TorinoFilmLab (TFL) is a Turin-based laboratory that primarily supports persons working on their first and second fiction feature films. Its four main fields of involvement are training, development, funding and distribution. [1]
TorinoFilmLab runs several projects in each of these fields every year. They end at the TFL Meeting Event in November during the Torino Film Festival, when participants of the different programmes present their work to a selected group of producers, sales agents, distributors and other professionals in independent filmmaking. [2]
This lab was created in 2008 with the aim of complementing Torino Film Festival with a laboratory dedicated to emerging filmmakers. [1]
TFL offers various residential workshops and on-line sessions to its participants. The programmes run parallel during the year and reach their conclusion in November at the TFL Meeting Event during the Torino Film Festival. At this occasion, TFL also hand over various awards in order to financially support the production and distribution of the selected films. [3]
TFL is financed by Ministero dei beni e delle attività culturali, Regione Piemonte and Città di Torino, and is promoted by the main film institutions established in Turin and Piedmont – Museo Nazionale del Cinema and Film Commission Torino Piemonte. [4] It is also partially funded by the European Union programme Creative Europe and by partners from several countries. In 2015, about 57% of the funding came from outside Italy. [5]
TFL offers courses in various areas in filmmaking, with a particular emphasis on scriptwriting (both original and adaptation, as well as story editing), pre-production and distribution. [6] About 40 projects are selected each year. [7]
Since its inception in 2008 more than 50 films have had TFL support. [8] Seven films supported by TFL were selected at Cannes Film Festival 2016, [9] and 5 of them received major awards. [7] [10]
| Release year | Film | Director | Production countrie(s) | World premiere | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | Agua fría de mar | Paz Fábrega | Costa Rica, France, Spain, Netherlands, Mexico | VPRO Tiger Awards Competition, International Film Festival Rotterdam | [11] |
| Hi-So | Aditya Assarat | Thailand | A Window on Asian Cinema, 15th Busan International Film Festival | [12] | |
| Le quattro volte | Michelangelo Frammartino | Italy, Germany, Switzerland | Directors' Fortnight, 2010 Cannes Film Festival | [13] | |
| 2011 | Seven Acts of Mercy | Massimiliano de Serio, Gianluca de Serio | Italy, Romania | International Competition, 64th Locarno Film Festival | [14] |
| The Slut | Hagar Ben-Asher | Critics' Week, 2011 Cannes Film Festival | [15] | ||
| Swans | Hugo Vieira da Silva | Germany, Portugal | Forum, 61st Berlin International Film Festival | [16] | |
| 2012 | Children of Sarajevo | Aida Begić | Bosnia and Herzegovina, Germany, France, Turkey | Un Certain Regard , 2012 Cannes Film Festival | [17] |
| Feed Me with Your Words | Martin Turk | Slovenia | Competition, Festival of Slovenian Film | [18] | |
| I'm Going to Change My Name | Mariya Saakyan | Armenia, Russia, Germany, Denmark | Experimenta, BFI London Film Festival | [19] | |
| Lions | Jazmin Lopez | Argentina, France, Netherlands | Orizzonti, 69th Venice International Film Festival | [20] | |
| Postcards from the Zoo | Edwin | Indonesia, Hong Kong, Germany | Competition, 62nd Berlin International Film Festival | [21] | |
| Wadjda | Haifaa al-Mansour | Saudi Arabia, Germany, United States, United Arab Emirates, Jordan, Netherlands | Orizzonti, 69th Venice International Film Festival | [20] | |
| 2013 | The Lunchbox | Ritesh Batra | India, France, Germany | Critics' Week, 2013 Cannes Film Festival | [22] |
| South Is Nothing | Fabio Mollo | Italy, France | Discovery, 2013 Toronto International Film Festival | [23] | |
| 2014 | Bypass | Duane Hopkins | United Kingdom | Orizzonti, 71st Venice International Film Festival | [24] |
| Los Hongos | Oscar Ruiz Navia | Colombia, France, Argentina, Germany | Filmmakers of the Present, 67th Locarno Film Festival | [25] | |
| Men Who Save the World | Liew Seng Tat | Malaysia, Netherlands, Germany, France | Filmmakers of the Present, 67th Locarno Film Festival | [25] | |
