Karlovy Vary International Film Festival

July 2 - 10, 2010

Wild Boars of Portici
( I cinghiali di Portici )

Colour, 35 mm
Italy, 2003, 85 min
Section: Another View

Director: Diego Olivares
Screenplay: Diego Olivares
Dir. of Photography: Cesare Accetta
Music: Zabrinski
Editor: Giuseppe Franchini
Producer: Donatella Palermo
Production: A.S.P
Contact: A.S.P.

Cast

Ninni Bruschetta, Carmine Borrino, Carlo Caracciolo, Vito Colonna, Vincenzo Cambardella, Michele Gente, Salvatore Grasso, Sergio Longobardi

Synopsis

A correctional institute for minors somewhere in southern Italy. Trains constantly pass by on one side, on the other, sea waves break upon an uninviting shore. The daily routine involves jobs in workshops, gardens, and in barns where, at the beginning of the story, one of the wards watches a wild swine give birth. The kids are generally pretty bored and their ties to the outside world are not generally the best, though some of them have family in town. One of the carers, who played rugby as a kid, thinks up a plan to put a team together. Initial lack of interest eventually transforms into enthusiasm among competitive players. Dashing about, even the piglets joyfully take part in practice and thus the team name is born: the Wild Boars. The film’s focus on troubled youth is another variant on a well-tried theme: the teacher who demonstrates that his teaching methods are more effective than punishment. The movie makes use of a documentary style, with the actors playing themselves although the carers are played by lesser-known professionals.

About the director

Diego Olivares (b. 1965, Naples) has shot two short films: Mimo X (1996) and Les jeux sont faits (1998). Then followed the documentary Gli ultimi giorni del frullone (2000). His first feature, Wild Boars of Portici (I cinghiali di Portici) represented Italy in the international competition at the 21st Turin IFF (2003).