17th Rome Film Fest Winners Announced: January, Causeway, Shttl Triumph

The 17th edition of the Festa del Cinema di Roma concluded with a closing ceremony hosted by Geppy Cucciari, while the festival officially closes with Valeria Bruni Tedeschi's Les Amandiers and the premiere of Boris 4. The top films were January by Viesturs Kairišs, Causeway by Lila Neugebauer, and Shttl by Ady Walter. The Progressive Cinema competition, revived after a hiatus, awarded Best Film to January (Viesturs Kairišs), Grand Jury Prize to Jeong-sun (Jeong Ji-hye), Best Director to Viesturs Kairišs, Best Actress (Monica Vitti Award) to Kim Kum-soon, Best Actor (Vittorio Gassman Award) to Kārlis Arnolds Avots, and Best Screenplay to Andrea Bagney for Ramona. The Special Jury Prize went to Foudre by Carmen Jaquier for cinematography by Marine Atlan. The Audience Award (FS) went to Shttl. The Ugo Tognazzi Award for Best Comedy went to What's Love Got to Do with It? by Shekhar Kapur, with a special mention to Ramona. The BNL BNP Paribas Best First Feature Award went to Causeway by Lila Neugebauer, with special mentions to Ramona and Foudre. Festival directors Gian Luca Farinelli and Paola Malanga expressed satisfaction with public turnout, though internal worker discontent was rumored. The next edition is set for autumn 2023.