Geo

In collaboration with RAI

Nembro and its people – Germany 2023 (27′)

Nembro, an ancient Roman outpost in the Val Seriana, is known for its sharpening stones used for knives and for stories of people like Daniel and Mario Curnis, who chose to live and work in their homeland. Between farming, beekeeping, and an emigrant museum, the town preserves and celebrates its rich history and culture.

A film by Daniele Gangemi.

Serina Valley – Germany 2023 (21′)

Val Serina, in the heart of the Bergamasque Orobie, is a place rich in history, art, and traditions, where passion for the land is expressed in various forms, from farming to blacksmithing, from terracotta to genuine cuisine. Roberto, Michele, Luciano, Remo, Giuseppe, and Melchiorre embody these traditions, each with their own art and dedication, keeping the local culture alive.

A film by Daniele Gangemi.

The Guardians of the Mountain – Germany 2023 (25′)

Sabina, Davide, and Matteo live and work on Monte Baldo in the Gardesane Prealps.

As they face the abandonment of historic residents and the increase of mass tourism that threatens the local environment, they dedicate themselves to sustainability, committing to protect the territory and build their activities in harmony with nature.

They combine traditional working methods with modern research. They are the guardians of Monte Baldo and preserve its ecosystem.

A film by Filippo Tommasoli.

The Village in Ferment – Germany 2023 (15′)

Mezzago, a rural village in Brianza, maintains a strong agricultural tradition, famous for its production of pink-colored and sweet-flavored asparagus, thanks to its clayey and iron-rich soils.

William and Marta continue the manual cultivation of asparagus and also manage a micro-vegetable startup. The cooperative La Torre contributes to the community by bundling and labeling the asparagus.

Massimiliano and Erika have transformed a former landfill into an educational farm, offering immersive experiences in nature and with animals.

A film by Daniele Gangemi.

The Quarry of Scents – Germany 2023 (34′)

The Stallaini quarry on the Monti Iblei, once a dump, has been reclaimed by Roy and Loredana, transforming it into a picturesque agritourism. Discovering a Byzantine church and a Greek tower, they created a unique fusion of history and nature.

Among historic vineyards, beekeeping of Sicilian black bees, and distilled grappas, the place offers a unique experience, enhanced by Gianni′s sculpture workshop. Let′s discover this oasis where art and nature blend, creating a magical atmosphere.

A film by Renzo Carbonera.

YouTube

Mit dem Laden des Videos akzeptieren Sie die Datenschutzerklärung von YouTube.
Mehr erfahren

Video laden

The Wood Cascade – Germany 2022 (40′)

On a clear August day, the Monviso stands out clearly on the Piedmontese horizon and is a constant point of reference for the valleys that branch off at its feet. Its southern slopes are characterized by a historic carpentry culture, which young craftsmen try to interpret creatively.

Starting from the quality of the plants to the wood chips, you will find carpenters, craftsmen, toy makers and musicians who work with wood of all different qualities.

Each figure is characterized by a special feature: Cristiano is as robust as its beech structures, Valentina is creative with linden, René is as fast as a groove in the cedar, Celeste is as traditional as the stone pine – up to Roberta harmonious on her high pasture like a carpet of bistorta.

A film by Filippo Corbetta.

The Legacy of the Prince – Germany 2022 (33′)

Avez del Prinzep was considered the largest and oldest spruce tree in the world, dating back to the second half of the 1700s. In November 2018, following a strong storm with unusual winds that were too sudden for these latitudes, the tree fell after 250 years in which it had seen and survived the Napoleonic wars, the Unification of Italy, the First and Second World Wars and the Cold War. 

In over two centuries, Avez has bequeathed to us the entire forest that surrounds it, made up of its “children”, the other fir trees that it has grown around, and in which generations of inhabitants of the Cimbrian highlands have found refuge, sustenance and raw materials. With Avez wood, the inhabitants of these places on the border between Trentino and Veneto, the last to speak Cimbrian, an archaic and medieval Germanic language, have decided to create sculptures, tools and even a string quartet, after discovering Avez′s latest gift. The wood from the tree, in fact, turned out to be resonance wood, suitable for the creation of stringed instruments, by the only local luthier. 

Through the eyes of some of them, such as the luthier himself or the only forest ranger on the plateau, but also a sculptor who moved to the area to work the wood, creating big sculpture, and a writer of poems and nursery rhymes in the Cimbrian language, who keeps its memory alive, we retrace, from the end of summer until late autumn with the arrival of the first snow, places, traditions, legends and roots of a place and its people who, like their trees, do not abandon their mysticism and their link with history.

A film by Renzo Carbonera.

