Io sono Li
Synopsis
Io sono Li tells the story of Shun Li, a Chinese immigrant working in a textile workshop on the outskirts of Rome to secure the papers needed to bring her eight-year-old son to Italy. Suddenly, Li is transferred to Chioggia—a small island town in the Venetian Lagoon—to work as a bartender in a local tavern. Bepi, a fisherman of Slavic descent nicknamed “the Poet” by his friends, has been a regular at the tavern for years. Their meeting becomes a poetic escape from loneliness, a silent dialogue between cultures that are different yet no longer distant. It is a journey into the deep heart of a lagoon that acts as both mother and cradle to identities that never stand still. Yet, the friendship between Shun Li and Bepi unsettles both the Chinese and Chioggia communities; they stand in the way of this new journey—perhaps simply because they are still too afraid of it.
Trailer
Director’s vision
The idea for the film stems from two needs: on the one hand, the desire to find—within a story that is both realistic and metaphorical—a way to explore the relationship between the individual and cultural identity in a world increasingly prone to cultural mixing and identity crises; on the other, the wish to depict two places that are significant to my own life and highly emblematic of contemporary Italy: the multi-ethnic outskirts of Rome and the Veneto, a region that has experienced rapid economic growth, transforming in a very short time from a land of emigration into a land of immigration.
Credits
Festivals and prizes
ASTI-FILM-FESTIVAL – Best Film, Best Actress (Zhao Tao), City of Asti Award to Giuseppe Battiston
SulmonaCinema
Umbria International Film Festival, Popoli e Religioni – Special Mention
MedFilmFestival – Amore e Psiche Award (Official Competition Winner)
Seville European Film Festival – Eurimages Award
BFI London Film Festival – Satyajit Ray Award
FICE Award (Italian Federation of Art-House Cinemas) – Best Debut Director 2011
Reykjavík International Film Festival 2011 – Jury Special Mention
Venice International Film Festival – FEDIC Award; Magic Lantern Award; Lina Mangiacapre Award
Tetouan International Mediterranean Film Festival – “Azeddine Meddour” Award for Best Debut Film; Best Actor Award (Rade Serbedzija)
Spello Film Festival – Best Editing Award (Sara Zavarise); Best Screenplay Award (Andrea Segre); Best Screenplay Award (Marco Pettenello)
BIF&ST (Bari International Film Festival) – “Franco Cristaldi” Award for Best Producer (Francesco Bonsembiante); “Giuseppe Rotunno” Award for Best Cinematographer (Luca Bigazzi)
Tumbarinu Award (competition) – Silver Tumbarinu Award for Best Debut Film
Lecce European Film Festival – Mario Verdone Award
David di Donatello – Best Actress Award (Zhao Tao)
Pula Film Festival – Jury Special Recognition
Monty Banks Award – Audience Award; Monty Banks Award for Best Debut Film
Gallio Film Festival – Audience Award for Best Film; Best Screenplay Award (Andrea Segre); Best Screenplay Award (Marco Pettenello)
Montenegro Film Festival of the Mediterranean – First Prize
European Parliament – LUX Prize
