Carlo Verdone’s Under A Lucky Star (Sotto Una Buona Stella) picked up the top prize at the Italian Contemporary Film Festival, where AMBI Pictures’ 2047 – Sights Of Death scored a hat trick.

Verdone’s film, about a successful businessman living in luxury with his young girlfriend, won the People’s Choice Award. On winning the award, Verdone said the reception the film has received around the world thus far has been overwhelming.

“This proves that Under A Lucky Star is an international film that can be understood by audiences of every kind,” he said.

Also at the festival in Toronto, sci-fi action film 2047 – Sights Of Death, distributed by AMBI, received three awards after having its world premiere at the festival.

Lady Monika Bacardi picked up the Best Produer Award, and actors Stepehn Baldwin and Danny Glover earned the Best Actor Award and the Lifetime Achievement Award, respectively. The film is set to premiere in Italy on June 24.

Other films awarded at the festival were Alessio Maria Federici’s Stay Away From Me (Stai Lontana Da Me). The feature won the IC Savings Award for its contribution to Italian social and cultural values.

The Critic’s Choice Award went to First Snowfall (La Prima Neve) from Angela Baldassarre. The drama was selected by a jury, including members of the Toronto Film Critics Association, Andrew Parker, Kiva Reardon and Gilbert Seah.

Paolo Zucca’s The Four O’Clock Flower (Bella Di Notte) picked up the Best Short Film Award along with a C$1,000 ($930) cash prize.

In the festival’s third year, 28 features and 37 short films were screened over nine days in cinemas in Toronto, Hamilton, Vaughan, Montreal and Quebec City.

Topics