Last 18th of October saw the presentation of the 2015 La Chioma de Berenice Film Prizes, awarded by the CNA (Confederazione Nazionale dell’Artigianato e delle Piccola e Media Impresa), at the Salone Margherita-Il Bagaglino Theatre in Rome. Established in 1998, these awards recognise Italian audiovisual industry professionals working in hair, makeup, costume design, art direction and soundtrack composition. For the past four years they have formed part of the Risonance section of the Rome International Film Festival.
In terms of film, the big winner was Tale of Tales by Matteo Garrone with a haul of four prizes: stylist Francesco Pegoretti won Best Hair, Gino Tamagnini and Diego Prestopino took the award for Best Special Effects, Massio Cantini Parrini won Best Costume Design, and Alassia Anfuso and Dimitri Capuani for Best Art Direction. Best Soundtrack went to Gabriele Roberto for La prima volta (di mia figlia) by Riccardo Rossi.
The TV fiction section was dominated by Borgia, Season Three, with Aldo Signoretti and Ferdinando Merolla winning for Best Hair and Sergi Ballo for Best Costume Design. Elsewhere, Elisabetta Emidi took the prize for Best Special Effects for her work on mini-series Romeo e Giuletta, while Paki Meduri won Best Art Direction for Gomorra 2, The Series and Stefano Caprioli was awarded Best Soundtrack for I segreti di Borgo Larici.
The CNA also presented a lifetime achievement award for composer Pino Donaggio, the CNA Special Prize to Marco Streccioni’s Sud Ovest Records, which has been used to record more than 300 film soundtracks over the years, and their 215 Special Prize to Gigi Marzullo, which was presented by Graziella Pera, president of the Chioma di Berenice Awards.
Guests at the event included international industry representatives invited by the Italian Trade Agency, an organization dedicated to fostering commercial and technological exchange between Italy and the international community, in collaboration with the CNA.
Tours of Italian Companies and Cinecittà
The international guests were provided the opportunity to visit leading film and show business companies, all CNA association members, and a tour of Cinecittà Studios and the Experimental Cinematography Centre in Rome, which hosts the National Film School and Cinematheque.
Companies visited included Maurizio Bazar (hats, armour, masks, props, costumes, puppets), Rocchetti & Rocchetti (wigs), Pieroni (hats, armour), Sud Ovest Records (recording studio, record label), Tirelli Costumi (costumes and costume shop), Annamode (costume shop, tailors), E. Rancati (armour, furniture, props, jewellery) and Magma Lab (dubbing, translation, postproduction).
Representatives of the Aula Film Foundation – Josep M Queraltó Collection also stopped by the Accademia d’Armi Musemeci Greco, one of the oldest and most prestigious fencing schools in the world housed, since its inception, in a stately home of the 15th century just a stone’s throw from the Pantheon; and the Italian National Film Academy (Accademia del Cinema Italiano) presided over by Gian Luigi Rondi and directed by Secretary General Manuela Pineschi, who provided a great deal of information on their activities, which largely revolve around the annual David di Donatello Awards established in 1956.
