Fire at Sea
| Fire at Sea | |
|---|---|
 Film poster | |
| Directed by | Gianfranco Rosi |
| Written by | Gianfranco Rosi |
Release dates |
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Running time | 108 minutes |
| Country | Italy |
| Language | Italian |
Fire at Sea (Italian: Fuocoammare) is a 2016 Italian documentary film directed by Gianfranco Rosi.[1][2] It won the Golden Bear at the 66th Berlin International Film Festival.[3][4]
Overview
The film was shot on the Sicilian island of Lampedusa during the European migrant crisis, and sets the migrants' dangerous Mediterranean crossing against a background of the ordinary life of the islanders.[5][6] The main characters are a twelve-year-old boy from a local fishing family and a doctor who treats the migrants on their arrival.[6][7] In his acceptance speech for the Golden Bear award, Rosi stated that his intention was to heighten awareness of the migrant situation, saying, "It's not acceptable that people die crossing the sea to escape from tragedies."[5]
Reception
Meryl Streep, chair of the Berlin jury, called the film "a daring hybrid of captured footage and deliberate storytelling that allows us to consider what documentary can do. It is urgent, imaginative and necessary filmmaking."[5] Andrew Pulver, writing for The Guardian, described the documentary as having "a distinctive, humane cinematic style" and being "a collection of tiny details that morph, almost by osmosis, into a shocking excavation of the mechanics of crisis."[6] He praises it for approaching the tragedy indirectly, via the people of Lampedusa.[6] The film was also appreciated by the Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi, who stated that he would carry with him 27 DVDs of the film to a session of the European Council. Each one of the copies was given to a head of state or government of the European Union.[8]
References
- ↑ "Jan 11, 2016: Berlinale Competition 2016: Another nine films selected". Berlinale. Retrieved 11 January 2016.
- ↑ "Berlin Film Festival Adds Nine Films to Competition Lineup". Variety. Retrieved 11 January 2016.
- ↑ "Prizes of the International Jury". Berlinale. Retrieved 20 February 2016.
- ↑ "Berlin: ‘Fire at Sea’ Wins Golden Bear for Best Film". Variety. Retrieved 20 February 2016.
- 1 2 3 "Berlin film festival: Fire at Sea wins Golden Bear". BBC News. Retrieved 21 February 2016.
- 1 2 3 4 Andrew Pulver (22 February 2016). "Why Fire at Sea sailed away with the Berlin film festival's Golden Bear". The Guardian. Retrieved 23 February 2016.
- ↑ "Berlin film festival awards top prize to refugee crisis documentary Fire at Sea". The Guardian. 21 February 2016. Retrieved 23 February 2016.
- ↑ "Migranti, Renzi: Porto 27 dvd di Fuocoammare al Consiglio europeo". Corriere della Sera. 7 March 2016. Retrieved 7 March 2016.
External links
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