Gianni Amelio’s ‘No Pain’ Toplines RAI Cinema Cannes Market Slate

RAI Cinema International Distribution is heading to the Cannes market with a promising slate headlined by new works from prominent Italian auteurs and Cannes and Venice aficionados including Gianni Amelio, Mario Martone, Daniele Vicari and Berlin-based Russian helmer Victor Kossakovsky. 

Amelio, who is best-known for his Oscar-nominated “Open Doors” (1990) and also “Stolen Children,” which won the 1992 Cannes Grand Prix – and, more recently helmed the 2024 drama “Battleground” that bowed in Venice – is now in post on “No Pain” toplining Valeria Golino and Alessandro Borghi (“The Eight Mountains”) (see first-look image above). In “No Pain,” which is tipped for Venice, Borghi plays a quiet man named Davide devastated by a tragic event for which he bears an unwitting responsibility. He finds some peace of mind through his emotional bond with a woman named Elsa, played by Golino.

Martone, who was in Cannes last year with “Fuori,” is putting the finishing touches on his Naples-set drama “Trick” starring Toni Servillo (“The Great Beauty”) that is also likely to launch from the Lido.

Vicari, who was in Venice last year with “Tired of Killing. Autobiography of an Assassin” is completing “Bianco” in which Borghi plays legendary Italian mountaineer’s tragic attempt to climb Mont Blanc in 1961.

Oscar-nominated Kossakovsky, known for “Gunda,” “Aquarela,” and “Trillion,” has made a new ecology-themed doc titled “Greenworld,” in collaboration with Italian botanist Stefano Mancuso, a pioneer in the plant neurobiology movement who has written several best-selling books including “Tree Stories.” This piece is described as “an invitation to radically reimagine the plant kingdom from a new, ground-breaking perspective.”

Roughly two years after its launch, Italian state broadcaster RAI’s sales unit will be at Cannes, this time with a robust slate being presented to buyers with promo reels unveiled during two sessions of private screenings during the Cannes Marché du Film. 

Variety speaks to RAI Cinema head of international sales Fulvio Firrito about the expanding Italian sales company’s raison d’être and his mission and hopes for a Cannes breakthrough.

What is RAI Cinema International Distribution’s raison d’être and how are you going about growing the company?

Our mission, simply put, is to make Italian cinema more visible abroad. RAI Cinema contributes to the production of roughly 60 Italian films a year. We can handle sales on roughly ten of those, maybe a few more. Besides that, ahead of the recent Berlin Film Festival, we picked up global distribution of Belgian director Manon Coubia’s “Forest High,” that won a prize. In positioning ourselves on the market we want to also have some foreign films on our slate which helps us to be more recognisable abroad and also helps Italian films get into more sales slots.

How has it been going?

Well, we’ve been able to sell Margherita Vicario’s musical comedy “Gloria!” (2024) to over 80 territories. And we sold Trudy Styler’s documentary “Posso Entrare? An Ode to Naples” to Hulu in the U.S. – which is a first for an Italian sales company – and to Disney Plus for U.K., plus to 70 territories. We also also sold Gianni Amelio’s last finished film “Battleground” (2024) to more than 20 territories. So the work is relentless, but we’re confident we can achieve good results, despite a very competitive market.

“Gloria” is a first work, while Amelio is a veteran auteur. Is this mix typical of your lineup?

Standout first and second works are very much a part of our mission. Case in point is “Idda” by Irene Dionisio. But there are others.

Below are other standout fresh titles in RAI Cinema International Distribution slate:

– “Idda,” the sophomore feature from Irene Dionisio, whose debut “Pawn Streets” launched from Venice’s Critics’ Week. Starring Italy’s two top rising female star Tecla Insolia (“Art of Joy”) and Romana Maggiora Vergano (“There’s Still Tomorrow”), it’s about two childhood friends, now in their thirties, who find themselves during a hike up Sicily’s Mount Etna volcano. 

– “The Sound of Something New,” a new work by Paolo Genovese (“Perfect Strangers”) who latest concept comedy “Madly” pulled $21 million locally and sold widely via RAI Cinema International. “Six lives intersect in the chaos of everyday life in Milan. Each person is seeking for their own “perfect noise,” something to follow rather than surrender to emotional numbness,” says the synopsis.

– “Things We Don’t Say,” the latest feature by Gabriele Muccino, whose Hollywood credits include Will Smith-starrer “The Pursuit of Happyness.” It’s an adaptation of Delia Ephron’s novel “Siracusa.” The film follows two couples who go on vacation in Morocco and become entangled in various types of betrayals. It scored more than $8 million locally.

–– “Christmas Song,” a doc by Roberta Torre (“Tano to Die For”) about female inmates in a Milan penitentiary who are preparing to perform Christmas carols behind bars and provides several backstories of why they are in jail.