Venice’s ‘Bestiari, Erbari, Lapidari’ Boarded by Fandango Sales, Teaser Debuts (EXCLUSIVE)

variety.com:

Leo Barraclough International Features Editor Fandango Sales has boarded essay documentary “Bestiari, Erbari, Lapidari,” which plays in the out of competition section of the Venice Film Festival.

The film, written and directed by Massimo D’Anolfi and Martina Parenti, has debuted its teaser. “Bestiari, Erbari, Lapidari,” which is described as “a reflection on the relationship between humans and nature that exists beyond our impact on it,” is divided into three acts, dealing with animals, plants and stones, respectively. “Our film is a tribute to the ‘unknown’ and in some ways alien world of animals, plants and stones, which we too often take for granted, but with which we should actually be in constant dialogue since it constitutes the essential part of our existence on Planet Earth,” according to a statement. “The acts are closely interconnected because they create a unique dramaturgical development through three different staging devices.” Each act of the film is a “tribute” to a specific genre of documentary cinema. “Bestiaries” is based on found footage and on the how and why cinema has obsessively represented animals; “Herbaria” is an observational documentary, shot inside the Botanical Garden of Padua; and “Lapidaries” is an “industrial and emotional film on the transformation of stone into collective memory.” The producers are D’Anolfi, Parenti, David Fonjallaz and Louis Mataré.

The film is produced by Montmorency Film with Rai Cinema, and Lomotion with SRF Schweizer Radio Und Fernsehen/SRG SSR. Luce Cinecittà is the Italian distributor.

In 2006, D’Anolfi and Parenti wrote and directed “I promessi sposi” (The Betrothed), selected at the Locarno Film Festival. In 2009, “Grandi speranze” (Great Expectations) was.