New York, NY, Oct. 21, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- New York Film Academy (NYFA) BFA Filmmaking alum Gabriele Fabbro’s latest feature-length film, The Grand Bolero (2021), has been named an official selection to this year’s Austin Film Festival. The film was nominated for Best Narrative Feature Film.
The film was shot in Italy and set during the COVID-19 global pandemic during Italy’s lockdown. Roxanne (played by Lidia Vitale) is a cynical middle-aged pipe organ cleaner who struggles to control her impulsive attraction to her new 20-year-old mute assistant (played by Ludovica Mancini). The 90-minute romantic thriller was directed by Fabbro and co-written by both Fabbro and Ydalie Turk (fellow BFA Acting for Film NYFA alum).
“We wrote and shot the film in northern Italy, during the lockdown. We were lucky to get to film in locations where Covid-19 first spread such as Lodi (in the chapel of the main hospital) and Bergamo’s surroundings. Because we wanted to make this ‘covid-era thriller’ during the lockdown, I think everyone felt the urgency to make it happen. This urgency is really what made this film possible. Also, because we were all locked in our homes, we all couldn’t wait to get back on set. That created such a bond within the team and brought great energy on set and on the script. I’m also really happy to have made this journey with such a compact crew of young and creative storytellers,” says Director Fabbro.
“With its focus on screenwriting, the Austin Film Festival is the premiere destination for such a compelling story as told in The Grand Bolero,” says Crickett Rumley, the Director of NYFA’s Film Festival Department. “And what a tremendous thrill for a young independent filmmaker to screen his first narrative feature alongside new films by established directors like Peter Hedges and Wes Anderson! I could not be more excited for Gabriele.”
The film screens live in two Austin theaters on October 24th and 26th. It is available virtually on demand during the entire festival from October 21st until October 28th. The film will compete among seven other films in the Narrative category at this year’s festival.
The director provides his own take on the creative inspiration behind the film and the significance of the musical score, “Although Covid-19 remains mostly in the background, with The Grand Bolero I wanted to explore our aching need for human connection and touch during the pandemic. I’ve been fascinated by pipe organs since I was a kid so The Grand Bolero was also a great opportunity to showcase my own obsession for this massive instrument and for classical music in films. The soundtrack has been recorded entirely on three different types of organs including the Grand Organ of Villasanta (one of the biggest symphonic organs in Italy) and on a Mighty Wurlitzer (currently the only theatre organ in Italy).”
According to Fabbro, “I think that more than ever today, we need to celebrate the psychic power of cinema and its history. Therefore, with this first feature, I tried my best to reconcile the modern cinema with the classic silent cinema.”
New York Film Academy congratulates Gabriele Fabbro for his selection at the Austin Film Festival.
About New York Film Academy
New York Film Academy (NYFA) is a leading film, media, and performing arts college that offers hands-on intensive undergraduate and graduate degree programs, certificates, workshops and camps across a multitude of areas of study in New York City, Los Angeles, South Beach/Miami, Gold Coast (Australia), Florence (Italy), Beijing and Shanghai (China), and more. Its programs are accelerated and NYFA students can complete a four-year BFA degree in three years. NYFA’s online program offerings allow students the opportunity to advance their creative and technical skills in NYFA’s “Hands-Online Workshops,” available across NYFA’s film, media, and performing arts disciplines.
NYFA is accredited by the WASC Senior College and University Commission (WSCUC). This accreditation extends to all NYFA campuses in the United States and overseas.
For more information, please visit nyfa.edu.
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