As the shortest month of the year comes to an end, so does the fourth edition of the Locarno Shorts Weeks. We hope it was a surprising journey through the viewing of these 22 shorts coming from every corner of the world, which used very different styles and tones to try to tell us something about us, the others, and the world we live in. On our end, we can’t but be happy with the consolidation of this off-season event whose impact becomes clearer and clearer. For Locarno and the Pardi di domani section, it highlights the importance of being there, to get up on that stage not once, but twice a year (in February with the digital event, and then in August with the in-person Festival celebrating cinema), with the primary goal of strengthening our most important bond, the one we have with the audience. It’s also a vital opportunity to reconnect with our talents, as we continue to support their works far beyond the usual marker timeframe. Even more exciting is to note how the Locarno Shorts Weeks, even though they’re in digital form, are an initiative that exudes truly human warmth. It’s an event that gathers and unites. Over the past few days, the selected shorts bounced from one social networking platform to the next, got recommended to friends and professionals, and received support from filmmakers celebrating other filmmakers. And while the selection committee is already hard at work to figure out the shape of the Pardi di domani for the big screen in August, this vital movement is an impulse that encourages us to continue discovering and exploring.
Eddie Bertozzi
Head of Pardi di domani Selection Committee
