Productions

The white quarry

In the haunting beauty of Lipari’s abandoned pumice quarry, past and present collide—through voices of memory and loss, the film traces a story of labor, ecological scars, and the island’s search for a sustainable future.

5 nanomoles - The Olympic dream of a trans woman

Valentina Petrillo, visually impaired, is the first Italian transgender athlete competing internationally. Her story was featured in hundreds of articles and tv appearances in Italy and abroad. Despite all odds, her dream to participate in the Paralympic Games continues to drive her forward.

Pliocenic Buttress

In the ravines of an ancient cliff overlooking a prehistoric sea, the gaze goes in search of archaic forms, traces of life, roots. Pliocenic Buttress reflects on our way of looking at nature, and on our being part of it.

The ink spot

Among the great Italian writers and intellectuals of the 20th century, Roberto Roversi was one of the few to make his own life a manifesto of his political and cultural choices, remaining in the shadows so as to be able to operate completely independently from the cultural industry.

The words of Ventotene

In 1941, on the island of Ventotene, the project of a united Europe was born, shaped by the Manifesto drafted by visionaries such as Ernesto Rossi, Altiero Spinelli, and Eugenio Colorni. The documentary film “The Words of Ventotene” reflects on the importance of this document and Rossi’s extraordinary contribution, rediscovering his vibrant personality and his passion for the world of puppets.

Uberto of the mirrors

The story of set designer Uberto Bertacca (Viareggio, 1936) is one of hard work and creativity, passion and intuition, craftsmanship and imagination. An artistic journey that, over the course of over forty years, has touched every pivotal moment of Italian theater.

African Photo

Mama Casset (Saint Louis 1908 – Dakar 1992) is considered one of the forefathers of Senegalese photography. He belongs to the generation of West Africans artists who, during the Fifties, gave birth to the great season of studio portrait photography.

Work of art

Realized with the participation of numerous artists and 32 local factories and artisans, the film draws inspiration from the public art project “Cuore di pietra,” which has been active for about 10 years in Pianoro, in the province of Bologna. Inside industrial warehouses, young artists create signs, installations, and performances. They build relationships and weave the threads of collective memory in a participatory dialogue with workers and entrepreneurs. It is an extraordinary encounter between business and art.

Kevin - will my people find peace?

Kevin Doris Ejon, young Ugandese reporter, investigates the wounds left behind by the war in Northern Uganda and the difficult, challenging road towards peace and reconciliation.

Acqua chit ven - streams and currents in the Apennines

In the mountains surrounding the Secchia Valley, narratives intertwine in which the destinies of water and people are intertwined. Throughout the film, water flows and renews itself, an element of passing on memory between generations.

Kafka project: In the Penal Colony / A Country Doctor

  • 2013
  • 2x40'

A fictional trilogy inspired by Kafka’s writings, directed by Luigi Di Gianni

Al Cusna - roots of singing, memory of the heart

A tribute to the mountains and valleys of the Apennines, to the harmony of the land, and to the richness of the local culture. The documentary recounts a journey through the mountains, merging past and present. The protagonist is Mara Redeghieri, the eclectic singer of the historic Ustmamò group, who encounters the witnesses of tradition and, with them, revisits the musical and literary repertoire of the Enza, Dolo, and Secchia valleys.

The bride of the North

The voices of women and men who daily experience the magic and contradictions of Tangier, the Moroccan city also known as “the bride of the north”.

Noppaw Campaign - Walking Africa

The campaign to award the Nobel Peace Prize to all African women, promoted by the NGOs CIPSI and ChiAma l’Africa, with the support of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, contributed to a major achievement: the 2011 Nobel Peace Prize was awarded to three women, two of whom were African. Ethnos was personally involved in supporting the campaign by producing two commercials and the music video for the song “Walking Africa,” performed by Amii Stewart with music by Paolo Casa. The campaign was a unique collective experience, involving thousands of people in support of a powerful, visionary, and, as it turned out, successful idea.

12 tales of Bologna

Twelve short reports on different aspects of the city of Bologna, seen through the eyes of twelve Chinese students attending Europe’s oldest university. A fresh and candid look at architecture, history, culture, and daily life. A unique perspective that bridges seemingly distant worlds. The series was presented during EXPO Shanghai 2010.

In tel fade - points of view on the Reggian Apennines

For those who live on its slopes, Mount Ventasso is “in tel fade,” “where the fairies live.” From its summit, the ethereal presences of a remote ancestral cult protect those who live close to the mountain…

Don't call me earthquake

Marta, 12, lives in L’Aquila, where everyone knows her by her nickname, Terremoto. After the night of April 6, 2009, no one can call her that anymore. The earthquake transformed her, and not just her name. A year after the event, Marta and her class are dedicating themselves to the exhibition “Tutti giù per terra” (Everyone Down on the Ground) to mark the first anniversary of the earthquake that struck her city.

