Wolski
PL, 2024, col. e b-n / b-w, 85’
Polish – English o.v.
Italian premiere
In 1981 Poland was on the verge of an unravelling revolution. Exciting time for people, troublesome for the authorities. A film about the imposition of martial law made from archive material, that vibrates with extraordinary and unexpected energy. A Year in the Life of a Country was presented at the Krakow Film Festival and at the Jihlava International Documentary Film Festival.
- Tuesday 21
Cinema Ambasciatori
At 18:00
Lina Vdovîi, Radu Ciorniciuc
RO-DE-NL, 2024, col., 83’
Romanian – Italian o.v.
Italian premiere
Tata is a raw portrait of a family locked in a relentless struggle against toxic masculinity. It tells the story of a daughter’s emotionally poignant quest to break the cycle for herself, the next generation, and even for the one who hurt her. The film is Lina Vdovîi’s feature-length directorial debut. The film premiered at the Toronto FF in 2024.
- Tuesday 21
Cinema Ambasciatori
At 20:00
To Be Continued. Teenhood
Ivars Seleckis, Armands Začs
LV, 2024, col., 98’
Latvian – Russian o.v
Italian premiere
Seven years after To Be Continued, Seleckis and Začs return to visit the film’s protagonists, who are now 14 years old. The documentary captures the world through the eyes of teenagers and observes how the situation in the country and the world shapes these children’s destinies. To Be Continued. Teenhood. was presented at the latest IDFA.
- Tuesday 21
Cinema Ambasciatori
At 22:00
Isabela Tent
RO, 2024, col., 86’
Romanian o.v.
Italian premiere
Filmed over 10 years, it’s the story of Alice, a girl trapped in a young mother’s life.
Alice On & Off, Isabela Tent’s debut feature documentary, premiered at Krakow Film Festival and then was presented at the Transilvania IFF where it won the Best Debut Feature award.
- Wednesday 22
Cinema Ambasciatori
At 14:00
Termini
Laila Pakalniņa
LV, 2024, b-n/b-w, 71’
no dialogue
Italian premiere
The terminus resembles a circle, because it is where things turn around. The people one meets at a terminus are very important people. Maybe because it’s at the termini that the city ends and begins – and if not the city, then at least something ends and begins there.
The film premiered at the latest Riga Film Festival.
- Wednesday 22
Cinema Ambasciatori
At 18:00
Trains
Maciej J. Drygas
PL-LT, 2024, b -n / b-w, 81’
no dialogue
Italian premiere
Trains is a documentary fresco, a wordless and contemplative journey through the Twentieth century, depicting humanity’s cycles of war, fleeting peace, and inevitable tragedy. Composed entirely of archival film footage from 46 archives around the world and sound design, Trains premiered at the latest IDFA in Amsterdam where it was awarded Best Film and Best Editing.
- Wednesday 22
Cinema Ambasciatori
At 20:00
The Sky Above Zenica
NannaFrank Møller, Zlatko Pranjić
BiH-DK, 2024, b&w/col., 90′
v.o. Bosnian-English
Italian Premiere
The citizens of Zenica have united in a common struggle for a sustainable future. But money, power, and politics prove to be as toxic an opponent as the pollution that is threatening their lives. The Sky Above Zenica premiered at CPH:Dox in Copenhagen and was then presented at the Sarajevo FF and Jihlava IDFF, among others festivals.
- Wednesday 22
Cinema Ambasciatori
At 22:00
In limbo
Alina Maksimenko
PL, 2024, col., 71’
Russian – Ukrainian o.v.
Italian premiere
Russia’s invasion of Ukraine finds Alina in Irpin, near Kyiv. The front is getting closer and closer, and it’s time to make a decision – to stay or to run away? This feature documentary debut premiered at Visions du Réel and it was also selected by European Film Academy to be part of the EFA Documentary Film Selection 2024.
- Thursday 23
Cinema Ambasciatori
At 16:30
Paula Ďurinová
SK-DE, 2024, col., 65’
Slovak o.v.
Italian premiere
From the sea, through dark caverns, to volcanic deserts, an unexpected disappearance uncovers a new horizon: phases of grief unfold in this emerging ecosystem, offering a perspective full of empathy for life that is no more. Lapilli is Paula Ďurinová’s feature-length debut, premiered at the Karlovy Vary FF in 2024, in the Proxima Competition section.
- Thursday 23
Cinema Ambasciatori
At 18:00
Silent Sun of Russia
Sybilla Tuxen
DK, 2023, col., 71’
Russian – Spanish – Georgian o.v.
