The 2026 Burdlaz Prize is under way, marking the first step toward the 19th edition of the Amarcort Film Festival. From October 1st to November 3rd, Rimini’s Cineteca Comunale will host six evenings dedicated to the films in competition, all starting at 9pm.
Competing are works by first-time directors under 40, united by influences and echoes of Fellini’s cinema. At the end of the run, juries will select three finalists who, in late November, will compete for the award Amarcort dedicates to new talents in Italian cinema.
Things get under way on Thursday, October 1st, with «Il Protagonista» by Fabrizio Benvenuto, a Calabrian director presenting his first feature film. At the heart of the story is Giancarlo Mangiapane, played by Pierluigi Gigante: a thirty-year-old who dreams of becoming a great actor and who, with roles failing to materialize, ends up “performing” every day in real life.
His chance seems to arrive with an audition for the lead role in Clochard, a biopic about a disgraced 1950s tap-dancing champion. But when Giancarlo discovers that his roommate is also after the same part, competition turns into obsession, and the line between the character and his own identity begins to blur.
“The film comes from a deep desire to create a work that can be a travel companion for anyone chasing a dream and who, in that pursuit, ends up losing the original spark that gave birth to it,” explains Benvenuto.
The second evening is scheduled for Tuesday, October 6th, with «Squali» by Daniele Barbiero.
For San Marino, the festival is no distant affair. At last year’s edition, Sammarinese director Alessio Petrillo won the Gradisca Award, the section reserved for shorts under five minutes, with «Viva Revolution», the story of a group of students rebelling against their headmistress.
