All short films in competition

A really hard selection to choose 98 works out of 4200 titles

163 WORKS INCLUDING SHORTS AND FEATURES SELECTED OUT OF 3700 PRODUCTIONS Handicap, friendship, troubled love, social and economic differences, homosexuality and lack of parent-child communication are some of the issues debated Not only international stars, long anticipated premieres, meetings with directors and actors. As always the real protagonists of the Giffoni Experience (in Giffoni Valle Piana from 18 to 27 July) are the films to be judged by over 3500 jurors. Feature films and short films – in and out of competition –  163 works, selected out of 3700 productions from 82 countries. The Giffoni Experience put up a great effort selecting, with great care and sensitivity, the films that can best represent the theme of the 44th GFF edition, Be Different. During the ten days of Festival, the jurors will watch and judge flicks of great emotional impact. in the competitive sections Elements +3 (3-5 years), Elements +6 (6-9 years), Elements +10 (10-12 years), Generator +13 (13-15 years), Generator +16 (16-17 years), Generator +18 (over18), Masterclass (18-25). ELEMENTS +3 Let's start with animations for children in Elements +3, who will have fun with works re-reading traditional techniques and will play with 3D graphics. ELEMENTS +6 The "Be different" theme is definitely relevant in Elements +6. FromTHE PASTA DETECTIVES where two very different children create an unlikely detective squad.LOLA is the delightfully bizarre protagonist of ON THE PEA who needs to come to terms with her father's absence. While Taina,a very special child is immersed in the lush nature of the amazon (TAINÁ – AN AMAZON LEGEND). ANTBOYbefore discovering he is a super hero is a very shy child. Less heroic but definitely one of a kind Findus the cat lives merrily with his friend Pettson. (PETTSON AND FINDUS: A LITTLE NUISANCE A GREAT FRIENDSHIP). An extraordinary dog  goes searching for a new house with his family in, PUDSEY THE MOVIE. In ZIP & ZAP AND THE MARBLE GANGteam work gets started so as to subvert the rules and regulations of a college and unveil its mystery. Last but not least fairytale atmosphere in the RussianLAND OF GOOD KIDS, surreal land in which a little girl teaches perfect kids how being different isn't such a bad thing after all.   ELEMENTS +10 Europe but also India and Canada in Elements +10 and a great variety of styles, atmospheres and stories. From India the delightful melò ofCOUNTING DREAM - with the hero in the pursuit for happiness and friendship in an India with huge economical and social differences. – THE FORTin which the protagonist will need to find out a new environment but first and foremost his weaknesses. High level of mystery in THE LEGEND OF LONGWOOD and a great come-back with CanadianTHE OUTLAW LEAGUE:  the film is by La Production La Fête, that has participated to the festival many times. Suspense and mysterious family story to be unveiled in the DutchFINN. WithA LITTLE GAMEwe move to New York in which an amazing F. Murray Abraham is a chess and life master of the young protagonist. This ideal journey across the world end in China withTHE NIGHTINGALE: a grand-father and his grand-daughter go through the Chinese countryside to go back to their village of origin and rebuild a bond.   GENERATOR +13 Amazing films and protagonists in Generator +13. THE FINISHERS (France), directed by Nils Tavernier, son of the great Betrand,  is based on a true story and it is about the relationship between a father who finds hard to accept his son's disability who is forced on a wheel chair. Lituania, in competition with THE EXCURSIONIST. Russian actress Ksenia Rappoport  who attracted Italian film industry thanks to her roles in extant flicks such as “La sconosciuta” by Giuseppe Tornatore stars in the film (for which she was awarded a David di Donatello for best performance as a leading actress). This film is also based on a true story and describes the life of who had to hide diversity to stay alive and who (as a child) had to learn how being different might be the only terrible reason for being deported and sentenced to death. One of the most promising Cuban directors, Ernesto Daranas Serrano, directed BEHAVIOUR, starring popular Alina Cruz. It deals with a controversial story in Cuba about freedom, independence, courage of how you deal with delicate issues such as criticizing extremely troubled conditions  children and young people must face in order to deal with their own and family survival. In BOYS (Holland), the delicate theme is  homosexuality or better, the discovery of one's sexual identity that may cause conflicting situations, bewilderment and even pain for being different. In SKATING TO NEW YORK (USA), starring Connor Jessup, main actor in Steven Spielberg produced TV series: “Falling Skies”, it is about “ a journey of initiation”  in which  5 kids try and experiment their boundaries searching for an adrenalin boosting adventure to feel grown-ups. Romantic fairy-tale Tim Burton style in JACK AND THE CUCKOO-CLOCK HEART (France), film produced by Luc Besson and his Europacorp. For the first time ever an animation film is in competition in Generator +13. The film is based on  rock band Dyonisos guitarist and singer Mathias Malzieu  who co-directed the work for which he also wrote the sound-track. In ONE NIGHT IN OSLO (Norway), finally, the story is based on the great friendship between two kids that is undermined when they both fall in love with their peer. GENERATOR +16 The cinematic journey in Generator +16 is a trip across the globe  from one end to the other unveiling feelings, passions and dreams of modern kids. In BROKEN HILL BLUES a group of teens is about to face the doubts of this delicate age when you need to deal with the passage to adulthood. Jean, the main character in CASA GRANDE, is a spoilt 15 year old, selfish but  at the same time adorable. His life changes abruptly when his father goes bankrupt. Jean finds himself cast away by his own wealthy friends and alone in the huge Rio De Janeiro, where lush villas of millionaires stand out just a few steps away from the extreme poor favelas. LIVING IS EASY WITH EYES CLOSED (distributed by Exit Media)is set in the late 60s in Spain during Franco's reign. This is a dream like magic movie, an English teacher with a student of his and a 20 year old girl who is hiding her pregnancy starts an on the road journey dreaming about meeting John Lennon who is shooting a film in Spain.  