Italian Premiere
Silent Sun of Russia portrays a generation of young Russians between 2018 and 2022. The film follows three women who are rebels and anarchists, part of a global youth who dreams of living a modern life in freedom. The film premiered in competition at the latest CPH:DOX in Copenhagen.
- 2024
Cinema Ambasciatori
At 14:00
It’s Only/Not Only A Body… Or a Short Film About Freedom
Michał Hytroś
PL, 2023, col., 82’
Polish o.v.
Italian Premiere
What if you could leave everything behind and go to see the world in your RV Camper? This is the story about living your life as a journey, fighting eating disorders, accepting your body, passion for photography and finding yourself. The film premiered in competition at the latest Krakow Film Festival.
- 2024
Cinema Ambasciatori
At 16:00
Sundial
Liis Nimik
EST, 2023, col., 65’
Estonian o.v.
Italian Premiere
In the periphery countryside of Estonia, humans and every living being compose an orchestra, where everyone has their place in co-creation of the humble rhythm of Earth. Sundial premiered in competition at Visions du Réel 2023.
- 2024
Cinema Ambasciatori
At 14:00
Motherland
Alexander Mihalkovich, Hanna Badziaka
S – UA – N, 2023, col., 92’
Russian – Belarusian o.v.
Italian Premiere
In 2020, Belarus’s military practice of violent bullying, torture, and murder of conscripts as a means of control becomes a flash point for a growingly dissatisfied populace. After its premiere at CPH:DOX 2023, where it won the Main Award, Motherlandwas then selected at more than 30 international festivals.
- 2024
Cinema Ambasciatori
At 16:00
Between Revolutions
Vlad Petri
RO – HR – Q – IR, 2023, col. & b-w, 70’
Romanian – Farsi o.v.
Italian Premiere
Two friends separated by political revolutions find connection through letters, defying distance and turmoil. After its premiere at the Berlinale “Forum” in 2023, where it was awarded FIPRESCI Prize, Between Revolutions was selected in many international film festivals, including Thessaloniki, Sarajevo and Ji.hlava.
- 2024
Cinema Ambasciatori
At 22:00
Home Sweet Home
Annika Mayer
D, 2023, col. & b-w, 68’
German o.v.
Italian Premiere
A family in the 60s on Super8. Stories of a violent husband fifty years later. A film about the invisibility of domestic violence. Home Sweet Homepremiered in competition at DOK Leipzig 2023.
- 2024
Cinema Ambasciatori
At 18:00
A Picture to Remember
Olga Chernykh
UA – F – D, 2023, col., 72’
Ukrainian – Russian o.v.
Italian Premiere
A Picture to Remember is an essayistic account of a family’s long journey through the war. It chronicles the search for a way to handle terrible and recurring losses experienced by three generations of Ukrainian women – the director, her mother, and her grandmother. One of the projects selected last year at Last Stop Trieste, A Picture to Remember premiered in competition at IDFA 2023.
*BORN IN TRIESTE: film whose project was pitched at When East Meets West
- 2024
Cinema Ambasciatori
At 20:00
Fairy Garden
Gergő Somogyvári
H – RO – HR, 2023, col., 83’
Hungarian o.v.
Italian Premiere
“If I leave this place, I won’t survive too long.” On the outskirts of Budapest, in the heart of the woods, hides a ramshackle little hut. Inside, two social outcasts have formed the unlikeliest of bonds. Special Jury Award at the latest Sarajevo Film Festival.
- 2024
Cinema Ambasciatori
At 18:00
Maja Doroteja Prelog
SLO – PL – I – SRB – A, 2023-2024, col., 87’
Slovenian o.v.
World Premiere
After surviving a terminal illness diagnosis, Blaž sets off on a gruelling but celebratory ‘Giro d’Italia’. Accompanying him is his partner, the filmmaker Maja Doroteja Prelog, tasked with capturing the triumphant biking tour. An unfiltered testament to love and change.
*BORN IN TRIESTE: film whose project was pitched at When East Meets West
- 2024
Cinema Ambasciatori
At 14:00
Shoghakat Vardanyan
AM, 2023, col., 76’
Armenian – Russian o.v.
Italian premiere
Soghomon Vardanyan, a 21-year-old student and musician, had almost finished his mandatory military service when the Nagorno-Karabakh war started, in 2020. On the seventh day of the war, Soghomon goes missing. Using her phone camera, his sister Shoghakat decides to document her and her parents’ search. The film was awarded Best Film and FIPRESCI Prize at the latest IDFA.
- 2024
Cinema Ambasciatori
At 18:00
