Cristiano Bortone
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Cristiano Bortone (born 2 July 1968) is an Italian director, screenwriter and producer. He is Managing Director of the Sino-European Association Bridging the Dragon. During his career he has received numerous awards, including the David Giovani Award at the
David di Donatello The David di Donatello Awards, named after Donatello's ''David (Donatello, bronze), David'', a symbolic statue of the Italian Renaissance, are film awards given out each year by the ''Accademia del Cinema Italiano'' (the Academy of Italian Cin ...
2007 for the film Red as the sky, the award for Best Director at the
Bari international film festival Bari International Film Festival (Bif&st) is an annual film festival held since 2009 in Bari, Italy. Sections *International competition *National competition *Retrospectives of Italian and international cinema. References

Film festivals ...
2024 for the film '' My Place Is Here'', and as Best Italian Producer the Nomination for the Nastri d'argento 2006 for the film ''Saimir'' and the David di Donatello 2016 for the film ''Coffee''.


Life and career

Born in
Rome Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...
, Bortone graduated in Film and Television Studies in 1990 at the
New York University New York University (NYU) is a private university, private research university in New York City, New York, United States. Chartered in 1831 by the New York State Legislature, NYU was founded in 1832 by Albert Gallatin as a Nondenominational ...
. Starting from the same year he was active as director of commercials, documentaries and short films with his company Orisa produzioni. In the same year he became co-founder and Managing director of the Euro-Asian producers association Bridging Visions (aka Bridging the Dragon) official partner of European Film Market,
Marché du Film The ''Marché du Film'' (), also called Cannes Film Market, is an annual marketplace for films and one of the world's largest film markets. Established in 1959, it is held annually in conjunction with the Cannes Film Festival. In the 2020s, mor ...
and several film institutions from Europe and China. In 1994 he made his feature film debut with the romance-drama '' Oasi'', which was screened at the
51st Venice International Film Festival The 51st annual Venice International Film Festival was held on 1 September to 12 September, 1994. American filmmaker David Lynch was the Jury President of the main competition. The Golden Lion winners were '' Before the Rain'' directed by Milch ...
. In 2000, he directed his second feature, '' Sono Positivo'' (''I am positive''), a black comedy on the theme of HIV with a wild score including songs from the tradition of Neapolitan trash music and 70's genre films. The movie is chosen as official film of del World Gay Pride that was held in Rome. In 2001 he completed the feature documentary '' L'erba proibita'' (Forbidden grass) a colorful and provocative journey in the world of marijuana. Several Italian comedians and bands participated in the film, such as
Dario Fo Dario Luigi Angelo Fo (; 24 March 1926 – 13 October 2016) was an Italian playwright, actor, theatre director, stage designer, songwriter, political campaigner for the Italian left wing and the recipient of the 1997 Nobel Prize in Literature. ...
,
Paolo Rossi Paolo Rossi (; 23 September 1956 – 9 December 2020) was an Italian professional association football, footballer who played as a Striker (association football), striker. He led Italy national football team, Italy to the 1982 FIFA World Cup t ...
,
99 Posse 99 Posse is an Italian hip hop/reggae group from Naples. It raps both in Italian and in the local Neapolitan language. Most of 99 Posse's songs deal with political or social issues, and the group members are considered left-wing hardliners. As a ...
, Tiromancino, Pitura Freska, and
Articolo 31 Articolo 31 is a band from Milan, Italy, formed in 1990 by J-Ax and DJ Jad, combining hip hop, funk, pop and traditional Italian musical forms. They are one of the most popular Italian hip hop groups. Band history Articolo 31 were formed by ra ...
. Also an active producer of film and TV, in 2006 he was nominated at the Italian film critics award Nastri d'argento as Best producer for the film '' Saimir'' by
Francesco Munzi Francesco Munzi (born 1 September 1969 in Rome) is an Italian film director and writer. His first film '' Saimir'' won as Best debut film at Nastri d'argento, at the Venice International Film Festival and was nominated at the European Film Awar ...
. The film also wins, among others, the Special mention at the ''
Venice International Film Festival The Venice Film Festival or Venice International Film Festival (, "International Exhibition of Cinematographic Art of the Venice Biennale") is an annual film festival held in Venice, Italy. It is the world's oldest film festival and one of the ...
'' and again at the Nastri d'argento as Best debut film at the