EXIT MARRAKECH, directed by German Caroline Link, academy award for Nowhere in Africa is also about a journey. A student spends his Summer holidays in Morocco. That is where his father a playwright genius is working on his latest stage triumph. Father and son haven't spent a long time together and are not used to communicating and can hardly hide their reciprocal uneasiness. The two of them will find themselves forced to spend more time than they had planned when they get lost in the North-African desert. An extremely painful story told with great sensitivity and poetry: HAN GONG-JU. A student is trying to forget an extremely painful experience nonetheless it is impossible to erase it. Han Gong-Ju lives in  exile in a distant city. She must find a way to  come to terms with her nightmares that unveil her past. MATEO must work with his uncle,  a local mob boss who uses him to carry out his dirty business. This is a delicate flick with an intense flavour of truth, inspired by the many true stories  of small communities (in Colombia) struck by criminal organization. BENEATH THE HARVEST SKY  is one of the most fascinating examples of indie-American films.  Two seventeen year-olds who have been friends for ever spend their days toiling potato fields in the province of Main. They feel it is like a prison to them and dream about going elsewhere and a different lifestyle away from the small town that has become rusty just like the life of its inhabitants. GENERATOR+18 The films in this section represent the typical complexities of this generation. Mothers and fathers dealing with their roles as parents and adolescents who need to deal with adulthood. This is the connection and trait-d'union in  Generator +18. FOUR CORNERS is set in Cape Town(South Africa,  Ian Gabriel). set against the back drop of a gang war that has been going on for over 100 years we come across Ricardo,  a little genius in chess, whose life is in peril because of his growing interest for one of the bands. What happens when a child stops looking up to his parents? This is the question asked by ABOVE DARK WATERS,Finnish film  directed by Peter Franzén. It is a story about the grey zones between love and fear in which young Pete is brought up. THE NOTEBOOK is an adaptation of the Agota Kristof book "Trilogy of K" co-produced by Hungary, France, Germany and Austria. – Distributed by Academy Two), directed by Hungarian Janos Szasz. It is the story of a couple of twins abandoned by their mother during second world war forced to stay with their grand-mother whom they meet for the first time. They learn to deal with the harshness and cruelty of life and realize that their survival is connected to strengthening their spirit and mind. LITTLE CRUSHES, is a film about love and all its nuances, it is a Polish films by IreneuszGrzyb and Aleksandra Gowin. It tells the story of Kasia and Asia, twon women living together and who must clear apartments of people who have passed away or have moved into a different place¸ Piotr, a guy who has recently lost his job and his wife. LEFT FOOT RIGHT FOOT is a French-Swiss co-production (directed by Germinal Roaux). Marie and Vincent are two drop-outs. She faces the change from adolescence to adulthood and will find herself overcome by the glitter of night clubs. Vincentis a 21 year old skateboarder who owes a lot od people. A generation communicating mainlly through socials and the value of words and lies are at the core of THE WORD, Polish-Dane co-production by Anna Kezejak. Lila and Janek  enjoy adolescence until she breaks up with him accusing him of cheating on her. Janek will do all he can to win her back paying the price of an innocent mistake. South Corean HOPE by Lee Joon-Ik is based on a true story. It is about a little 8 year old girl called So-Won, who is abused by a man while she is going to school. Her family and her father must face an odyssey from that moment onwards who wears her favourite puppets clothes so as to make her smile and be close to her. There are two sections for short films: one for fiction and one for animation.    MASTERCLASS SHORTS Masterclassers will see debate and judge shorts dedicated to being different. DOC GEX Stems out from the need to create a section dedicated to documentaries as the production of this genre for young people is extremely important. The films selected are about children, teens and young people who need to come to terms with their diversity in a world which is often hostile and where discrimination does not seem to have colour, racial or geographic boundaries. Just like in LINAR, Russian film in which a child with heart problems must face his illness and strict rules of his own country where transplants are forbidden for children. another story of discrimination for teens in the American suburbia in AMERICAN VAGABOND  where teens are forced to live on the streets to claim their right to love.  Teens living in the streets try to make them-selves proud through  circus art or by boxing in Swiss film LUCKY DEVILS and Spanish flick 3 MINUTOS. There is a different type of redemption in  #CHICAGOGIRL in which the main character a Syrian origin American teen decides to stop wasting her time by doing futile and trivial things typical of her age to address the Syrian revolution  by using social media as a means to help her friends at the forefront. Last but not least in UAE THE BRAIN THAT SINGS parents try and break the shell of their children's autism through the use of music.   SHORT FILMS                         FEATURE FILMS

