The Italian premiere of The Other Side of Hope by Aki Kaurismäki opens the Lucca Film Festival

LUCCA, Italy - April 1, 2017 - PRLog -- On Sunday 2 April, the Italian premiere of the film The Other Side of Hope produced and directed by Aki Kaurismäki will inaugurate the 2017 edition of the Lucca Film Festival e Europa Cinema at the Cinema Astra in Lucca (at 8.30 p.m.). The protagonist of the film Sherwan Haji will introduce the film that recently won the Silver Bear award for Best Director at the last Berlinale and that will be distributed in Italian cinemas starting on 6 April by Cinema di Valerio De Paolis. The Other Side of Hope, which premiered at the Berlin Film Festival, describes the plight of refugees and is one of the special events of the "Hors-Concours" section showcasing films premiering in Italy that are not participating in the competition.

Among other "Hors-Concours" films, The Land of the Moon (French: Mal de Pierres) written and directed by Nicole Garcia and starring Marion Cotillard and Louis Garrel (4 April), the European premiere of The Headhunter's Calling by Mark Williams with Gerard Butler and Willem Defoe (6 April), the latter a guest star of the Festival. Willem Defoe will be in Lucca to present the film, to meet the public on Friday 7 April at the Teatro del Giglio at 10.30 a.m. and will receive a Lifetime Achievement Award on Saturday on 8 April at the Cinema Astra.

In addition to the aforementioned guests, the Lucca Film Festival e Europa Cinema vaunts a stellar red carpet with the presence of Oliver Stone, Olivier Assayas, Valeria Golino, Sergio Castellitto, Julien Temple, Cristi Puiu, Bruno Monsaingeon and Giada Colagrande. The Festival has reserved tributes, special screenings, award ceremonies and masterclasses open to the public for every one of these award-winning international film stars.

This year's Festival also features the second edition of the International Feature Film Contest, with 14 films from around the world competing in an Italian premiere that will be screened side by side with the Hors-Concours films and the well-established International Short Film Competition.

The Hors-Concours section also showcases the film The Little Hours by Jeff Baena (Canada, USA, 2017), a North American production shot in Garfagnana with the support of Il Ciocco, produced by Alessandro Bertolucci's Dublab srl. Actor John C. Reilly stars in the dark fantasy film Tale of Tales (Il racconto dei Racconti) directed by Matteo Garrone (Cinema Astra, 5 April, 8.30 p.m.). Other titles of note premiering in Italy include Gianni, un film directed by Alberto Tempi, a portrait of the architect and artist Gianni Pettena (Cinema Centrale, 4 April) and the film Danish Sculptors in Pietrasanta by Jacob Jorgensen (Cinema Centrale, 4 April, 10.30 p.m.).

The international film event Effetto Cinema Notte Day-For-Night 2017 will transform the entire city of Lucca into a giant open-air movie set. Extending over seven days, the main event entitled "Oliver Stone's War Zone" will be staged in the Piazza del Giglio on Saturday, April 8 starting at 7 p.m. and with two concerts scheduled at 11.30 p.m. and 12.30 a.m.  The city will be divided into five different areas matched to a film genre and 42 local downtown establishments are hard at work with teams of set designers and performers.

The Exhibitions (Viareggio e Lucca) – This year the Lucca Film Festival e Europa Cinema presents two exhibitions, both curated by Alessandro Romanini. The first exhibit - PunkDadaSituation - is closely linked to the event and will be inaugurated on 3 April at the Ragghianti Foundation in Lucca. . It celebrates the birth of three artistic and cultural Avant-garde movements that shaped the history of the past century. The birth of the Dada movement in 1917, the formation of the Situationist International in 1957 and the origins of Punk in 1977.

The second exhibition entitled The Journey of G. Mastorna. The dream of a film staged on set marks the beginning of the collaboration with the Experimental Center of Cinematography in Rome and is hosted by the Galleria d'Arte Moderna e Contemporanea (GAMC) in Viareggio (inauguration 18 March 2017) The exhibit pays tribute to Federico Fellini's never-made film through the executive boards of the scenes created by students.

Lifetime Achievement Awards – The Lifetime Achievement Awards that will be presented to directors and actors were designed and created by Italian Emiliana Martinelli, the President of Martinelli Luce. Select creations of the international company are showcased in the permanent collections of major museums, such as the famous bat lamp on display at the MOMA in New York.

www.luccafilmfestival.it