Press Release Accendi la Resistenza

PRESS RELEASE
Comics, cinema, theatre and music: young people under 35 talk about their Resistance
6 winning projects of “Accendi la Resistenza” presented
Turin, 6th June 2016 – The award ceremony for the 6 winning projects of “Accendi la Resistenza. Storie di
uomini e donne in guerra” was held this evening. The creative competition for the under 35 was supported
by Compagnia di San Paolo to recount the Resistance through cinema, theatre, music and comics.
The Giorgio Agosti Piedmontese Institute for the History of Resistance and Contemporary Italian
Society (Istoreto), partner of Polo '900, organised the competition centered on the story of World
War II and the "twenty months" of the Resistance. The goal was to translate into new and
effective representations - in languages such as cinema, theatre, music, comics - the suggestions
that the knowledge of this past, essential for building active citizenship, offer a non-traditional
audience.
"The Compagnia decided to support this project because it can encourage recounting the stories
and values of the Resistance by young people for young people, through the forms of expression
most suited to them. This first edition has now hit the mark, because when long time institutions
like Piedmontese Institute for the Resistance propose projects with young people, they get through
to the new generations, communicate with them and grow with them, "notes Piero Gastaldo,
Secretary General of Compagnia di San Paolo.
The recipients of the project were young people born after 1980, belonging to generations for
whom these events were long ago and no longer the subject of family stories.
34 works were received, on which 9 graphic novels, 5 musical works (7 pieces in all), 12 plays and 8
shorts. Albeit in its first year the award has had national success: 10 works from Turin authors, 5
from the province, 6 from other provinces in Piedmont, 13 from other Italian regions. Individuals,
small groups (on average 3 people), and two classes (one primary and one secondary school) took
part. The average age was roughly 25 for all the artistic sections; most of the participants were
female (18 males and 25 females).
The committee was made up of under 35 year-olds; historians, experts and representatives of Polo
del '900 and awarded the following winners a € 1000 prize:
Premio giovani (ex aequo) (Young people’s award):
Lottammo odiando la guerra e la morte by Béatrice Louise Borsa.
The play is a fair transposition of the short story Il tedesco che non fu ucciso by Maria Luigia
Guaita. In its simplicity and directness, it looks at the Resistance through the eyes of a girl of today,
capturing elements of vitality and relevance such as opposition to war and violence and the
humanity of the enemy.
Lettera per la libertà by Camilla Arese and Federica Ramonda
An original ballad by the two young authors – remembering the pain and sacrifices of the partisan
movement– it quickly and honestly confirms the exemplary value of the men and women who
chose to fight for our freedom, and looks with hope at the present and future.
Theatrical screenplays “Resistenza.tea: Ed era pura luce… storie d'amore e Resistenza by Marco
Luciano. The screenplay is the result of thorough historical research, using texts by Antonio
Gramsci, Pier Paolo Pasolini, diaries and memoirs of partisans who survived the Nazi massacres.
The result is a successful attempt to describe the war and struggle for liberation, questioning the
reasons for and value of the partisan choice.
Shorts “Resistenza.avi”: La grande sete che avevamo by Agnese Vigorelli. The subject is the
Resistance, starting from the phenomenon of political exile following the March 1944 strikes by
workers in Sesto San Giovanni. A moving story, told through interviews, a solid historical
documentation and high quality images. The protagonist of the narrative is the author, whose
grandfather - Angelo Signorelli - was arrested along with his brother and other workers and
deported to Mauthausen.
Graphic novel Resistenza.gulp: Formazione partigiana by Giulia Cuter and Matteo Gatti
During a public ceremony, Franco and Renato, two former partisans once in the same group, find
themselves on stage to be awarded and to relive that part of their life, the result of two different
choices. Through lash-back, within this frame narrative, the subject of Giulia Cuter and Matteo
Gatti reveals a compelling and complex history - blending courage and betrayal, suspicion and
ideals - the implementation of which will be a major challenge for the two authors. The design is of
great value and originality, and helps add depth to the story.
Prize for songs and albums: Resistenza.mp3: music by the group “Le Barricate” (Elisa Biason,
Valeria Di Caro, Giulia Inguaggiato, Alice Mammola, Alice Visintin) called Il ricordo che è restato
and Non ti ricordi il 31 dicembre”.
The voice quintet arrangement is technically perfect and the choice of language careful. Preexisting music is reinterpreted with new, linguistically relevant lyrics in a ‘perfect fake’ style, its
origins dating back to Cantacronache by Sergio Liberovici. In ‘Non ti ricordi il 31 dicembre’ the
artistic combination elevates the Boves massacre to an exemplary moment for generations to
come. The song Il ricordo che è restato – which evokes certain figures of World War II, from
partisan messengers to deserters – is part of the long tradition of sung tales, wondering what
remains of the conflict and ending with the hope that the road traced by the Resistance
protagonists still makes sense today.
During the ceremony projects deemed worthy were given public spaces for performances and
exhibitions.
For information:
Compagnia di San Paolo
Press Office
Daniela Gonella Tel. 011.5596982, e-mail: [email protected], Cell. 3475221195