L'Italo-Americano

" I am very honored to receive this recognition. I am not good at public speaking, just at receiv- ing awards! And this was necessary. I will make sure to keep it at home, next to my Oscar." Italian director and Acad- emy-Award winner Paolo Sor- rentino was all smiles as he received his Italian Television TV award during the first edition of this new festival. Ahead of this year's Emmys, the Italian Television Festival took place on Thursday Septem- ber 19th at the London Hotel in West Hollywood and, before fea- turing screenings of trailers and teasers, opened with an awards ceremony hosted by long-time LA based Italian journalist, Valentina Martelli. Paolo Sorrentino, the mind behind "The New Pope," a series based on the Italian papacy cur- rently on its second season, was awarded for his pioneering role in the so-called "renaissance" of Italian TV. The famous director received a "Hand …The Winner Is" sculpture, for successfully bringing Italian stories to the forefront of the entertainment industry. Custom-made by Italian artist Fidia Falaschetti, the anthropomorphic sculpture holds a remote control in one hand to symbolize modern-day viewers' freedom to choose what they watch. "The point of this festival is that Italy is producing so much content with really, really good talent, and it's starting to be rec- ognized internationally. It's an Italian TV renaissance, and this could be the beginning of some amazing American-Italian TV to come," says Valentina Martelli, who founded Good Girls Planet alongside Francesca Scorcucchi and Cristina Scognamillo. "It's a never-ending market, so why not bring this opportunity to the States?" The industry event wrapped up with a red carpet and party that had notable attendees like Emmy-nominated British actor Jared Harris (Chernobyl), Moran Atias (The Village), Emanuela Postacchini (Who Is America, The Alienist), Stefania Spamp- inato (Grey's Anatomy), Logan Laurice Browning (Dear White People), and Francesco Bauco (Ford vs. Ferrari), alongside other creatives such as Oscar-nominat- ed composer Marco Beltrami. With the advent of streaming, European television has success- fully solidified its place in Holly- wood, conquering international audiences with shows such as Gomorrah, Medici and Suburra: Blood on Rome, all Italian dra- mas available on Netflix, in addi- tion to HBO's My Brilliant Friend and the Italian-French- Spanish drama The Young Pope. Among the special guests, actor Francesco Bauco, who por- trays Lorenzo Bandini in Christ- ian Bale and Matt Damon's new movie Ford vs Ferrari. Directed by James Mangold, the movie will be released on November 15th. "I am so honored to share the red carpet tonight with an award winner maestro like Paolo Sorrentino" the actor tells us. "There is so much more willing- ness to work with Italian actors and tell Italian stories in Holly- wood at the moment. The indus- try has become like a huge machine that incorporates so many movie and television pro- ductions which means more opportunities." SILVIA GIUDICI THURSDAY, OCTOBER 3, 2019 www.italoamericano.org 26 L'Italo-Americano Hollywood celebrates Italian TV with the Italian Television Festival From left: F. Scorcucchi, C. Scognamillo, P. Sorrentino, M. Testa and V. Martelli Marco Testa at the ITTV Festival LOS ANGELES ITALIAN COMMUNITY Continued from page 24

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