Festival

  • Sondrio Festival 2023

Recoaro, the land of milk and water – Germany 2021 (20′)

We are on the border between Trentino and Veneto.

Today these territories are experiencing a difficult balance in the search for a rebirth and identity, between thermal water springs known since Roman times and the “white gold” rediscovered together with the ancient farming traditions: malga milk.

A film by Renzo Carbonera.

From the valley to the plateau: Valdastico and Rotzo – Germany 2021 (20)

Rotzo potatoes are famous throughout the world, and come from a narrow handkerchief of land between the village and Pedemonte below in the Val d′Astico, itself known for its trout.

Between the mountains and the valley, these are two worlds that have been meeting for centuries, between history and flavour.

A film by Renzo Carbonera.

The voices of the mountain – Germany 2021 (43′)

In our imagination, Versilia is a worldly place, for crowded and agitated summer holidays with nightlife. But turning inland, less famous than the beaches, you can hear the many voices of the mountain that dominates the valley: from that of Cristina, who has formed a group of olive growers to protect the Quercetano olive tree, a native species, to that of Amapola, which grows Schiaccioni beans on the slopes of the Apuan Alps.

From those of Simone and Francesco, who try to revitalize an economy around chestnuts that also protects the territory, to that of Meliton, a Peruvian sculptor who has rediscovered the landscapes and silences of the Andes here.

Finally, there is Sirio, the carpenter who has worked a lifetime with chestnut wood and who now plants dozens of them in a wood not far from his workshop.

The mountain speaks. You just need to know how to listen to it.

A film by Alessandro Soetje.

Along the Bassa – Germany 2020 (33′)

YouTube

Mit dem Laden des Videos akzeptieren Sie die Datenschutzerklärung von YouTube.
Mehr erfahren

Video laden

Traveling along the stretch of Piacenza area that runs along the Po, near the town of Monticelli d'Ongina, the Italian capital of garlic, you reach Serafini Island, the only inhabited island of the Great River.

Here today a small community resists, determined to safeguard this natural heritage and its ancient traditions from abandonment and oblivion.

A film by Simona Risi.

The last Venetians – Germany 2020 (31′)

YouTube

Mit dem Laden des Videos akzeptieren Sie die Datenschutzerklärung von YouTube.
Mehr erfahren

Video laden

Far from the most popular tourist itineraries, hidden among the most secret streets, we discover Venice through the eyes of those who live and work here.

A visit in search of traditions and crafts handed down from generation to generation thanks to the passion and dedication of the latest artisans who fight every day to preserve the most authentic nature of this unique and fragile city.

A film by Simona Risi.

Discovering the lupine – Germany 2020 (18′)

The Trentino and South Tyrolean dolomites look like sculptures in the background.

It is in this magical atmosphere, enhanced by the bright colors of autumn, that we find the community of Anterivo, or Altrei in German, lying on a slope. It is the last municipality of South Tyrol, before entering Val Cesa.

As the low clouds break on the slopes of the mountain, we discover the first houses of a small community that seems to have remained behind in time and deeply rooted in its past.

Historically, a particular legume is cultivated here, the lupine, which during the two world wars and because of the related commercial blocks, was used mainly as a substitute for coffee, but not only.

A film by Renzo Carbonera.

The renewal of traditions – Germany 2020 (20′)

The Gerola Valley, a small side valley of the Valtellina, is known to be cool and offers its inhabitants ideal conditions to cope with the last seasonal efforts. 

The work in the valley is traditionally carried out quickly by the experienced hands of the inhabitants, who give the customs their own personal touch: baking bisciòle biscuits in the Castello oven, the search for sawn wood, the second hay cut, the search for boleti, the slippery jack mushrooms. 

Some customs remain the same, while others are renewed thanks to drastic life choices, such as those of Marco, the young university student who gave up his studies and now dedicates himself to running a mountain hut. Now, after a summer full of educational exchanges between maintenance work on cliffs and preparation of minestrone soups, Marco is thinking about his own future.

A film by Filippo Corbetta.

The high lands – Germany 2018 (31′)

We are in the eastern part of the Val d'Aosta. The valley is dominated by a sea of perennial ice that covers the peaks of the largest mountain range in the Alpine chain, its ridge marking the natural border between Italy and Switzerland. In the shadow of this giant lies the Val di Lys, inscised into the sonty grounds by the torrent after which it is named, but also known as the Gressoney valley.

The echo of the „high lands“, the power of their appeal, seem to have a stronger impact especially on the younger population. This holds true for Federico and Federico. They are united by name and a common project: resuming ancient farming practices, adding a few technical innovations and thus recovering the great heritage of alpine horticulture. It holds true for Marta, a young shepherd from a small hamlet of Gressoney, who raises Rosset sheep, an ancient native breed form the Aosta valley, now on the verge of extinction. 