| 2015 | Eva Doesn't Sleep | Pablo Agüero | Argentina, Spain, France | Wavelength, 2015 Toronto International Film Festival | [26] |
| Eva Nová | Marko Škop | Slovakia, Czech Republic | Discovery, 2015 Toronto International Film Festival | [26] | |
| Family Film | Olmo Omerzu | Czech Republic, France, Germany, Slovakia, Slovenia | New Directors, San Sebastián International Film Festival | [27] | |
| The Garbage Helicopter | Jonas Selberg Augustsén | Sweden, Qatar | Laugh, BFI London Film Festival | [28] | |
| Interruption | Yorgos Zois | Greece, France, Croatia | Orizzonti, 72nd Venice International Film Festival | [29] | |
| Underground Fragrance | Pengfei | France, China | Venice Days, 72nd Venice International Film Festival | [29] | |
| 2016 | Diamond Island | Davy Chou | Cambodia, France, Germany | Critics' Week, 2016 Cannes Film Festival | [30] |
| The Last Land | Pablo Lamar | Chile, Netherlands, Paraguay | Bright Future, International Film Festival Rotterdam | [31] | |
| Raw | Julia Ducournau | France, Belgium | Critics' Week, 2016 Cannes Film Festival | [30] | |
| 2017 | Pop Aye | Kirsten Tan | Singapore, Thailand | World Cinema Dramatic Competition, 2017 Sundance Film Festival | [32] |
| The Wound | John Trengove | South Africa, Germany, Netherlands, France | World Cinema Dramatic Competition, 2017 Sundance Film Festival | [32] | |
| 2018 | Diamantino | Gabriel Abrantes, Daniel Schmidt | Portugal, France, Brazil | Critics' Week, 2018 Cannes Film Festival | [33] |
| The Guest | Duccio Chiarini | Italy, Switzerland, France | Piazza Grande, 71st Locarno Film Festival | [34] | |
| Land | Babak Jalali | Italy, France, Netherlands, Mexico, Qatar | Panorama, 68th Berlin International Film Festival | [35] | |
| The Night Eats the World | Dominique Rocher | France | Competition, Angers European First Film Festival | [36] | |
| 2019 | Abou Leila | Amin Sidi-Boumédiène | Algeria, France, Qatar | Critics' Week, 2019 Cannes Film Festival | [37] |
| Alelí | Leticia Jorge Romero | Uruguay, Argentina | Competition, Biarritz Film Festival | [38] | |
| Litigante | Franco Lolli | Colombia, France | Critics' Week, 2019 Cannes Film Festival | [37] | |
| The Orphanage | Shahrbanoo Sadat | Denmark, Afghanistan, France | Directors' Fortnight, 2019 Cannes Film Festival | [37] | |
| Pelican Blood | Katrin Gebbe | Germany, Bulgaria | Orizzonti, 76th Venice International Film Festival | [39] | |
| Port Authority | Danielle Lessovitz | France, United States | Un Certain Regard, 2019 Cannes Film Festival | [37] | |
| Sole | Carlo Sironi | Italy, Poland | Orizzonti, 76th Venice International Film Festival | [39] | |
| 2020 | Sow the Wind | Danilo Caputo | France, Greece, Italy | Panorama, 70th Berlin International Film Festival | [40] |
| Wildland | Jeanette Nordahl | Denmark | Panorama, 70th Berlin International Film Festival | [40] | |
| Yalda, a Night for Forgiveness | Massoud Bakhshi | Iran, France, Germany, Switzerland, Luxembourg, Lebanon | World Cinema Dramatic Competition, 2020 Sundance Film Festival | [41] | |
| 2021 | Costa Brava, Lebanon | Mounia Akl | Lebanon, France, Qatar, Spain, Sweden | Orizzonti Extra, 78th Venice International Film Festival | [42] |
| Feathers | Omar El Zohairy | France, Egypt, Netherlands, Greece | Critics' Week, 2021 Cannes Film Festival | [43] | |
| Natural Light | Dénes Nagy | Hungary, France, Latvia, Germany | Competition, 71st Berlin International Film Festival | [44] | |
| Out of Sync | Juanjo Giménez | Spain, France, Lithuania | Giornate degli Autori, 78th Venice International Film Festival | [42] | |
| Pilgrims | Laurynas Bareiša | Lithuania | Orizzonti, 78th Venice International Film Festival | [42] | |
| Small Body | Laura Samani | Italy, Slovenia, France | Critics' Week, 2021 Cannes Film Festival | [43] | |
| Taste | Lê Bảo | Vietnam, Thailand, Singapore, France, Germany | Encounters, 71st Berlin International Film Festival | [45] | |
| Whether the Weather Is Fine | Carlo Francisco Manatad | Philippines, France, Singapore, Indonesia, Germany, Qatar | Filmmakers of the Present, 74th Locarno Film Festival | [46] | |
| Yuni | Kamila Andini | Indonesia, Singapore, France, Australia | Platform, 2021 Toronto International Film Festival | [47] | |
