20 Aug A MAN FELL by Giovanni C. Lorusso
Venetian Nights 2024
A MAN FELL
by Giovanni C. LorussoItaly, Libano, Francia, Colombia, 2024, 70′, colourScreenplay: Giovanni C. Lorusso, Yasser Kamal Al Ali
02 September 13:15 – Sala Laguna V.O. sub EN Press, Industry 02 September 21:00 – Sala Laguna V.O. sub IT Followed by QA Reservation required on giornatedegliautori.com
Sabra, in Lebanon, is known for the massacre carried out in 1982 by the Lebanese Phalange and the Israeli army to kill Palestinian citizens and Lebanese Shiites, leaving more than 3,000 victims. Here stands the Gaza Hospital, which after having been a Palestine Liberation Organisation hospital in the late 1970s was later dismantled, becoming a symbol of the survival of Palestinians, who still find refuge there. In the Gaza Building lives the protagonist of A Man Fell11-year-old Arafat, who spends his time among the ruins of the building’s eleven floors. Together with his friend Muhammad, he thinks about how to explore the forbidden basement, where ‘there is only sex, drugs and death’, while everyone in the building talks about the probably false story of a man who allegedly fell from the fourth floor of that same building for unknown reasons.
“As with my previous works, I let my instincts and surroundings define the direction. After five days of visiting the different flats, where many were initially reluctant to get involved in the project, Yasser and I decided to develop a film based on the seemingly unimportant stories of the building through the eyes of the young Arafat. Minimising our equipment allowed us to move between the eleven floors of the building, where we organised ourselves to capture unexpected moments, as well as more prepared scenes with the boys.” (Giovanni C. Lorusso)
Giovanni C. Lorusso has a university education in literature in Rome, philosophy in London and film directing at the Sydney Film School. Lorusso has worked as a cinematographer for fifteen years between Oceania, Europe and Africa. His first film as a director, Song of All Endshad its international premiere in 2024 at International Film Festival Rotterdam, and was also screened in Italy at the Bellaria Film Festival and the Milan African, Asian and Latin American Film Festival, where it won the SNCCI Critics’ Award. Lorusso is an accredited member of the Australian Cinematographers Society (ACS) and has published three books on photography: The Limits of Rupture, Keep Fire Burning, VOCI.