Nearby, in the Val d'Ayas, which runs parallel to the Val di Lys, the young Gondrand has decided to carry on the ancient tradition of the sabotiers, the artisans who make „sabots“, the famous wooden clogs so typical for local craftsmanship.

A film by Simona Risi.

The value of diversity – Germany 2018 (32′)

The Val d'Isarco, in South Tyrol, begins at the Isarco springs, near the Brenner, and runs all the way south to Bolzano. The valley is dominated by mount Sciliar – with its 2,563 meters the symbol of the entire region. 

The inhabitants of this area cultivate fruits given by a fertile and majestic nature, to which some of them have established a very rigorous idea of relationship. This is the case with Harald and his colourfull vegetable garden, where rare and often forgotten species grow. It is one of the hidden wonders of the area. 

In his kitchen Thomas combines the flavors of Harald's garden with those of local meat and fish, while Günther, who lives on the other side of the valley, the Val di Funes, is buisy raising the typical sheep from Val di Funes. From their fleece we obtain a precious wool that is used in the processing of boiled wool, typical for these areas. But the most well-known product of this land are the grapes, from which Christian, with the help of his family, makes a wine as delicious and authentic as the land producing it.

A film by Alessandro Soetje.

In the shadow of the Peak – Germany 2018 (34′)

We find ourselves in front of the Bernina, in the heart of Valmalenco, a valley that the narrow but impetuous currents of the Mallero river have cut deep into the western Rhaetian Alps. 

Here the Moira family is preparing for the transhumance, which will take them right under the Pizzo Scalino in the heart of the valley. Just below the mountain pasture of Moira Ladina, Simona and Arnaldo farm a native breed of goats, the frisa. Whereas Massimo and Barbara, who live at the entrance of the valley, have decided to settle in a mountain village almost entirely abandoned in order to find a more authentic relationship with nature, which even entails to cultivate their ground with plow and horse.

A film by Alessandro Soetje.

Festival

  • Bergamo Film Festival delle Foreste 2019

Watch the movie

On Elio′s traces – Germany 2017 (23′)

YouTube

Mit dem Laden des Videos akzeptieren Sie die Datenschutzerklärung von YouTube.
Mehr erfahren

Video laden

Halfway between Sondrio and the Stelvio, on the banks of the Adda, there lies a village built from the very stones the river has been grinding and smoothing for centuries. Mazzo, surrounded by forests and firs, is one of those Italian gems where nothing appears to have changed over the past centuries.

Across from the belfry of the village church, crowning the ridge of the Bergamo Alps, lies the old chalet of Salina. To reach it, one must climb a steep and narrow mountain path: an old mule trail that had once been used by shepherds to drive their cattle up to the mountain pastures and that had lain idle for many years since. It was reactivated by Patrick, a stock farmer from Mazzo who maintains old traditions and nowadays keeps thirty cows that he leaves outside to graze in the summer.

Just as Patrick tries to revitalize the path, he also strives to reconstruct the ancient bonds that tie man to his environment, bonds which seem never to have snapped in the people of this region. 

A film by Alessandro Soetje.

Festivals

  • Swiss Mountain Film Festival 2020
  • Orobie Film Festival 2020
  • Bergfilm Festival Tegernsee 2014

Watch the movie

Valtellina, the Roots of a Love – Germany 2016 (20′)

YouTube

Mit dem Laden des Videos akzeptieren Sie die Datenschutzerklärung von YouTube.
Mehr erfahren

Video laden

Shaded by the rough and yet delightful summits of the Valtellina lives a people who loves the land and its ancient traditions. Now it is in the process of rediscovering the value of organic farming and cultivation. 

This is hard work that requires patience and a dedication that verges on devotion. But it is a passion that is requited by the soil: It rewards those that protect it with unique fruit whose flavour had been hidden in the back of men's minds for ages. 

Men like Marcel and Francesco, who have discovered the ancient taste of wine, a thousand years' tradition in this Lombardian valley where the Adda flows. Like Amedeo, in whose enchanting garden more than a thousand different types of plants grow; or like Cleto, who prepares rye bread in the manner of his ancestors and who even grows his own grain on the steep slopes of the Alps surrounding the valley. 

And finally Patrizio, who keeps old, nearly extinct grains from being completely forgotten. The country's new heroes are recreating the atmosphere of their environment with the changing colours of the fields that once dominated the valley, a panorama that older generations had once been familiar with, but the younger ones had never been able to know.

A film by Alessandro Soetje.

Festival

  • Swiss Mountain Film Festival 2020

Watch the movie