David di Donatello Awards The David di Donatello Awards, named after Donatello's ''David'', a symbolic statue of the Italian Renaissance, are film awards given out each year by the ''Accademia del Cinema Italiano'' (the Academy of Italian Cinema). There are 26 award ca ...
and the
European Film Award The European Film Awards (or European Film Academy Awards) have been presented annually since 1988 by the European Film Academy to recognize excellence in European cinematic achievements. The awards are given in 19 categories, of which the most ...
. In 2006 he directed the film '' Red Like the Sky'' (''Rosso come il cielo''), inspired by the life of blind sound editor Mirco Mencacci. The film premieres as Special Event at the first
Rome Film Festival International Rome Film Fest is a film festival that takes place in Rome during the month of October. The name in Italian is Festa del Cinema di Roma. From 2022, the festival was officially recognized as a competitive festival by the Internation ...
and won the David Giovani at the 2007
David di Donatello Awards The David di Donatello Awards, named after Donatello's ''David'', a symbolic statue of the Italian Renaissance, are film awards given out each year by the ''Accademia del Cinema Italiano'' (the Academy of Italian Cinema). There are 26 award ca ...
. The film embarks its international distribution, wins more than 25 awards in international film festivals such as San Paulo International Film Festival, Sydney, Durban, Amsterdam Cinekid, Amburgo Children film fest, Montreal Children Film Festival, Isfahan (Iran), San Luis (Argentina), Palm Beach, Palm Springs and is sold in several countries worldwide. In Japan the film was adapted into a novel. In China it was released with the title '' 听见天堂'' with a rating of 8.9 by the users of the popular film site Douban. Bortone collaborates to the script of the miniseries '' Moana'' produced by Sky. He gets involved in more international co-productions such as '' Wedding Fever in Campobello'' starring Italian comedy legend
Lino Banfi Lino Banfi (born Pasquale Zagaria; 9 July 1936) is an Italian actor and screenwriter. Since 1960 he has appeared in more than 100 films. Biography Banfi was born in the Apulian city of Andria, and at the age of three he moved to Canosa di P ...
and co-produced with CWP and
Constantin Film Constantin Film AG is a German film production company based in Munich. The company, which belongs to Swiss media conglomerate Highlight Communications AG, is a large independent German maker and distributor of productions. Constantin has releas ...
, that in Germany enjoys more than 1.5 millions admissions, or ''
Marina A marina (from Spanish , Portuguese and Italian : "related to the sea") is a dock or basin with moorings and supplies for yachts and small boats. A marina differs from a port in that a marina does not handle large passenger ships or cargo ...
'' by Oscar nominated
Stijn Coninx Stijn, Baron Coninx (born 21 February 1957) is a Belgian film director. Career He studied film directing at HRITCS (currently Ritcs, at Erasmus Hogeschool Brussel). Conicx made his debut as film director in 1987 with the comedy ''Hector (1987 ...
inspired by the life of famous singer Rocco Granata co-produced by
Eyeworks Warner Bros. International Television Production Netherlands (WBITVP Netherlands), formerly known as Eyeworks, is an Amsterdam-based international television production company founded by Reinout Oerlemans, Robert van den Bogaard and Ronald van W ...
Belgium and the company of the
Dardenne Brothers Brothers Jean-Pierre Dardenne (; born 21 April 1951) and Luc Dardenne (born 10 March 1954), collectively referred to as the Dardenne brothers, are a Belgian filmmaking duo. They write, produce, and direct their films together. Their work tend ...
, that becomes one of the 10 highest-grossing films of the history of Flemish cinema. Following the Italian trend of popular comedies, in 2012 he comes back to directing with the rom-com '' 10 Rules for Falling in Love''. with Italian comedian Vincenzo Salemme and web star Guglielmo Scilla. The film becomes also a book and is turned into a remake in the Czech Republic '' 10 Rules''. The success of ''Red Like the Sky'' in China and his knowledge of Mandarin language make him become interested in the Chinese film market. He is invited as guest professor at the Beijing film academy and collaborates with festivals and institutions such as FIRST film festival of Chinese new talents. In 2014 he creates his own Chinese production company called Yiyi pictures and he starts developing content for the local market. In the same year he is co-founder and Managing director of the Sino-European producers association Bridging the dragon official partner of European Film Market, Marché du Film and several FILM institutions from Europe and China. In 2016 he presented his film ''
Coffee Coffee is a beverage brewed from roasted, ground coffee beans. Darkly colored, bitter, and slightly acidic, coffee has a stimulating effect on humans, primarily due to its caffeine content, but decaffeinated coffee is also commercially a ...
'' the first official co-production between Italy and China starring talents such as