163 works including shorts and feature selected out of 3700 productions.

Today – 25 July - other five new films in competition at Giffoni Experience. Let’s start with Elements +6 film, The Famous Five 2 by Mike Marzuk (Germany, 2013) at 10:00 at Sala Truffaut. On their first summer camp on their own, George, Julian, Dick, Anne and Timmy the dog ( The Famous Five) meet an eccentric boy named Hardy. Dick is kidnapped. The remaining four start to look for him and they find out that Hardy was the kidnapper’s real intended victim; the kid has information about a precious stone that the criminals want to steal. What will happen, when looking for their friend, the four kids will bump into a caravan of artists?  Following, Elements +10 film, The story of Cino, the child who crossed the mountain by Carlo Alberto Pinelli (Italy, 2013) at 10:00 at Sala Alberto Sordi. Late 800s. The Piemontese Cino, son of a poor family, is given in the care of an ambiguous and wicked carter to go to France and work in the hill countries. During the journey Cino meets Catlìn who, suffering from pneumonia, is abandoned by the carter. Tired of being abused, Cino runs away from his master and finds Catlìn again. The two of them decide to go back to Italy, but the journey won’t be lacking of mysterious and unexpected dangers.  The screenings go on with Generator +13 film, The Inevitable Defeat of Mister and Pete by George Tillman Jr. (United States, 2012) at 14:30  at Sala Truffaut. During a warm New York summer, Pete and Mister, abandoned by their mothers, are forced to team up  in order to avoid  the dreaded orphanage Riverview. They will learn how to survive and will understand the real meaning of friendship. For Generator +16 section, The Golden Cage by Diego Quemada-Díez (Mexico/Spain, 2013) at 14:30 at Sala Alberto Sordi. Juan, Sara and Samuel, three teenagers from the slums of Guatemala, attempt to reach the USA, in search of a better life. On their journey through Mexico, they meet Chauk, an Indian from Chiapas who does not speak Spanish and has no official documents. Travelling together in goods trains, walking on railroad tracks, they will soon have to face a harsh reality. Last film of the day is Generator +18 film, Three Days Later by Daniele Grassetti (Italy, 2013) at 19:00 at Sala Lumière. 25-year-old Matteo lives in Rome with gambler Sandro, 26, and Nicola, 25. Matteo, who is a skilled billiard player, tries to help Sandro get back the three months' rent he has previously lost playing with local boss dr. Carlo. Matteo loses the game and the stake: his mother's car. The day after the three friends find the corpse of Pistacchietto, dr. Carlo's son, in the car's trunk. To make things worse, the car is towed away by the police. Matteo, Sandro and Nicola will have to retrieve it and get rid of the dead body.

