The QUEER LION AWARD Will Go to the Best Film with Gay/Lesbian/Queer Contents

in collaboration with Associazione CinemArte Osservatorio LGBT present

On the occasion of the 64th Venice Film Festival, a new collateral award has been established: the QUEER LION AWARD will go to the best film with gay/lesbian/queer contents.

Promoted and organized by CinemArte association, in collaboration with Osservatorio LGBT of the Municipality of Venice, the award represents the deserved recognition to a consolidated visual culture, always in advance of its time on the horizon of art. An award whose effort is not only to draw the attention on a movie genre often hidden and neglected, but to open gazes on feelings and emotions that are universal.

The QUEER LION AWARD winner will be chosen from a list of twelve films that are going to be presented in all the sections of the 64th Venice Film Festival.

A jury, composed by critics, journalists, writers and movie producers and distributors, will be in charge of choosing the winner. The QUEER LION will be awarded on september, Friday 7th, at 6.00 p.m. at Villa degli Autori, Lungomare Marconi 56/b, Lido di Venezia, during a buffet and cocktail party to celebrate the winning movie.

THE FILMS

Venezia 64 - In competition Sleuth by Kenneth Branagh (Uk/Usa, 86’) with Michael Caine, Jude Law The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford by Andrew Dominik (Usa, 155’) with Brad Pitt, Casey Affleck, Sam Shepard Nessuna qualità agli eroi by Paolo Franchi (Italy/Switzerland/France, 102’) with Elio Germano, Irène Jacob Bangbang wo aishen (Help Me Eros) by Lee Kang Sheng (Taiwan, 107’) with Lee Kang Sheng The Darjeeling Limited by Wes Anderson (Usa, 91’) with Adrien Brody, Anjelica Huston, Bill Murray Sukiyaki Western Django by Miike Takashi (Japan, 121’) with Quentin Tarantino, Hideaki Ito, Kaori Momoi Il dolce e l’amaro by Andrea Porporati (Italy, 98’) with Fabrizio Gifuni, Luigi Lo Cascio, Donatella Finocchiaro

Venezia 64 - Out of Competition \ Venezia Notte Tiantang kou (Blood Brothers) by Alexi Tan (Taiwan/China/Hong Kong, 95’) with Daniel Wu, Zhang Zhen

Venezia 64 - Orizzonti Searchers 2.0 by Alex Cox (Usa, 90’) with Del Zamora, Jaclyn Jonet, Ed Pansullo

4th Venice Days \ Giornate degli Autori Freischwimmer (Head Under Water) by Andreas Kleinert (Germany, 110’) with Frederick Lau, August Diehl The Speed of Life by Ed Radtke (Usa, 84’) with Noah Fleiss, Matthew Davis

22nd International Critics’ Week (SIC) 24 Mesures by Jalil Lespert (France, 82’) with Benoît Magimel, Lubna Azabal, Sami Bouajila

Press office Queer Lion Award: t. 335/407079 (Daniel N. Casagrande) - t. 348/4964486 (CinemArte) - [email protected] - www.cinemarte.net Press office Osservatorio lgbt: t. 328/8347853 (Municipality of Venezia) THE JURY

Andrea Occhipinti (president of jury) Theater, movie and television actor. as a stage actor, he debuted in 1977 under the direction of Giancarlo Palermo in Pierrot fumista. On television, his first acting work was inLa vita di Antonio Gramsci. On the big screen, he’s been among the ensemble cast of Ettore Scola’s La famiglia, as well as appearing in Peter Del Monte’s Tracce di vita amorosa. More recently, he played roles in spanish productions such as Amor de hombre and Reinas. In 1987 he created Lucky Red, a movie distribution and production company renowned for its constant research of quality cinema. As a producer, in 2002 he won the Golden Lion at the Venice Film Festival for Peter Mullan’s The Magdalene Sisters.

Delia Vaccarello Journalist and writer, born in Palermo, currently living between Rome and Umbria. She writes a weekly column dealing with young people’s sexuality for Il Salvagente magazine and is in charge of the Uno, due, tre… liberi tutti page for daily newspaper L’Unità. Teacher of Media and sexual behavior at the journalist schools of Bologna and Urbino. Among her books: Gli Svergognati (La tartaruga, 2002), L’amore secondo noi (Oscar Mondadori, 2005), Sciò! giovani bugie identità (Oscar Mondadori, 2007). She edited the first 5 editions of the anthology of short novels Principesse azzurre (Oscar Mondadori).

Sandro Avanzo Journalist and critic. Born in Romagna, grew up in Bologna, currently living and working in Milan, great lover of cinema and theater. Began to write in the early eigthies for Sipario, Babilonia, Altri Media, Excelsior. Since 1989, he’s the voice of the legit world from the microphones of Radio Popolare. In 1996 organizes the first italian retrospective on Cinema and Aids. Member of the jury of Ubu Theater Award since 1996. Author of the items dedicated to musical and revue theater for Dizionario dello spettacolo del ’900 (Baldini e Castoldi, 1998). Member of SNCCI (Italian Union of Cinema Critics) since 1997. Latest contributions: Vanity Fair, Ciak, Film TV magazines.

Vincenzo Patanè Journalist and writer, teaches History of Art in Venice. Lover and specialist of gay cinema, he’s the author of Ebano Nudo, Cinema & Pittura, A qualcuno piace gay, Derek Jarman, Shakespeare al cinema, L’omosessualità nel cinema americano 1987/1998 e Breve storia del cinema italiano con tematica omosessuale (part of the italian edition of Vito Russo’s The Celluloid Closet), Arabi e noi - Amori gay nel Maghreb, L’altra metà dell’amore - Dieci anni di cinema omosessuale, Homosexuality in the Middle East and North Africa (Thames & Hudson).

Simone Morandi Movie producer and attorney specialized in show business and royalties, in 2005 he created Fourlab, a movie and television production and distribution company. In 2007 Fourlab acquired the rights for Italy of more than 30 LGBT-themed movies, among them Latter Days and Another Gay Movie, successfully aired on satellite tv channel SkyShow. His efforts in movie distribution will continue in early 2008 with the launch of OutLoud!, a brand new home-video label.

Jury coordinator Daniel N. Casagrande Free-lance journalist, president of CinemArte cultural association, conceiver of Queer Lion Award and director of Giornate di Cinema Omosessuale (VeniceGays), showcase of lgbt-themed movies on their Italian or European premiere, this year in its 3rd edition, in Mestre from September 14th to September 16th.