The story of an uncontaminated Sicilian island inhabited by fisherman. Still barely touched by tourism, the islanders have begun to alter their mentality and behavior as they realize the economic potential of this new industry. At the same time, they deal with illegal aliens flooding the island and a new law requiring them to turn back undocumented people seeking aid.

Samuele is twelve years old and lives on an island in the middle of the sea. He goes to school, and loves shooting his slingshot and going hunting. He likes land games, even though everything around him speaks of the sea and the men, women, and children who try to cross it to get to his island. But his is not an island like the others, its name is Lampedusa and it is the most symbolic border of Europe, crossed by thousands of migrants in the last...

Follows a British family who open a hotel for upper class travelers on the magical Italian Riviera during the Roaring '20s.

Antonio, a lonely man working as a driver of luxury cars, relates only to the science fiction novels he reads until he meets Maria.

A famous Italian filmmaker, haunted by the memories of his first love, returns to his hometown after an absence of 30 years. Upon his return, he reconnects with the community and remembers the highlights and tragedies that shaped his life and inspired him to follow his dream of becoming a filmmaker. Includes Theatrical and Director's Cut versions of the film.

Marina and Federica have lived together as a couple for five years in their gorgeous Rome apartment. Beautiful, funny, and independent, Marina has no doubts about her sexuality or her love for Federica. Federica, a respected architect with a marriage behind her and a grown son, has never declared herself a lesbian and is discreet about her relationship with Marina. When Federica runs into a man she once had a crush on, she starts asking what she really...

Two women: In Rome, during WWII, escaping the allied bombings, Cesira and her 13-year old daughter, Rosetta, are traveling to the home town where Cesira was born. During these difficult times, Cesira fearlessly attemps to protect her daughter from atrocities from the war. Soldiers hiding in the village church rape both women which drives Cesira into a mental breakdown. Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow: (Story 1) Adelina sells black-market cigarettes...

Based in part on his autobiography, director Franco Zeffirelli's Tea with Mussolini is a story about a group of British and American travelers on an indefinite visit to Italy in 1935. Luca is a boy living in Florence whose family situation is precarious at best; his mother has run off and his father has little time for him. Fortunately, he's a welcome guest with Mary, a English woman visiting Italy to soak up European culture. Mary and her friends...

When considering the Italian Renaissance, the extraordinary sculptures of Michelangelo, the incomparable paintings of Leonardo da Vinci, or the immortal written works of Petrarch and Machiavelli spring to mind. Why there was such an artistic, cultural, and intellectual explosion at the start of the 14th century in Italy and not another part of Europe? Why did it ultimately fail in the middle of the 16th century? These lectures explore the underlying...