FIRE AT SEA (FUOCOAMMARE) Masters in Conversation

As part of the inaugural World Cinema Masters in Conversation section at AFI FEST, renowned documentarian Gianfranco Rosi will sit down with Venice Film Festival Artistic Director Alberto Barbera for an in-depth conversation about one of the year’s most lauded documentaries, FIRE AT SEA.

Twelve-year-old Samuele lives on an island in the Mediterranean, far away from the mainland. Like all boys of his age, he does not always enjoy going to school. He would much rather climb the rocks by the shore, play with his slingshot or mooch around the port. But his home is not like other islands. For years, it has been the destination of men, women and children trying to make the crossing from Africa in boats that are far too small and decrepit. The island is Lampedusa, which has become ground zero for the flight of refugees to Europe and a symbol of the hope and fate of hundreds of thousands of emigrants fleeing dire living conditions. These people long for peace, freedom and happiness, and yet so often only their dead bodies are pulled out of the water. Thus, every day, the inhabitants of Lampedusa are bearing witness to the greatest humanitarian tragedy of our times. With tenderness and a nocturnal grandeur, Rosi captures the resiliency at the core of humanity.

Born in Asmara, Eritrea, Gianfranco Rosi is the director of the documentary BELOW SEA LEVEL (2008), which won the Orizzonti Award at the Venice Film Festival and was nominated for Best Documentary at the European Film Awards; EL SICARIO, ROOM 164 (2010), which won the FIPRESCI Award at Venice; and SACRO GRA (2013), which won the Golden Lion at Venice. Living for a year on Lampedusa resulted in FIRE AT SEA, the Golden Bear and Ecumenical Prize winner at the Berlinale.

Details

Country: Italy | France

Year: 2016

Director: Gianfranco Rosi

Screenwriter: Gianfranco Rosi

Producers: Donatella Palermo, Gianfranco Rosi, Roberto Cicutto, Paolo Del Brocco, Serge Lalou, Camille Laemlé, Martine Saada, Olivier Père

Executive Producer: Donatella Palermo

Director of Photography: Gianfranco Rosi

Editor: Jacopo Quadri

Cast/Featuring: Samuele Pucillo, Mattias Cucina, Samuele Caruana, Pietro Bartolo, Giuseppe Fragapane, Maria Signorello, Francesco Paterna, Francesco Mannino, Maria Costa

Running Time (minutes): 108 min

Language: Italian

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