A Ciambra

Showings

Lark Theatre Fri, Oct 13, 2017 6:00 PM
Rafael 2 Sun, Oct 15, 2017 11:45 AM
Film Info
Section:World Cinema
Country:Italy
Brazil
Germany
France
USA
Sweden
Year:2017
Running Time:118 min.
Language:Italian
Director:Jonas Carpignano
Producer:Paolo Carpignano
Jon Coplon
Christoph Daniel
Cinematographer:Tim Curtin
Editor:Affonso Gonçalves
Cast:Pio Amato
Koudous Seihon
Damiano Amato
Print Source:IFC Films
Note Writer:Tim Grierson

Description

Writer-director Jonas Carpignano’s debut Mediterranea (MVFF 2015) chronicled the plight of African immigrants making their way to the filmmaker’s Italian homeland. With his sophomore effort, the filmmaker focuses on one of Mediterranea’s supporting players, crafting an entire drama around Pio (Pio Amato), a teenaged Romani hustler in a small southern Italian community. Along the way, A Ciambra becomes a particularly gripping, neorealist coming-of-age tale as this resourceful boy tries to assert himself as the man of the house after his father and older brother go to jail. Poverty, crime, and family are Carpignano’s central themes, and A Ciambra meticulously documents Pio’s sometimes perilous quest—especially when he’s forced to turn to thievery. As in Mediterranea, Amato (an untrained actor) exudes effortless charisma, making us care deeply about his character’s dilemma and hope that he can somehow find a better life. A supporting cast that includes several of Amato’s family members add extra layers of urgency and authenticity to this unforgettable drama.

Sponsored by



In association with Cinema Italia San Francisco and Museo Italo Americano.

Additional Information


Jonas Carpignano is an Italian-American filmmaker based in Rome and Brooklyn. His short films have played at SXSW, New Directors/New Films, and Venice, where his film A Chjàna won the Controcampo Award for best short. The film also earned him a Nastro D’Argento Special Mention from the Association of Italian Film Critics (SNGCI). Carpignano completed the Sundance Writing and Directing Labs for the feature-length version of A Chjàna, and was named one of Filmmaker Magazine‘s 25 New Faces of Independent Film. He is also the recipient of the Mahindra Award at Sundance. His feature, Mediterannea, based on the short, A Chjàna, was selected for Cannes in the International Critics Week section and garnered three Independent Spirit Awards nominations. He is an MFA candidate at NYU Tisch, where he won the Martin Scorsese Young Filmmakers Award, which led to his feature A Ciambra earning a spot in Director’s Fortnight—and getting acquired by IFC Sundance Selects.