New Italian Cinema Event

NICE will kickoff on November 14-15 at the Kabuki with a three-film tribute to Mimmo Calopresti, one of the most accomplished storytellers in cinema today.

Calopresti's work is recognized by critics and audiences who are fortunate enough to see it. His first feature, THE SECOND TIME, was invited as an official selection to Cannes and recieved in festivals around the world. His second and third features, I PREFER THE SOUND OF THE SEA and NOTES OF LOVE, were equally well received internationally, and they will have their U.S. premieres at NICE this year.

Calopresti has said that his films are driven by moral tension, and perhaps one reason that he has become a great storyteller is that he realizes that a good story is not just about characters, it is about ideas. The writer/director also acts in his own films.Calopresti will introduce each of his films and answer audience questions afterwards.

NICE curator Mario Sesti has chosen the best Italian selections from Europešs major film festivals to present to Bay Area audiences. Opening night of the series features a beautiful, newly restored print of the 1965 Fellini classic JULIET OF THE SPIRITS.

Over the next six days, NICE will screen films by seven first-time Italian filmmakers, followed by in-person Q&A sessions with the directors.

On closing night the City of Florence Award will be presented to the favorite film of the NICE audiences in New York and San Francisco.

All features will be screened in Italian with English subtitles and preceded by a new short film. Director Lina Wertmuller will be in San Francisco on closing night of NICE to introduce her latest film FRANCESCA AND NUNZIATA starring Sophia Loren and Giancarlo Giannini. Following the screening, NICE will wrap with a Closing Night Party at Pasta Pomodoro, next door to the Kabuki at 1865 Post Street.

So instead of buying a plane ticket, buy a festival pass and see the Italy -- region after region -- from the comfort of our wonderful city. Let the festival be your window into our great human diversity and into our ample collective vision.