The Giffoni Experience, following the screening of hundreds of films in other festivals around the world - and in anticipation of the Cannes Film Festival in May - has selected some of the films that will be included in the competitive sections of the 2013 GFF.   In the ten days of the Festival, the jurors will watch and judge films of great emotional impact in the competitive sections Elements +3 (3-5 y.o.), Elements +6 (6-9 y.o.), Elements +10 (10-12 y.o.), Generator +13 (13-15 y.o.), Generator +16 (16-17 y.o.), Generator +18 (from 18 on). The 2013 festival, has seen a huge demand from youngsters who want to be part of the jury. Over 25 thousand kids have asked to participate. Giffoni Experience has doubled its capacity for the Elements +10 section and for Masterclass. The number of fans on the social networks keep on increasing highlitghting the incredible appeal of the Giffoni Experience.   For Elements +6 the Giffoni Experience team has chosen “I SWAN” by Chinese director KONG SHENG, “NIKO 2 – LITTLE BROTHER, BIG TROUBLE”, an animation film helmed by KARI JUUSONEN and JØRGEN LERDAM, “A HORSE ON THE BALCONY” by HÜSEYIN TABAK, “JOURNEY TO THE CHRISTMAS STAR” by Norwegian filmmaker NILS GAUP, and “THE FAMOUS FIVE 2”, by MIKE MARZUK, the sequel dof the film that won in its category at the GFF 2012.   Elements + 10 has a very mature offering with films revolving around themes such as war, dictatorship, like “BEKAS” by KARZAN KADER (MinervaPictures in Italy). The other films are “CLARA AND THE SECRET OF THE BEARS” by TOBIAS INEICHEN and Dutch film “MIKE SAYS GOODBYE!” by MARIA PETERS.   Generator + 13 offers a portfolio of films that are often thought provoking and about sensitive issues. Absent parents, crime, moral degradation, lack of cultural support like in the GEORGE TILLMAN JR. (Men of Honor,with Cuba Gooding Jr. and Robert De Niro), helmed“THE INEVITABLE DEFEAT OF MISTER & PETE” starring Academy award winner Jennifer Hudson ( "Dreamgirls") and music star Alicia Keys as executive producer and composer. Also chosen in the mix JULIEN ABRAHAM'S ASPHALT PLAYGROUND.   The more “adult” sections of the GFF are Generator + 16 e +18, offer a reflection on sensitive topisc such as the crisis of the value of the family nucleus, the fear of coming of age and chenge. These are the themes that are present in the Generator +16 films “THE PIECES OF ME” by NOLWENN LEMESLE and “THE DEFLOWERING OF EVA VAN END” by MICHIEL TEN HORN.   Generator +18 includes films like “ANY DAY NOW” helmed by TRAVIS FINE, with Alan Cumming, “OH BOY!”, by German director JAN OLE GERSTER (Academy Two in Italy), “THE WILD ONES” Spanish film by PATRICIA FERREIRA and “IT FELT LIKE LOVE”, debut feature by ELIZA HITTMAN.

Tomorrow's programme for the films in competition on Monday 23 July schedules two titles. The screenings start at 10 at Sala Truffaut, where the Generator +16 jurors will watch "18 Years Old and Rising" by Frédéric Louf (France, 2011). France, 1981. The night between 9 and 10 May, a few hours before François Mitterand is elected President of the Republic, Primo and Gabrielle meet at a party. She comes from the Parisian upper middle class, while he's the son of a humble shopkeeper. In order to impress Gabrielle, Primo lies about his low estate, until the truth comes out.   Same location but different time (Sala Truffault, 14.30) for the Generator +13 youth, who will attend the screening of "Milo" by Berend Boorsma and Roel Boorsma (Netherelands, 2012). Milo is a 10-year-old child who suffers from "congenital hypertrichosis", a rare disease manifesting as hair growing all over his face and body. In an attempt to keep him in the dark about his real condition, Milo's father, Brand, rigidly controls his life. Milo runs away from home to attend the school camping trip, but falls in the hands of a couple of criminals. Living with them, he gets to know how free life is and tries to come to terms with his nature, while wondering if his father really loves him.  

The screenings start at 10 at Sala Alberto Sordi, where the Elements +6 jurors are going to watch "Wickie and the Treasure of the Gods" by Chirstian Ditter (Germany, 2011). The film follows little Wickie, who wants to become a real Viking. When his father – the chieftain of Flake - is kidnapped, Wickie becomes the deputy chief.  At the head of six Vikings and fearless Svenjaset, he sets sail for the Cape of Fear, where the group will have to go through several ordeals.   The competition continues at Sala Alberto Sordi at 14.30 with "Bright Flight", by Paolo Bianchini (Italy, 2012), for the Element +10 children. Yaguine and Fodé, two Guinean teenagers, are flying hidden inside the undercarriage of a plane directed to Bruxelles. They carry with them a letter wrote on the behalf of every child and boy from Africa, addressed to "Their Excellences the members of European Parliament". Ten years later, Thabo – a  13-year-old boy from Zambia –, and Rocco – a 14-year-old boy from Catania – flee to Africa, in order to escape the kid football players market.   The day ends at 19 at Sala Lumiere, with "Elliot Loves" by Gary Terracino (USA, 2012), addressed to the Generator +18 section. Elliot, a Dominican/American kid, and his mother are smothered by the prejudice faced by single mothers in Latin culture. Twelve years later, Elliot – now a 21-year-old – hides his sexuality from his mother, attempting at the same time to embrace the freedom of the gay lifestyle. He will journey through a series of relationship while desperately searching for true love.