Guerra e pace

Guerra e pace tells the story of the relationship between cinema and war, one that has lasted for over a century, from the time of their first encounter, way back in 1911, on the occasion of the Italian invasion of Libya, to our own day. From the sequences filmed by the pioneers of cinema to today’s videos shot on smartphones by ordinary citizens all over the world, the step appears very short and the relationship between the movies and war a very strong one. Guerra e pace is a reflection on images and, as in a long novel divided into four chapters (remote past, recent past, present and future), tries to put all the pieces of the fragmented visual memory from the early years of the 20th century until today back together, highlighting the multiplication of visions that now accompany our lives, like constant background noise. Four important European institutions host the narration of our film and constitute its solid spatiotemporal framework. A framework in which peace and war seem to coexist and keep each other at bay. Guerra e pace raises questions about the consequences of war and about the meaning of history and the preservation of its memory for the benefit of future generations.

The first idea for Guerra e pace came to us one day in front of an Italian embassy in a foreign capital. We asked ourselves what function and what value these privileged bodies might still have and, more generally, what was the sense of diplomatic activity in a world in which communication and news travel at a speed that is completely beyond our control. We believe that today it is more necessary than ever to reconsider the means that are used to avert, limit and contain conflicts and to favor instead a dialogue between people and institutions. It is clear that cinema, from its origins, has had a stronger link with war than with peace, in part because of the spirit that permeated the first half of the last century and the intrinsic need to document historic events, and in part owing to the real difficulty of filming a process of peace. So we decided to reflect on the images of the past and the present not just as an instrument of war, but also as a possible instrument of peace.

PRODUCTION 1: Martina Parenti, Massimo D’Anolfi - Montmorency film
via burigozzo 8
20122 – Milano, Italy
Mob. (Martina Parenti) +39 3358436922
Mob. (Massimo D’Anolfi) + 39 3385786789
montmorencyfilm@yahoo.it

PRODUCTION 2: Rai Cinema
Piazza Adriana 12
00193 – Roma, Italy
Tel. +39 0633179601
Bianca.giordano@raicinema.it

PRODUCTION 3: David Fonjallaz, Louis Mataré– Lomotion
Weyermannstrasse 28
3008 – Berna, Switzerland
Tel. +41 31 388 00 66
Mob. David Fonjallaz +41 764140086
Mob. Louis Mataré +41 765680086
david@lomotion.ch
louis@lomotion.ch

WORLD SALES: Irena Taskovski - Taskovski Films
1° Floor, Healthaid House
Marlborough Hill
Harrow,HA1 1UD – London, United Kingdoma
Tel. +44 7562977143
Irena@taskovskifilms.com

ITALIAN DISTRIBUTION: Federica Di Biagio - Istituto Luce Cinecittà
Massimo D'Anolfi e Martina Parenti - Montmorency Film
Via Tuscolana 1055
00173 - Roma, Italy
Tel. +39 0672286279
Mob. +39 366 6819019
f.dibiagio@cinecittàluce.it
www.cinecittàluce.it

ITALIAN PRESS OFFICE: Lucrezia Viti, Livia delle Fratte
Italy
Tel. +39 348 2565827 (Lucrezia)
Tel. +39 349 2233828 (Livia)
lucreziaviti@presspress.it

INTERNATIONAL PRESS OFFICE: Marina Dìaz Cabrera
festivals@taskovskifilms.com