Ennio Fantastichini Ennio Fantastichini (20 February 1955 – 1 December 2018) was an Italian actor. Life and career Born in Gallese, province of Viterbo, Fantastichini studied acting at the Accademia Nazionale di Arte Drammatica Silvio D'Amico. His breakout role ...
, Zhuo Tan,
Koen De Bouw Koen De Bouw (born 30 September 1964 in Turnhout) is a Belgian actor. He trained to be an actor at Studio Herman Teirlinck in Antwerp and made his breakthrough in Belgium with his role of serial killer ''Stef Tavernier'' in the TV-series Witte ...
. The film is Special event at Giornate degli autori - Venice days and in competition at the San Paulo Film Festival,
Beijing International Film Festival The Beijing International Film Festival (), abbreviated BJIFF, is a film festival in Beijing, China. Founded in 2011, along with the Shanghai International Film Festival, it is one of China's two biggest film festivals. The festival is one of ...
and
Cairo Film Festival The Cairo International Film Festival is an annual internationally accredited film festival held in Cairo Opera House. It was established in 1976 and has taken place every year since its inception, except for 2011 and 2013, when it was cancelled ...
. For the film Bortone is nominated at the
David di Donatello The David di Donatello Awards, named after Donatello's ''David (Donatello, bronze), David'', a symbolic statue of the Italian Renaissance, are film awards given out each year by the ''Accademia del Cinema Italiano'' (the Academy of Italian Cin ...
as Best producer and as Best film at the China media awards at Shanghai Film Festival. Bortone taught at several film schools such as at the
Beijing Film Academy Beijing Film Academy (BFA; zh, first=s, s=北京电影学院, labels=no) is a municipal public college in Beijing, China. It is affiliated with the City of Beijing and co-funded by the Beijing Municipal People's Government, the National Radio ...
in 2013. He held seminars such one on writing for children's films at
Cinekid Festival The Cinekid Festival is the largest international film, television and new media festival for children aged 4 to 14 held at the Westergasfabriek in Amsterdam, Netherlands. It started as a small children's film festival and has now grown into a la ...
in 2008. He was tutor for the writing development program organize by SESC Rio de Janeiro and for
FIRST First most commonly refers to: * First, the ordinal form of the number 1 First or 1st may also refer to: Acronyms * Faint Images of the Radio Sky at Twenty-Centimeters, an astronomical survey carried out by the Very Large Array * Far Infrared a ...
film festival in Xining. He was a consultant for Media -
Creative Europe Creative Europe is a European Union programme for the cultural and creative sectors. In its first phase, going from 2014 to 2020, it had a budget of € 1.47 billion, which were expanded to € 2.44 billion in its second phase (2021-2027). His ...
and speaker on Chinese film market at several workshops. Besides film, he also collected other artistic and professional experiences. He was contributing for magazines like ''
Panorama A panorama (formed from Greek language, Greek πᾶν "all" + ὅραμα "view") is any Obtuse angle, wide-angle view or representation of a physical space, whether in painting, drawing, photography (panoramic photography), film, seismic image ...
'' (Italy), '' Expresso'' (Portugal), '' Sopra il livello del mare'', "Opening" on contemporary art, media and culture. As visual artist he exhibited in the 90's taking place at group shows like the '' Triennale di Termoli'' or Imprimatur curated by ''
Achille Bonito Oliva Achille Bonito Oliva (born 1939) is an Italian art critic and historian of contemporary art. Since 1968 he has taught history of contemporary art at La Sapienza, the university of Rome. He has written extensively on contemporary art and contemp ...
''. For a few years he was running the contemporary art gallery "The office" located in Rome. In 2022 he produced the film The Italian Recipe, again a co-production between Italy and China with Chinese comedy house Kaixin Mahua Fun Age Pictures. It is a romantic comedy directed by director Zuxin Hou and starring actress Yao Huang. The film was the opening film of the Udine Far East film festival and was successfully distributed in China In 2024 he produced the documentary film ALTRI ANIMALI directed by Guido Votano and focused on the figures of the well-known Sardinian vets Monica Pais and Paolo Briguglia and the film Una Ballena by Spanish director Pablo Hernando.


References


External links

*
10 Rules for Falling in Love
at
Eurochannel Eurochannel is a world television channel focused on European culture and lifestyle through movies, series and other programs dedicated to European culture. Eurochannel broadcasts in original audio with subtitles in English, French, German, Ital ...
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bortone, Cristiano 1968 births 21st-century Italian people Italian film directors Italian screenwriters Italian film producers Film people from Rome David di Donatello winners Living people Italian male screenwriters