Produced by Formicablu and Ethnos

The sea of Joe

A journey to Alaska in the footsteps of “legendary fishermen,” starting from the island of Marettimo and passing through California. The film’s central character is Joe Bonanno, a fisherman born in Marettimo who emigrated to the United States in the 1950s. The story begins with a salmon sandwich, which
leads the author to learn about the many Marettimo residents who, in the last century, emigrated to America in search of a better future. Many rebuilt their lives in the thriving fishing industry, which, between the 1930s and 1950s, was at its peak on the West Coast of the United States.

A production Scuba Film – Ethnos with the participation of ANFE
Directed by Enzo Incontro and Marco Mensa
Cinematography: Marco Mensa
Script: Enzo Incontro and Elisa Mereghetti
Live sound: Maurilio Quadarella
Editing: Elisa Mereghetti and Maurilio Quadarella
Music: Guido De Gaetano, SUN
Voiceover: Alessandro Maggi

The mother, the cartoonist and the king

  • 2009
  • 25'

A trip to Benin to discover faraway people, cultures, and solidarity projects, in respect of the environment and cultural diversity. The protagonist of the documentary, through the voice of actress Cristina Bignardi, questions herself on her personal experience: what changes within us when we travel in a responsible way?

The waters of Chenini

The oasis of Chenini, near Gabès (Tunisia) is the only marine oasis of the Mediterranean. This little earthly paradise, is in danger. The palm trees disappear, the water sources which once made it prosperous dry out, and are substituted by water pumps which distribute water at high prices. The waterbed gets lower day by day.

Light steps

  • 2009
  • 25'

Shkodra, Albania. The Women’s Center “Hapa te lehte” (Light steps) provides legal and psychological assistance to women in need. It also fights against domestic violence, for women’s rights, for health assistance, for the right to education, for the improvement of living conditions in the marginal areas of the city. Albanian women are not respected in the family and in society, and they bear the weight of an ancient patriarchal culture. But the young women of the Center Light Steps are managing to trigger processes of change… The documentary is part of a Cospe project on the Millenium Development Goals, sponsored by the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The film intends to give value to the great energy and social creativity of the young women of the Women’s Center. The challenge for the filmmakers was to let the women tell about themselves, following them in their daily work, in the hospitals, in the poor neighborhoods, in the relations with institutions and with a country in full transition such as Albania.

The endless column

  • 2008
  • 80'

The odissey of the Rumanian Roma community in Bologna between 2002 and 2007.

Riding dreams

  • 2007
  • 25'

In Brazil millions of children don’t have a home, are abandoned by their families, are forced to work, don’t have access to healthcare or education.

Chalutzim

Many Piedmontese Jews at the beginning of the 1900 followed the utopia of community life in the agricultural kibbutzim in Eretz Israel.

Deep down, there are no borders

Benedetta is blind. Francesco is paraplegic. They both experience the magic of diving thanks to a special project in the Plemmirio Marine Protected Are

Little black dog

Memories and recollections on the People’s Houses, extraordinary communal experience

One drop after the other

  • 2007
  • 25'

Active citizenship to become “Water carriers”: individual and collective responsibility to manage the most precious resource of all, in schools, families, local administrations. Keeping in mind that water saved in the North of the world can become a development push for countries in the South.

The Case

The Russian educational system adapts to the political and social transitions in Post-Soviet Russia.

Produced by UNDP TV Partnerships with Carnegie Foundation.

Eyes wide open

Catherine Phiri was a 40 years old nurse from Malawi, mother of two kids, who discovered to be HIV positive after the death of her husband due to AIDS. Risking violence and stigmatization in a conservative society such as that of her country, Catherine decided to come out in the open, to declare her HIV-positive condition, and to use her experience to break the silence surrounding AIDS.

Shalom Asmara

History of the Jewish community in Asmara, Eritrea.

The oasis of memory - Fragments of Saharawi culture

How is the memory of a people kept alive through decades of uprootedness? How does cultural identity survive in a state of permanent exile? The story of the Saharawi people is well known: 250.000 people camping in the middle of the desert, waiting for over 30 years to go back to their homeland, Western Sahara, today occupied and in fact annexed to Morocco. Stuck in the tent towns of Tindouf, in the refugee camps in Algeria, the Saharawis risk to be forgotten by the entire world, but continue stubbornly to remember their own culture and to pass it on to the young generations.

