Ariaferma, the new film by Leonardo Di Costanzo, in cinemas from 8 December 2022
An old nineteenth-century prison, located in a rugged and unspecified part of the Italian territory, is being decommissioned. Because of bureaucratic problems the transfers come to a halt, and a dozen inmates are left behind with a handful of officers, waiting for new destinations. In a suspended atmosphere the rules of separation loosen, and among the men who remain new forms of relationship begin to take shape.
The prison of Mortana does not exist in reality: it is an imaginary place, built after visiting many prisons. Almost everywhere we found a great willingness to talk, to tell their own stories; at times the meetings brought together officers, management and a few inmates. It was then easy for a strange atmosphere of conviviality to arise, and they almost competed with one another in telling stories. There was laughter too. Then, when the gathering was over, everyone went back to their roles and the men in uniform, keys in hand, took the others, the inmates, back to their cells. Faced with this abrupt return to reality, we outsiders felt a deep sense of disorientation. And it is precisely this sense of disorientation that guided the making of the film: Ariaferma is not a film about the conditions of Italian prisons. It is perhaps a film about the absurdity of prison.
Cast:
Toni Servillo
Silvio Orlando
Fabrizio Ferracane
