Sky Arte Documentary Explores Leonardo Sciascia's Legacy 100 Years After His Birth

A new documentary titled 'Leonardo Sciascia – Scrittore alieno' premieres on Sky Arte on January 8, 2021, marking the centenary of the writer's birth. The film is divided into four sections—Sicily, Politics, Religion, and Crime—that encapsulate Sciascia's biographical, literary, and political universe. It highlights his status as an 'alien to Italian logic' and an 'anomaly.' Sciascia is known for his writings on the Mafia and mafia mentality, incorporating Pirandello into crime fiction and Italian politics, analyzing the scientific community, and using the Church to explore power and the Mediterranean. The documentary compares him to Jorge Luis Borges for his labyrinthine constructions and introspective search for humanity. It also delves into Sciascia's personal relationships with family and friends, his connections to the Italian literary and political landscape during the Years of Lead—where Aldo Moro became a character in his work—and the Sicily of early major Mafia killings. Other themes include fascism, the birth of the Republic, the Historic Compromise, and the Spanish Inquisition. Sciascia's work transcends time, producing epilogue-like novels that reveal hidden truths about recent Italian history, configuring an alternative Sicily and Italy.