Since 1997 the ancient village of Sant’Agata de’ Goti, in the region Campania, Italy, has been hosting the Sannio Film Festival, the international festival of set design and costumes, which annually awards the work of the best make-up artists, set, costume and furniture designers. A fundamental work to realize a good movie, which often remains hidden and is overshadowed by the work of celebrated movie stars.
The quality, creativity and complexity of the work of all of those professionals that work behind the scenes is rightly celebrated by the Sannio Film Festival, a unique event, at least as far the old continent is concerned, which has been offering a very interesting program every year for almost 15 years, with prize-giving ceremonies, exhibitions, debates and projections. The festival, indeed, is not only aimed at awarding prizes (the “capitelli d’oro”) to the best movie, director, actor, actress, set designer and costume designer, it is also meant as a privileged observation point for everything concerning costume films and the people who work on them, from make-up artists to furniture designers.
[ advertisement ]
The official prizes are awarded by an international jury to the best movies that do not have a contemporary setting (this is the essential condition to take part in the festival). In addition to the “capitelli d’oro”, also other prizes and special awards are awarded during the festival: the lifetime achievement award “capitello d’argento” to an internationally renowned costume or set designer: the “gladiator sannita”, an award conceived by the Province of Benevento to celebrate those people who have made the region Sannio well-known working in the field of movies and art in general; the Seterie Alois Award, conceived by the homonymous silk factory to award the craftsmen of the most important international silk factories working for movies and theatre.
The movies that are presented during the festival are traditionally divided in three categories: premičre, a year in costume and retrospective. The first section includes feature films with a non contemporary setting that are projected for the first time in Italy; a year in costume is the competitive section, and it includes costume movies coming from all over Europe which have already been projected in Italy, and which stand out for the accuracy and the quality of costumes and sets; the third category is dedicated to a different theme every year, and for some years it has been conceived as a tribute to an important set or costume designer.
However, besides prize-giving ceremonies and projections, the festival program offers much more. Exhibitions, for example, have become a unmissable events for both the stars and the visitors of the festival, as they let you admire those costumes and sets that accomplish the difficult task to perpetuate the imaginative function of movies. The festival is enriched by exhibitions and installations that are meant to celebrate the ability of costume and set designers, who deserve to go down in movie history as actors do. This great event includes also debates and meetings dedicated to the world of costumes, make-up, set design and furniture for movies.
