‘The Eight Mountains’, ‘Exterior Night’ Take Top Honors At Italy’s David di Donatello Awards – Full Nominees and Winners List
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Belgian directors Felix Van Groeningen and Charlotte Vandermeersch’s Italian-language drama The Eight Mountains and veteran Marco Bellocchio’s Exterior Night topped the 68th edition of Italy’s David di Donatello Awards on Wednesday evening.
The Eight Mountains won best film as well as best non-original screenplay, photography and sound.
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Based on the novel of the same name by Paolo Cognetti, it stars Luca Marinelli and Alessandro Borghi as two men from different backgrounds who form a life-long bond during summers spent together as children in a remote mountain village.
The film world premiered in Competition at Cannes last year where it co-won the Jury Prize. Read the Deadline review here.
It is the second time in the history of the awards that a film by non-Italian directors has clinched the best film prize.
The last time was in 1971 when the Dino de Laurentiis-produced epic Waterloo by Russian director Sergei Bonderchuk, tied with The Garden of the Finzi-Continis and The Conformist.
Van Groeningen said the film had been “an incredible journey” adding, “Why did two Belgians end up making a film in Italy? It was a very beautiful story, from a book that the producers sent me, and I said: yes, let’s do it.”
His co-director Vandermeersch is also only the second woman to win the best film award after Francesca Archibugi, who clinched the prize twice for Verso Sera and The Great Pumpkin in 1991 and 1993 respectively.
Marco Bellocchio won best director for series Exterior Night about the events surrounding the Red Brigade kidnapping and assassination in 1978 of former Italian Prime Minister Aldo Moro.
The veteran filmmaker previously won the prize for Vincere and The Traitor in 2010 and 2020 respectively.
Ruben Oslund’s Triangle Of Sadness won best international film.
“I didn’t expect it, I’m telling the truth, but I accept it” he explains. “At my age you become wise. The important thing is not to stop. I wish I still had time to do things,” said the director who heads to Cannes next week with Kidnapped.
In other prizes, actress Isabella Rossellini and director Enrico Vanzina were feted with special honorary awards.
“I feel half Italian. Italy is my second home and I am in love with Italy. It’s a marvellous country from A to B, but if I had to choose it would of course be Rome,” said Rossellini on receiving her trophy from Matt Dillon.
Veteran producer Marina Cicogna, who worked with the likes of Sergio Leone, Lina Wertmuller, Pier Paolo Pasolini, Vittorio De Sica and Franco Zeffirelli, was also feted with a career award.
The awards are voted on by 1,600 Italian film professionals belonging to the David di Donatello Academy.
Full list of 2023 winners (in bold) and nominees
Best Director
Marco Bellocchio, Exterior Night
Gianni Amelio, Lord of the Ants
Roberto Andò, Strangeness
Felix Van Groeningen and Charlotte Vandermeersh, The Eight Mountains
Mario Martone, Nostalgia
Best Directorial Debut
Caroline Cavalli, Amanda
Jasmine Trinca Marcel!
Niccolò Falsetti Margins
Giulia Louise Steigerwalt, September
Vincenzo Pirrotta, Spaccaossa
Best Original Screenplay
Astolfo, Gianni Di Gregorio, Marco Pettenello
Chiara, Susanna Nicchiarelli
Exterior Night, Marco Bellocchio, Stefano Bises, Ludovica Rampoldi, Davide Serino
Lord of the Ants, Gianni Amelio, Edoardo Petti, Federico Fava
L’Immensità, Emanuele Crialese, Francesca Manieri, Vittorio Moroni
Strangeness, Roberto Andò, Ugo Chiti, Massimo Gaudioso
Best Adapted Screenplay
Bentu, Salvatore Mereu
Brado, Massimo Gaudioso, Kim Rossi Stuart
