15 January, 6:30 PM, MIC

Set in Sardinia in 1940 and based on a true story, Balentes recounts the ingenuous rebellion of two boys who, upon learning that several horses are to be requisitioned by the army, attempt to free them to save them from the front. Betrayed and pursued by the militia, the two confront the brutality of war, which overwhelms their idealistic drive to protect. Presented at the 54th edition of the International Film Festival Rotterdam, following its premiere at the Rome Film Festival, the film confirms the depth of Giovanni Columbu’s vision, as he constructs a moving painting made of chiaroscuro, minimal gestures, and primordial landscapes. In Balentes, white becomes a decisive element: it recalls the original whiteness of early cinematic images that inspired the film, but is reimagined by Columbu as a painterly substance in a hand-painted animated film capable of visually and symbolically opposing totalitarianism in all eras. And it is precisely within this total white space that war erupts like a dark stain, shattering the innocence of the protagonists. By evoking the memory of a real event, Balentes becomes a parable about war, heroism, and the fate of the young, destined to be swallowed up by the very mechanisms of violence they had tried to resist.

In the presence of the director and performer Simonetta Columbu

Credits

Director and Screenplay: Giovanni Columbu
Cinematography: Paolo Negro, Enrico Monni, Giulia Camba, Damiano Picciau, Federica Ortu
Editing: Giovanni Columbu, Benni Atria
Producers: Giovanni Columbu, Daniele Maggioni, Flavia Oertwig
Production: Luches Film, Tama Filmproduktion, Rai Cinema
Countries: Italy / Germany

Year: 2024
Duration: 70’