| 2022 | A Male | Fabian Hernández | Colombia, France, Germany, Netherlands | Directors' Fortnight, 2022 Cannes Film Festival | [48] |
| Autobiography | Makbul Mubarak | Indonesia, France, Singapore, Poland, Philippines, Germany, Qatar | Orizzonti, 79th Venice International Film Festival | [49] | |
| Runner | Marian Mathias | United States, France, Germany | Discovery, 2022 Toronto International Film Festival | [50] | |
| Unrest | Cyril Schäublin | Switzerland | Encounters, 72nd Berlin International Film Festival | [51] | |
| The Woodcutter Story | Mikko Myllylahti | Finland, Denmark, Netherlands, Germany | Critics' Week, 2022 Cannes Film Festival | [52] | |
| 2023 | Alien Food | Giorgio Cugno | Italy, Denmark | Harbour, International Film Festival Rotterdam | [53] |
| City of Wind | Lkhagvadulam Purev-Ochir | France, Mongolia, Portugal, Netherlands, Qatar | Orizzonti, 80th Venice International Film Festival | [54] | |
| Day of the Tiger | Andrei Tănase | Romania, France, Greece | Bright Future, International Film Festival Rotterdam | [53] | |
| Family Time | Tia Kouvo | Finland, Sweden | Encounters, 73rd Berlin International Film Festival | [55] | |
| Heartless | Nara Normande, Tião | Brazil, France, Italy | Orizzonti, 80th Venice International Film Festival | [54] | |
| Last Shadow at First Light | Nicole Midori Woodford | Singapore, Japan, Slovenia, Philippines, Indonesia | New Directors, 71st San Sebastián International Film Festival | [56] | |
| The Settlers | Felipe Gálvez | Chile, Argentina, France, Denmark, United Kingdom, Taiwan, Sweden, Germany | Un Certain Regard, 2023 Cannes Film Festival | [57] | |
| 2024 | Crocodile Tears | Tumpal Tampubolon | Indonesia, France, Germany, Singapore | Centrepiece, 2024 Toronto International Film Festival | [58] |
| Nina | Andrea Jaurrieta | Spain | Competition, 27th Málaga Film Festival | [59] | |
| Panopticon | George Sikharulidze | Georgia, France, Italy, Romania | Crystal Globe Competition, 58th Karlovy Vary International Film Festival | [60] | |
| Shambhala | Min Bahadur Bham | Nepal, France, Norway, Hong Kong, China, Turkey, United States, Qatar, Taiwan | Main Competition, 74th Berlin International Film Festival | [61] | |
| Still Here | Suranga Katugampala | France, Italy, Sri Lanka | Panorama Italia, 19th Rome Film Festival | [62] | |
| Tale of the Land | Loeloe Hendra | Indonesia, Philippines, Taiwan, Qatar | New Currents, 29th Busan International Film Festival | [63] | |
| Weightless | Sara Fgaier | Italy | Main Competition, 77th Locarno Film Festival | [64] | |
| 2025 | Caravan | Zuzana Kirchnerová | Czech Republic, Slovakia, Italy | Un Certain Regard, 2025 Cannes Film Festival | [65] |
| Cuerpo Celeste | Nayra Ilic García | Chile, Italy | International Narrative Competition, Tribeca Festival | [66] | |
| Elsewhere at Night | Marianne Métivier | Canada, Philippines | National Competition, 2025 Festival du nouveau cinéma | [67] | |
| Little Trouble Girls | Urška Djukić | Slovenia, Italy, Croatia, Serbia | Perspectives, 75th Berlin International Film Festival | [68] | |
| Milk Teeth | Mihai Mincan | Romania, France, Denmark, Greece, Bulgaria | Orizzonti, 82nd Venice International Film Festival | [69] | |
| The Mysterious Gaze of the Flamingo | Diego Céspedes | Chile, France, Belgium, Spain, Germany | Un Certain Regard, 2025 Cannes Film Festival | [65] | |
| Renoir | Chie Hayakawa | Japan, France, Singapore, Philippines, Indonesia | Competition, 2025 Cannes Film Festival | [70] | |
| The Things You Kill | Alireza Khatami | France, Poland, Canada, Turkey | World Cinema Dramatic Competition, 2025 Sundance Film Festival | [71] | |
| The Visitor | Vytautas Katkus | Lithuania, Norway, Sweden | Crystal Globe Competition, 59th Karlovy Vary International Film Festival | [72] | |
| White Snail | Elsa Kremser and Levin Peter | Germany, Austria | Main Competition, 78th Locarno Film Festival | [73] | |
| Wondrous Is the Silence of My Master | Ivan Salatić | Montenegro, Italy, France, Croatia, Serbia | Tiger Competition, 54th International Film Festival Rotterdam | [74] | |
From 2008 to 2015, TFL has trained 480 participants from 70 countries. [75]