L'Italo-Americano

THURSDAY, MAY 15, 2014 L'Italo-Americano THURSDAY, MAY 15, 2014 www.italoamericano.com 6 Movies under the stars: a cultural experience Happy Birthday, Convivio! On March 2 of this year, Paolo Sorrentino took home an Oscar for his masterpiece, La Grande Bellezza (The Great Beauty) won in the category of Best Foreign Language Film. This was the 10th Oscar awarded to an Italian film at the Academy Awards, dating back to 1956 when direc- tor Federico Fellini's La Strada won Italy's very first Oscar. Before the category for Best Foreign Film was established as a regular category. Italian films also received three Special/Honorary Awards in 1947, '49 and '50. American appreciation for Italian films has clearly been around for more than half a cen- tury. Film connoisseur Giuseppe Annino and his organization, Cinema Little Italy, is bringing that appreciation to San Diego while bringing the Italian- American community here closer together. "Three of us – me, Rich LaRocca and Joey DeSimone – are personally committed to bringing the Italian community closer together," Annino said, "and we jumped at the opportu- nity to do just that through Italy's world famous cinema." For Annino, this was partially inspired by his own personal renewed interest in his Italian heritage. Raised the son of Italian immigrants who had come to New York to raise a family, Annino was "relatively disinter- ested and, in fact, a little embar- rassed because usually Italians were associated with mafia and people would make wise-cracks about that." It wouldn't be until the early 2000s that "something ignited in [his] brain and [he] started studying Italian." Cinema Little Italy launched its inaugural season last year when Annino and his partners were approached by San Diego's Little Italy Association to aid them in the "cultural renaissance" that was occurring in the neighbor- hood. "We had done several film screenings in Little Italy," he explained. "There was interest in attracting more visitors to Little Italy by expanding these occa- sional screenings to a film festi- val." The festival is a 12-week event that runs from June 14 to Aug. 30 and allows guests to watch Italian films (with English subtitles) every Saturday night at 8 p.m. under the stars in Amici Park in Little Italy. "Most people are not aware that there are hundreds of Italian films, many with English subti- tles, which have never or seldom been shown in the U.S.," Annino said. Part of Annino's responsibili- ties for the organization involve film distribution and selection. Each year, he travels to Venice, Italy to attend the Venice Film Festival in order to search out the next batch of films to be screened by Cinema Little Italy. The films selected for screen- ing are a combination of various genres. Annino explains that "there are different aspects of Italian society that we like to show people [with the films]." Genres vary from politics to romantic comedies to current events. Annino goes on: "There's a big thing in Italy right now with the immigration from Africa (…) There's a beautiful movie called "Terraferma" that we're showing this year that's about that." As the festival prepares to launch its second season, it is reaching out to young people to help educate the younger genera- tions about their Italian back- grounds and has therefore been contacting Italian culture and lan- guage teachers in San Diego to spread the word to their students about the festival. "This is a labor of love for the three of us," Annino said. "Entrance is free. We only ask for a $5 contribution to offset costs." The festival's season will close with a festival party at the Convivio Center on Sept. 13 that will include dinner and a movie beginning at 6 p.m. Guests will be greeted at the door with a glass of Prosecco, enjoy a buffet dinner and at 8 p.m., a screening of Graziano Diana's film "Eddia Ciano e il comunista," following the real life love affair between the daughter of Benito Mussolini and Leonida Bongiorno, a red partisan. Tickets for this are available at Convivio's website (www.conviviosociety.org) and cost $35. More information about the fes- tival, film synopses and trailers and screening schedule can be found at Cinema Little Italy's website: www.cinemalittleitaly. com. MIchELE PLuSS MIchELE PLuSS Giuseppe Annino attends the Venice Film Festival every year to select the film roster for Cinema Little Italy In Little Italy, the doors opened to a center that has quickly become a pillar in the Italian-American community of San Diego. It has quickly estab- lished itself at the heart of the Italian cultural renaissance that has brought a renewed sense of pride to Little Italy and for those of Italian heritage. It has also helped reach out to those of dif- ferent heritages and help teach them about the rich customs and traditions that make of Italy's cultural fabric. All of this has been accom- plished in just one year. That center is the Convivio Center. "The Convivio Center was part of a larger dream to offer a common space for different groups who operate largely independently," said Tom Cesarini, owner and founder of Convivio in an interview when the center first opened. ""Our center is so eclectic and we're offering something for every- body. I really strive to cultivate that kind of environment. We also want to involve the commu- nity and get their thoughts on what to offer." Since the center opened, it has offered classes and hosted events in its continued effort to "advance Italian arts and cul- ture, preserve the Italian histori- cal narrative of San Diego, pro- mote Italian Studies and increase multicultural awareness and understanding – creating a multifaceted academic and social environment." According to its website, "The center serves as a community resource, a social and education- al gathering spot for events, exhibitions, and programs. The Convivio Center also comprises the Little Italy Heritage Center, preserving the historical aspects of the neighborhood, and the Little Italy Visitor Center, offer- ing information about the com- munity and other resources." These events have most recently included a tribute per- formance by Patrizia the "sultry lady of jazz," honoring the great Ella Fitzgerald and a screening of "Io, Don Giovanni" in an homage to the launch of the new season for the San Diego Opera. Convivio is also constantly reaching out to both local and national Italian (-American) artists to showcase their work. Since its inception, Convivio has displayed artwork by several artists including Christopher Paluso, Vincent Scilla and Sebastiano Grasso. To celebrate its first birthday, Convivio will be hosting the U.S. film premiere of "Summer of '82: When Zappa Came to Sicily," directed by Salvo Cuccia. Refreshments will be provided by Tarantino Gourmet Sausages and Convivio will host a cash bar of wine and beer. Convivio will continue its established tradition of provid- ing cultural events for the com- munity and its calendar for the remainder of the year is brim- ming with evening engagements to showcase the Italian commu- nity and culture at its finest. For more information about the cen- ter and to see a calendar of events, you can visit www.con- viviosociety.org.

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