The president and the director of the Bif&st-Bari International Film&Tv Festival, Volker Schlöndorff and Felice Laudadio, have announced the conferral (for now virtual) of the “Federico Fellini Platinum Award for Cinematic Excellence” to the great director Jafar Panahi, imprisoned since July 2022 by the fierce Iranian theocratic regime, demanding his immediate release.

The expert Committee of film critics of Bif&st 2023, which will take place in the Apulian capital from 24 March to 1 April under the direction of its creator Laudadio, has decided the awards of the ItaliaFilmFest/The Best of the Year section which will be conferred in the Petruzzelli Theatre during the event promoted by the Puglia Region and the Apulia Film Commission Foundation.

For his film La Stranezza (Strangeness) Roberto Andò wins the Mario Monicelli Award for best film director. Multiple acknowledgments for Esterno notte (Exterior Night) by Marco Bellocchio: the film receives the Furio Scarpelli Award for best screenplay and the Vittorio Gassman Award for best leading actor Fabrizio Gifuni. The best leading actress winner of the Anna Magnani Award is Barbara Ronchi for Settembre by Giulia Steigerwalt and for Era ora (One Day at a Time) by Alessandro Aronadio. Mario Martone‘s Nostalgia wins the Franco Cristaldi Award for best production and the Alberto Sordi Award for best supporting actor Tommaso Ragno, also awarded for Paolo Virzì’s Siccità (Dry) – a film that wins the Ennio Morricone Award for best composer Franco Piersanti – and for Ti mangio il cuore (Burning Hearts) by Pippo Mezzapesa; this film also receives the Alida Valli Award for best supporting actress Lidia Vitale and the Silvana Mangano Award for best revelation actress Elodie. Finally, the Giuseppe Rotunno Award for best cinematographer goes to Michele D’Attanasio for Michele Placido’s L’ombra di Caravaggio (Caravaggio’s Shadow), film which also obtains the Dante Ferretti Award for best production designer Tonino Zera.

Rome, 25 January 2023