OIL, MIRACLES, AND STONES

In an annual tradition in the southern Italian province of Basilicata, hundreds of people trek up a mountainside to honor the spot where shepherds greeted the Virgin Mary. The procession preserves the religious roots that characterize these villagers and celebrates a miracle they call their own.

Some villagers believe Basilicata experienced another miracle in the 1990s when crude oil was discovered there. It is the site of one of the world's largest oil reserves. This small region, with a population of 600,000, is potentially one of the richest areas in natural resources in Europe. With new business ventures popping up rapidly and no organized crime, the province has gone from being very poor to an oasis for tourists and residents alike. Locals rejoice at their fortune--it is as if their land, which they felt had been abandoned by both God and man for centuries, has suddenly become fruitful.

Their joy is not felt by all. The other side of this seeming blessing is described by three villagers--the mayor who must balance everyone's interests, an organic farmer threatened by a proposed pipeline through her fields, and a journalist investigating the real impact of "black gold" on a small community. Filmmaker Gianfranco Pannone juxtaposes vintage film footage of a time when Basilicata suffered terrible poverty with scenes illustrating the optimism (premature perhaps) of the younger population's eagerness to embrace economic development. As the mayor says, "You can't alter nature without causing problems."

Mary Kerr

Gianfranco Pannone graduated in Literature (with concentrations in History and Film Criticism) from the University of Rome in 1988 and, in 1990, received a degree in directing from the National Film School. His documentaries PICCOLA AMERICA (1990), LETTERE DALL' AMERICA (1995) and L'AMERICA A ROMA (1998) make up a trilogy on recent Italian history, as seen through the eyes of the common people. LATINA/LITTORIA (2001) was awarded best non-fiction film at the Torino Film Festival and best film-documentary at the Maremma Doc Festival.

Print Source:
Paolo Santoni, Ready Made
Via dei Sabelli 221
Rome 00185
Italy
Tel: 39.06.44341024
Fax: 39.0.68.530.4586
Email: santoni@readymadefilms.com

PRECEDED BY...MADE IN ITALY
Fabio Wuytack
Belgium/Italy, 2004, 29 minutes

Carrara, Italy, known for supplying Michelangelo with marble for his sculptures, is also where the Lumiere Brothers filmed the iconic image of a moving train that startled the first movie audience; the filmmaker searches out the now-lost location.

Print Source:
Fabio Wuytack
Axelsvaardeken 14
Wachtebeke, Oost-Vlaanderen 9185
Belgium
Tel: 0032 485416585
Email: fabio.wuytack@belgacom.net

Wednesday 6/15 at 7:30 p.m.

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