(29 June 2017) An opportunity to rediscover the value of acceptance in Italy and the world offered by OSCE (Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe) who, in collaboration with the Italian Institute of Culture of Vienna has organised the screening of the film “Un paese in Calabria” (A Town in Calabria). It is an Italian-French-Swiss production about the town of Riace, a Calabrian town that was reborn thanks to the presence of immigrants and the work carried out by Mayor Domenico Lucano. The perspective of Shu Aiello and Catherine Catella’s documentary – showing at the IIC on July 4th to July 19th – is part of a series of events titled “Cultura dell’accoglienza” (A Culture of Acceptance). The film is about the beautiful experience of a small town that broke its isolation by imposing itself as a model capable of rebuilding a community. “Un paese in Calabria” reveals, in fact, the infinite cycle of migratory flows, showing that what for some is a problem, for others is an opportunity. The initiative is part of the AENEAS project (Arts Experiences to Nurture Exchanges and Advance Security in the Field of Migration Governance). It is a collaboration between OSCE and the Italian Institute of Culture of Vienna, with the support of the Italian Permanent Representation to the OSCE. This film-documentary explores the concept of integration successfully implemented in Riace: a country where young people have fled to build their future elsewhere, leaving behind abandoned homes the elderly. Intended to die? Maybe not. Because in the meantime migrants fleeing from war and poverty have started to land on the Calabrian coast, and those landings, which many see as a danger, have become a hope for rebirth for Riace. Through interviews with old and new residents of the town, the problematic situation of both groups is represented, giving voice to the success of integration into a new community and the hopes of so many people. Finally, it is the story of people, ‘transplanted’ lives, popular devotion, political commitment, and the struggle with the ‘ndrangheta. The chronicle of a brave transformation guided by a principle: no one can be saved on his own. (Red)