Rocchino and the wolf - Stories from Val d'Agrii

The story of Rocchino, a red kite, and of the many wolves who still live in the Val d’Agri mountains. A rich natural area, which was recently designated National Park.

giocamondo

A television series consisting of 15 four-minute episodes, in which children of immigrants explain the games of their country of origin to other children. A journey around the world to explore the diverse cultures present in Italy through play. The series consists of short segments in which an immigrant child explains a typical game from his country to other children or teaches them how to build a traditional toy, speaking in Italian but also using terms from his country of origin. “Giocamondo” was filmed entirely in Bologna and involved around eighty children in 15 episodes, each dedicated to a different country: Albania, Argentina, Bangladesh, Brazil, China, the former Yugoslavia, Eritrea, the Philippines, Jordan, India, Kurdistan, Morocco, Peru, Tunisia, and Senegal. In addition to the children, the sole protagonists of ‘Giocamondo’, immigrant communities and associations, intercultural communication professionals, and families were involved, supporting their children, sometimes helping them choose which game to talk about.

The apple basket - Resistance stories from Bolognina

Tosca, Marinaio, Gilera, Italiano, former partisans from the Bolognina neighborhood of Bologna. Two girls and two boys choose to fight the fascist dictatorship and the Nazi occupation. It’s a simple choice, needing no explanation: the motivations lie in the very lives of the protagonists and their friends. Together they choose, together they fight, and many die together. In front of the camera, four people, their faces marked by the many years passed, speak of their lives in the Resistance and the struggles that continued after the Liberation. But their words also speak of the struggles that continue, of today.

Selima's carpet

Selima, Nazim, Manar e Victoria are four Egyptian women who derive their income from handicrafts. They produce carpets, bags, embroideries, pillows, baskets, recycled paper, and other handmade goods, according to local tradition.
In the past these products were sold in the local markets but industrialization and the reduction of produciton costs has deprived many families of an important source of income. The documentary, through the direct testimonials of these women, shows how local organizations and international cooperation bodies are operating to provide commercial and institutional support to handcrafts associations, to improve their sales potential and to create a market for their products.

monsoon tale

Safeguarding marine environment on the coasts of Southern China and the Philippines.

Produced by UNDP TV Partnerships in collaboration with PEMSEA

I will not give up

The Community Rehabilitation Project in Eritrea

Produced by AIFO – Associazione Italiana Amici di Raoul Follereau

desideri

A film by Massimo Prevedello

Produced by Ethnos with the contribution of Cassa di Risparmio di Pistoia e Pescia

The voyage made by the Jesuit missionary Ippolito Desideri in Tibet, in 1712, represents the first attempt of inter-religious dialogue between Buddhism and Christianity.

Desideri was the first European to cross the Karakorum Chain, and in the heart of winter he walked through the immense and implacable desert of Western Tibet. He managed to learn the Tibetan language in a few months without the help of grammar or textbooks, and he even wrote treatises of philosophy and religion in that language. His story is remarkable not only for the adventurous details of his journey but also because in his account, la Relazione, he offered to the Western World the first effective and in-depth description of the customs and of the spirituality of the Tibetan people.

kerkennah

A portrait of the life of fishermen in the Kerkennah Islands, Tunisia.

Jerusalem contended city

The “Jerusalem Question”, one of the great unresolved issues in the Middle Eastern conflict.

Produced by COSPE for the campaign “Jerusalem Door of Peace for Development”

The colours of the earth

Produce by I.TER for Regione Emilia-Romagna

In nature, there are different types of rocks, plants, animals, and even soils, which differ in origin,
color, depth, and fertility, and vary from place to place. Soil occupies the upper part of the Earth’s surface,
supporting the life of plants, animals, and humans: it is therefore one of humanity’s most precious assets. The documentary is an invitation to learn about soil and the science that studies it: “Pedology,” highlighting its working methods and illustrating some landscapes in the Emilia-Romagna region, characterized by the different origins and evolution of the soils present.

A way to move on

Produced by Ethnos – Pidgin

Scientific reasearch Francesca Lulli

As many other African countries, Senegal in the 80es entered a period of economic crisis. Senegalese women have looked for their own answers to this widepread condition of instability. The “Tontines” are female associations formed by groups of women with common interests, who join their resources to create a system of rotating credit. These associations demonstrate the value of an economic organization based on solidarity and social sharing, and opposed to the dominating liberal model.

