''Deep time'' () is an Italian 2011

docufiction Docufiction (or docu-fiction) is the cinematographic combination of documentary film, documentary and fiction, this term often meaning narrative film. It is a film genre which attempts to capture reality such as it is (as direct cinema or ciné ...

directed by

Domenico Distilo Domenico Distilo (born 25 December 1978 in Rome, Lazio, Italy) is a filmmaker living and working between Rome, Italy and Berlin, Germany. He graduated in film direction from the Centro Sperimentale di Cinematografia in Rome with the film ''Unex ...

. The film, alternating documentary and fiction, explores themes related to anthropic geography and the feelings that bind men to their past, through encounters with former grave robbers previously active in the area of the archaeological site of

Selinunte Selinunte ( , ; ; ; ) was a rich and extensive Ancient Greece, ancient Greek city of Magna Graecia on the south-western coast of Sicily in Italy. It was situated between the valleys of the Cottone and Modione rivers. It now lies in the of C ...

Synopsis

The film tells the story of an elderly Sicilian

grave robber Grave robbery, tomb robbing, or tomb raiding is the act of uncovering a grave, tomb or crypt to steal commodities. It is usually perpetrated to take and profit from valuable artefacts or personal property. A related act is body snatching, a term ...

, who begins to show signs of inexorable

memory loss Amnesia is a deficit in memory caused by brain damage or brain diseases,Gazzaniga, M., Ivry, R., & Mangun, G. (2009) Cognitive Neuroscience: The biology of the mind. New York: W.W. Norton & Company. but it can also be temporarily caused by t ...

. The man travels the landscape like an explorer, a man of many paths and a thousand maps, capable of seeing what others miss. The advancing disease drives him on a desperate quest: to find his son, in a last attempt to perpetuate his memory. This intertwines with the investigations of an artist and photographer, who draws on ancient art as a source of inspiration for her performances. Their intersection leads to a series of encounters and discoveries that build the narrative fabric of the story.

Production

The film, shot entirely in

, shows part of the Veneroso collection, an exceptional archaeological ensemble from the

prehistoric era Prehistory, also called pre-literary history, is the period of human history between the first known use of stone tools by hominins million years ago and the beginning of recorded history with the invention of writing systems. The use o ...

. Named in honour of the passionate archaeologist Primo Veneroso, this vast collection is one of the largest private archaeological collections in Italy. It is notable for including

pottery Pottery is the process and the products of forming vessels and other objects with clay and other raw materials, which are fired at high temperatures to give them a hard and durable form. The place where such wares are made by a ''potter'' is al ...

from the 'Vaso campaniforme' culture, fundamental in redefining Sicily's role in the spread of this culture throughout prehistoric

Western Europe Western Europe is the western region of Europe. The region's extent varies depending on context. The concept of "the West" appeared in Europe in juxtaposition to "the East" and originally applied to the Western half of the ancient Mediterranean ...

. The film's musical composition is entrusted to

Teho Teardo Teho Teardo (born 1966) is an Italian musician and composer. He is a founding member of the rock band Meathead. In the 1990s he collaborated with Mick Harris, Jim Coleman and Lydia Lunch. With Scott McCloud (Girls Against Boys) he started a ne ...

, who, using a mix of traditional instruments and electronic sounds, contributes to creating evocative and suspended atmospheres, blending contemporary and classical elements already present in the evocative images of the archaeological site of

Distribution

Deep time premiered in December 2011 at the

Messina Messina ( , ; ; ; ) is a harbour city and the capital city, capital of the Italian Metropolitan City of Messina. It is the third largest city on the island of Sicily, and the 13th largest city in Italy, with a population of 216,918 inhabitants ...

festival ''Assaggi di Realtà'', winning the ''Maestri del Documentario'' (''Masters of documentary films'') award. It was subsequently broadcast in 2013 as a TV premiere on

Rai 3 Rai 3 (formerly Rai Tre) is an Italian free-to-air television channel owned and operated by state-owned public broadcaster RAI – Radiotelevisione italiana. It was launched on 15 December 1979 and its programming is centred towards cultural a ...

as part of Magazzini Einstein.

Accolades

*2011,

(

Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...

) - ''Assaggi di realtà'' festival **''Premio maestri del documentario''

References

External links

*
Official website
at Sciara film production 2011 films Docufiction films 2011 documentary films 2010s Italian films {{2010s-documentary-film-stub