Locarno77 Begins: Fiore mio by Paolo Cognetti, The Crowd with Live Music by the OSI, E.T. for Kids

Celebrated author Paolo Cognetti will world premiere his highly anticipated documentary Fiore mio on Tuesday, August 6 in Piazza Grande at 9.15 PM. The Prefestival film at the Locarno Film Festival is presented by UBS and admission will be free to everyone.  Following on from some of the themes in his Le otto montagne, which was itself adapted into a successful, Cannes-premiering film by Felix van Groeningen and Charlotte Vandermeersch, Cognetti’s first feature length film work is dedicated to his abiding love of the Monte Rosa, and weaves encounters, dialogues, and personal reflections into spectacular images of his own hikes along the Alpine mountain massif. Produced by Samarcanda Film, Nexo Studios, Harald House and EDI Effetti Digitali Italiani with the support of Film Commission Vallée d’Aoste, Fiore mio will be released in cinemas worldwide and will arrive in Italy on November 25, 26, and 27.

Meanwhile, the following day – August 7 at 3.30 PM at Palexpo (FEVI) – will feature another of the Festival’s much-loved opening concerts. As in previous years, a silent classic will be shown with live music by the Orchestra della Svizzera italiana (OSI). This year’s title – The Crowd (1928) by King Vidor – has long been considered by many silent film fans as the pinnacle of the silent era, a crystallization of all the elements that made that moment such a rich one in film history. Carl Davis, the celebrated British composer who died in 2023, wrote the score that OSI will perform during the screening.

Thanks to la Mobiliare, the young audience and families at Locarno will be treated to a chance to see Steven Spielberg’s E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial on the big screen in an Italian dub – also for free – as the start of the Festival’s Locarno Kids Screenings on Sunday, August 4 at 9.15 PM in Piazza Grande. During the Festival, the Vision Award Ticinomoda will be given to Ben Burtt, the sound designer responsible for finding E.T.’s signature voice; while working on the film, Burtt met a chain-smoking woman while out shopping and gave her the chance to say the immortal words, “E.T. phone home!”. The rest is history.

The Festival is partnering again with SBB, meaning that public transport for spectators travelling from Ticino within the Arcobaleno integrated fare network to attend the Prefestival screening on August 6 is included. Book a free ticket on the Festival’s website and show it to the SBB travel conductor on the day. If you’re coming from another Canton, you can get a 20% discount on your travel with the RailAway offer when coming to Locarno for the Prefestival screenings. Starting from August 6 public transportation throughout the Arcobaleno integrated fare network is included with any festival ticket or pass. If you travel to Locarno from another Canton, you can get 20% off a Day Pass or Piazza Grande Ticket for any screening during the Festival.

The 77th Locarno Film Festival will take place from 7 to 17 August 2024.