The Hummingbird, Francesca Archibugi, Laura Paolucci, Francesco Piccolo
The Eight Mountains, Felix Van Groeningen, Charlotte Vandermeersh
Nostalgia, Mario Martone, Ippolita Di Majo
Best Leading Actress
Benedetta Porcaroli, Amanda
Margherita Buy, Exterior Night
Penelope Cruz, L’Immensità
Barbara Ronchi, September
Claudia Pandolfi, Dry
Best Leading Actor
Fabrizio Gifuni,Exterior Night
Luigi Lo Cascio, Lord of the Ants
Ficarra e Picone (Salvatore Ficarra and Valentino Picone), Strangeness
Alessandro Borghi, The Eight Mountains
Luca Marinelli, The Eight Mountains
Best Supporting Actress
Giovanna Mezzogiorno, Amanda
Daniela Marra, Exterior Night
Giulia Andò, Strangeness
Aurora Quattrocchi, Nostalgia
Emanuela Fanelli, Dry
Best Supporting Actor
Fausto Russo Alesi, Exterior Night
Toni Servillo, Exterior Night
Elio Germanus, Lord of the Ants
Filippo Timi, The Eight mountains
Francesco Di Leva, Nostalgia
Best Producer
Exterior Night (Lorenzo Mieli, The Apartment/Fremantle, Simone Gattoni, Kavac Film)
Strangeness (Angelo Barbagallo, Bibi Film, Attilio De Razza, Tramp Limited)
The Eight Mountains (Wildside, Rufus, Menuetto, Pyramide Productions, Vision Distribution)
Nostalgia (Medusa Film, Maria Carolina Terzi, Luciano and Carlo Stella, Mad Entertainement, Roberto Sessa, Angelo Laudisa, Rosebud Entertainment Pictures)
Princess (Carla Altieri, Roberto De Paolis, Young Films, Nicola Giuliano, Francesca Cima, Carlotta Calori, Viola Prestieri, Indigo Films)
Best photography
Exterior Night, Francesco di Giacomo
I racconti della Domenica, Giovanni Mammolotti
Strangeness, Maurizio Calvesi
The Eight Mountains, Reuben Impens
Nostalgia, Paolo Carnera
Best Composer
Exterior Night – Fabio Massimo Capogrosso
Il Pataffio, Stefano Bollani
Strangeness, Michele Braga and Emanuele Bossi
The Eight mountains, Daniel Norgren
Dry, Franco Piersanti
Best Art Director
Giada Calabria, Loredana Raffi, Strangeness
Andrea Castorina, Marco Martucci, Laura Casalini, Exterior Night
Marta Maffucci, Carolina Ferrara, Lord of the Ants
Massimiliano Nocente, Marcella Galeone, The Eight Mountains
Tonino Zera, Maria Grazia Schirippa, Marco Bagnoli, The shadow of Caravaggio
Best Costume
Maria Rita Barbera, Strangeness
Daria Calvelli, Exterior Night
Massimo Cantini Parrini, Chiara
Valentina Monticelli, Lord of the ants
Carlo Poggioli, The shadow of Caravaggio
Best Makeup
Paola Gattabrusi, Lorenzo Tamburini, The hummingbird
Enrico Iacoponi, Exterior Night
Federico Laurenti, Lorenzo Tamburini, Dante
Luigi Rocchetti, The Shadow of Caravaggio
Esmé Sciaroni, Lord of the ants
Best Hair
Desiree Corridoni, The shadow of Caravaggio
Alberta Giuliani, Exterior Night
Samantha Mura, Lord of the ants
Rudy Sifari, Strangeness
Daniela Tartari, L’Immensità
Best Editing
Esmeralda Calabria, Strangeness
Francesca Calvelli with the collaboration of Claudio Misantoni, Exterior Night
Nico Leunen, The Eight Mountains
Simona Paggi, Lord of the Ants
Jacopo Quadri, Nostalgia
Best Sound
Exterior Night, Gaetano Carito, Lilio Rosato, Alberto Bernardi
Lord of the Ants, Emanuele Cicconi, Mimmo Granata, Alberto Bernardi
Strangeness, Carlo Missidenti, Marta Billingsley, Gianni Pallotto
The Eight Mountains, Alessandro Palmerini, Alessandro Feletti, Marco Falloni
Nostalgia, Emanuele Cecere, Silvia Moraes, Giancarlo Rutigliano
Best Special Effects
Dampyr, Alessio Bertotti, Filippo Robino
Diabolik, Simone Silvestri, Vito Picchinenna
Exterior Night, Massimo Cipollinia
The Eight Mountains, Rodolfo Migliari
Dry, Marco Geracitano
Best International Film
Bones and All, Luca Guardagnino
Elvis, Baz Luhrmann
Licorice Pizza, Paul Thomas Anderson
The Fabelsmans, Steven Spielberg
Triangle Of Sadness, Ruben Ostlund
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