MOVIE SCREENING
This event is part of the 2013 Turkish Cultural Heritage Month and is presented in collaboration with ATA-DC.
Pietro (Elio Germano), a young Sicilian gay man, moves to Rome to pursue his life-long dream of being an actor. He is shy, introverted, and a bit confused about his sexual orientation. As he must admit to his spirited cousin Maria, he has a hard time dealing with his homosexuality.
At night he works making cornetti in a pastry shop, while during the day he goes through grueling auditions. He moves into an old building, where he rents a flat on the second floor. Pietro soon realizes that his house is populated by ghosts, who in life were actors living and performing in the 1940s, during the Nazi occupation of Rome.
Pietro finds out that these actors all died under tragic circumstances. The ghosts are eccentric, very elegant attention cravers, and wear make-up as if ready to go on stage. As the story unfolds, we learn that these actors were secretly working for the Resistance, and were all betrayed by one of them.
At first, Pietro is scared, but he will eventually understand that they do not know that they are dead. From their point of view, the Pietro is the foreign presence. Gradually, Pietro and the ghosts become friends. He gets more and more involved in their lives, and decides to solve the mystery surrounding their gruesome death.
According to Nicoletta Gemmi of “Primissima” (2012), Özpetek was inspired by both Luigi Pirandello’s play Sei personaggi in cerca d’autore (Six Characters in Search of an Author), and Alejandro Amenabar’s movie The Others, starring Nichole Kidman.
Magnifica presenza was nominated for 8 David di Donatello in 2012 and won two awards at the Moscow International Film Festival.
Italy 2012, 105 min.
Directed by Ferzan Özpetek
Film in Italian with English subtitles
TRAILER (via Youtube)
This event is part of the Turkish Festival in DC and is presented in collaboration with ATA-DC
DOORS OPEN AT 6:30PM AND CLOSE PROMPTLY AT 7:00PM
RSVP
Please click on “Make a Reservation” by September 16, 2013 at 2 PM
The Reservation System will allow you to register until we reach
capacity or by the event’s date and time above (whichever comes
first.)
PLEASE NOTE: RESERVATION IS REQUIRED FOR OUR EVENTS FOR SECURITY REASONS. A RESERVATION IS NOT A GUARANTEE OF A SEAT. OUR VENUE HAS LIMITED SEATING AND WE WILL ACCOMODATE GUESTS ON A FIRST-COME FIRST-SERVED BASIS. GUESTS WITHOUT SEATS ARE WELCOME TO STAND IF THEY LIKE.
PHOTO ID REQUIRED
LOCATION
Embassy of Italy
3000 Whitehaven Street NW
Washington, DC 20008
THE DIRECTOR
Born in Istanbul, director and screenwriter Ferzan Ozpetek moved to Italy in 1978 to study History of Cinema at the University “La Sapienza” of Rome. He began his activity as assistant director in 1982, first with Massimo Troisi with Scusate il ritardo (Sorry I am late), then with many other important directors up to Marco Risi, for Il branco, 1994. In 1997 his debut as a director was The Turkish Bath – Hamam, an immediate success in Italy and abroad. In the following years his major works include Le fate ignoranti (His Secret Life), 2001; La finestra di fronte (Facing Windows), 2003; Cuore sacro, 2005; Saturno contro (Saturn in Opposition), 2007; Un giorno perfetto, 2008; Magnifica presenza, 2012.
Often referred to as the Italian Almodovar, Ozpetek is probably at his best when he focuses on the world of feelings, human relations, charms and contradictions of daily life. His cinema seems to know the secret of pushing controversial and uncomfortable issues onto the foreground with a kind of lightness of his own, which enables him to engage the large public in a far reaching discussion.
ABOUT ATA-DC AND THE TURKISH FESTIVAL
ATA-DC (American Turkish Association of Washington, D.C) is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization whose primary mission is to promote understanding between Turkish and non-Turkish communities through cultural, social and educational programs. ATA-DC, incorporated in the District of Columbia in 1965, is managed by a 20 member all-volunteer board and has over 600 members.
ONLINE: atadc.org
ATA-DC’s mission is to promote better understanding and to foster friendship between the peoples of Turkey and the United States of America; to raise the public knowledge level and understanding of the Turkish culture and history in the community; and to help Turkish Americans preserve their culture in the Unites States.
ATA-DC is the main organizer of the Annual Turkish Festival that takes place in downtown Washington, DC that is visited by more than 20,000 Washingtonians every year. Turkish Festival was voted as the “Best Festival of DC” by the readers of the Washington CityPaper in 2011 and was a runner up in the same competition in 2012.
ONLINE: turkishfestival.org
ATA-DC also organizes the Turkish Restaurant week in Washington DC, which won the “Best International Food Event” title in the Washington Citypaper’s Best of DC competition.
ONLINE: turkishrestaurantweekdc.org
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