A special evening to celebrate excellence: artistic and productive talent in the Italian audiovisual sector was the protagonist of the Maximo Awards ceremony, which took place last night at the Altafiumara Resort & SPA in Scilla as part of the Audio- Visual Producers Summit 2024. Actresses, actors, directors, screenwriters and producers took to the stage to receive the award created to enhance and promote Italian seriality, increasingly competitive and appreciated by the public both on generalist TV and on platforms.
To open the ceremony, the Calabria Film Commission Special Award was presented to Lucia Borgonzoni, Undersecretary of Culture, by Anton Giulio Grande, Extraordinary Commissioner of the Calabria Film Commission Foundation: an award to honor the institutional commitment in the promotion of Italian cinema in the world and in the valorization of audiovisual professionals and workers.
The President of the Calabria Region Roberto Occhiuto on the stage of the Maximo Awards then recalled the natural and cultural heritage of Calabria, a territory with enormous potential in audiovisual production, a large open-air set. The President then presented the Best Producer award to Matilde and Luca Bernabei for “Doc – In your hands 3”, a series which, winner of a Silver Ribbon, after the success of the first seasons was sold in 12 countries with a imminent remake in the United States – example of a story with an Italian heart capable of entering the hearts of an international audience.
After the Silver Ribbon Series of the Year, “La Storia” by Francesca Archibugi, based on one of the greatest novels of the 20th century, won as Best Drama Series, for having been able to tell a story with intensity, emotion and implacable truth. of the most dramatic pages of our past: a cast in a state of grace and a grandiose production: the producer Roberto Sessa collected the award. And among the most loved series, “Non ci re mainta che il crime – The Series”, is the Best Comedy Series, sequel to the highly successful film trilogy: the award was presented to the producers Paola and Federica Lucisano by Massimiliano Bruno, interpreter, director and screenwriter, with Alessio Maria Federici, of the series and creator of the saga. And again, the director Marco Pontecorvo won as Best Director for “Per Elisa – The Claps case”, for the sensitivity and accuracy with which he brought attention, including judicial attention, to an extremely delicate news case – to give him the award was given to Gildo Claps, Elisa’s courageous and tireless brother, as well as consultant of the series who has already obtained a special Silver Ribbon. In the sign of new frontiers, the Best Excellence Innovation award went to “Everybody Loves Diamonds” directed by Gianluca Maria Tavarelli who collected the statuette: a unicum in the national panorama for innovation, rhythm, mood and style, and for the extraordinary international cast. The Best Excellence Calabria Film Commission award was given to “Monterossi – La Serie 2” by Roan Johnson for its ability to enhance the landscapes, culture and historical heritage of the Calabria region, an integral part of the story, in its most authentic aspects and beyond any cliché – the award was given to the producer Nicola Serra. The ability to cross national borders and empathically conquer an international audience is the motivation for the award to the “Maker of Tears”, Best Teen Drama Film, a cult for the teen audience and a real phenomenon. And to enhance the creative talent, often invisible behind the audiovisual work, the Maximo Awards recognize the value of the ideation with the Best Creator award to Leonardo Marini and Cristina Cassar Scalia for “Vanina – Un vice-chief in Catania”, directed by Davide Marengo , the series based on the novels by Cristina Cassar Scalia and much appreciated by the public.
And then the awards to the actors: Best Actress of this edition is Rosa Diletta Rossi for playing a determined and controversial female figure of great emotional complexity in “Maria Corleone”. The award for Best Actor went to Alessio Boni, once again the extraordinary protagonist in “The Fenoglio method – Cold Summer”, in a role in which he was able to highlight Pietro’s humanity, patience and empathy Fenoglio, the character based on the novels by Gianrico Carofiglio.
The AVP Summit is an APA – Association of Audiovisual Producers format, created with the support of the MiC – Ministry of Culture, Directorate General for Cinema and Audiovisual, of the MAECI – Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation/ICE and of the Calabria Film Commission Foundation with the collaboration of Cinecittà, MPA – Motion Picture Association, PGA – Producers Guild of America, CNC – Center National du Cinéma et de l’image animée, Unifrance and BFI – British Film Institute.