Water is the minimum

  • 1999
  • 25'

Reportage on the theme of desertification in Burkina Faso

Produced by COSPE

The miller, the accountant and other stories

  • 1999
  • 25'

The Community Rehabilitation Project in Indonesia, on the island of Sulawesi

Produced by AIFO – Associazione Italiana Amici di Raoul Follereau

Future of sand

  • 1998
  • 25'

Reportage on the theme of desertification in Italy.

Produced by COSPE

Hopeful steps

  • 1998
  • 25'

The Community Rehabilitation Project in Guyana, South America

Produced by AIFO – Associazione Italiana Amici di Raoul Follereau

Portrait of Altinè in the dry season

Produced by Ethnos – Pidgin

The life of Altinè, woman from the Sahel, is made of small everyday gestures and of the ancient art of survival in a dry and hostile area.

Altinè belongs the the Peul ethnic group, living in a small village in the Ferlo Desert, in Northern Senegal. Every day she undertakes a journey to the well to fecth water, she gathers firewood, prepares food for the entire family and tends to the children. She is the carrier of values, culture and knowledge of the Sahelian difficult environment. The film portrays her everyday life during the dry season, following her natural sense of time.

Dolomiti Lucane - People of the woods

In the rite of Maggio in Accettura, celebrated at Pentecost, the ancient people of the woods culture lives on.

Produced by ETHNOS for GEO – RAI TRE

Their eyes are like mine

Directed by Sandra Degiuli e Marco Mensa

Produced by Istituti e Opere Pie di Budrio

In 1995, the architectural renovation of the Villa Donini building in Budrio began: a renovation that, in addition to completely transforming the space, also included a radical reorganization of the assistance services for residents with disabilities. This momentous transition is relived through the voices of the staff, who recount the joys and sorrows of a process that profoundly changed their relationship with diversity.

Iceland - Kingdom of marine birds / The fire spell / Desert of lava and ice

A series of three documentaries on fauna, flora and geology of Iceland.

Produced by D4 for GEO – RAI TRE

Our Lady in Heaven - Mother on Earth

The cult of maternity and fertility rituals in Southern Italy, directed by Luigi Di Gianni. An anthropological investigation into the permanence of the supernatural in traditional culture. An exploration that, with an authorial touch, documents human suffering in the monotony of olive pickers and the pace of devotees in prayer, moving beyond exaggerated realism and into expressionism and surrealism.

Differences

  • 1995
  • 17'

Produced by ANFFAS – Associazione Nazionale Famiglie di Persone con Disabilità Intellettiva e/o Relazionale.

Directed by Sandra Degiuli

Flowers for Guadalupe

The presence of the Virgin of Guadalupe in the life of Mexican women.

Onorato's mirror

A production by Bruno Degiuli – Ethnos

The life of an old fisherman who lives in the Po Delta. Over the years, Onorato has seen changes in the landscape, man transforming the environment and the River Po waters changing color.

Patronage by Assessorato Programmazione e Ambiente, Regione Emilia- Romagna (1994) Broadcast by RAI

First Prize “Scienza e Natura” and Special Prize of the Audience, Prima Rassegna del Documentario Italiano, San Benedetto del Tronto, 1994

Dark masks - Carnivals of Barbagia

  • 1994
  • 25'

The cult of Mediterranean vegetation divinities lives on in the Barbagian Carnivals, in Sardinia

Directed by Elisa Mereghetti and Sandra Degiuli

Vulture - flight of the kite

The volcanic area of Mount Vulture, in the North of Basilicata, is rich in woods and peculair fauna: among the birds of prey are the numerous red kites, while on the slopes of the volcano lives a rare endemic nocturnal butterfly, the Bramea Europea.

Produced by ETHNOS for GEO – RAI TRE

Witnesses and protagonists

  • 1994
  • 25'

The trip of a group of high school students from Pavia to the concentration camps in Germany.

Monti Iblei - Land of stones

Nature and human life in a limestone area of eastern Sicily, marked by the presence of “quarries”.

Produced by ETHNOS for GEO – RAI TRE

The king does not lie

The initiation ceremony of a Santeria member in Puerto Rico

The weave - knowledge of the hand

The Ethnographic Museum “​The Places of Peasant Work”​ in Buscemi – Sicily

Becoming a woman in Okrika

Female initiation ritual in the Niger Delta, Nigeria

mother of the waters

  • 1988
  • 27'

A poetic portrait of Yemanjà, goddess of the sea in Afro-Brazilian religion. Through images of celebrations in honor of the goddess, accounts of devotees, spiritual leaders and fishermen (of whom Yemanjà is the patroness) the film presents the cult and the Afro-Brazilian Candomblé in its spiritual depth and its aesthetic richness.

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