Magic Lantern Film Festival Returns to Rome with Biopic Focus

The Magic Lantern Film Festival, now in its second edition, will take place in Rome from March 21 to 23, 2017, at Cinema dei Piccoli. The festival, curated entirely by women—Maria Alicata, Adrienne Drake, and Ilaria Gianni—explores the intersection of visual arts and cinema. This edition centers on the theme "Really," with the biopic as its focus, featuring six films that blend interviews, essays, and autobiographical elements. Selected works include Rossella Biscotti's "The Undercover Man" (2008) about FBI agent Joe Pistone (Donnie Brasco); Jeremy Deller and Nicholas Abrahams' "The Bruce Lacey Experience" (2012) on a modern magician; Elisabeth Subrin's "Shulie" (1997) on feminist Shulamith Firestone; Arvo Leo's "Fish Plane" on Inuit artist Pudlo Pudlat; Dani Gal's "As from Afar" on Nazi architect Albert Speer; and Iain Forsyth & Jane Pollard's "20,000 Days on Earth" (2014) on Nick Cave. The festival is not annual but repeats every six months, with the previous edition covering noir and horror genres in artist films across institutional spaces and foreign academies in Rome.