The festival will open this year with a new live-action version of the classic fairy tale Pinocchio.
From the director of Gomorrah and Dogman, Matteo Garrone’s seven-time Nastro d’Argento award-winner is an enthralling gothic fantasy starring Roberto Benigni as the woodcutter Geppetto.
To celebrate the 20th anniversary — and in honour of the late great Ennio Morricone, one of the world's greatest film composers — the Festival will close with Giuseppe Tornatore's “Malèna”, starring Monica Bellucci.
According to the festival organisers, one of the highlights is Marco Bellocchio’s multi award-winning crime drama The Traitor, which was the big winner at Italy’s 65th David di Donatello Awards.
The film sees Pierfrancesco Favino deliver a powerhouse performance as Tommaso Buscetta, a Sicilian Mafia boss-turned-police informer.
Another award-winning film will be screened nationally at the festival: Ferzan Ozpetek’s award-winning new film The Goddess of Fortune, featuring an all-star cast including Stefano Accorsi, Edoardo Leo and Jasmine Trinca.
Another highlight is the short film Being My Mom, the directorial debut of aforementioned actress Jasmine Trinca, starring Alba Rohrwacher and Maayane Conti, which is currently in competition at the 77th Venice International Film Festival.
Martin Eden, by acclaimed writer and director Pietro Marcello, is an award-winning drama which provocatively transports Jack London’s 1909 novel about a self-taught and outspoken writer to a pivotal moment in Italy’s pre-war history.
The program also includes two films to share with the family.
My Brother Chases Dinousaurs, for 15+, is inspired by a true story and is a joyous and poignant film about the fear of being judged.
And for the whole family, there's The Most Beautiful Day in the World, a modern-day fairy tale in which a down on his luck theatre manager receives a strange inheritance: the custody of two children, and discovers that one of them has amazing telekinetic powers.
Noticeably, the principal sponsor of the Italian Film Festival has changed this year. It’s no longer called Lavazza but instead ST. ALi Coffee.
The 2020 Italian Film festival will get to Melbourne only when cinemas can reopen under the COVID-19 restrictions.
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