Giuseppe Tornatore to Present 4K ‘Cinema Paradiso’ at Mumbai Italian Film Festival (EXCLUSIVE)

Director Giuseppe Tornatore is set to present a 4K restoration of his Oscar and Cannes-winning “Cinema Paradiso” at a new Italian film festival in Mumbai this September, marking his first-ever visit to India. The screening will headline Italian film festival “Cinema Italian Style – Celebrating Tornatore and the Masters Of Italian Cinema.”

Organized by the Film Heritage Foundation in collaboration with Istituto Italiano di Cultura di Mumbai, Axis Bank and educational partner Istituto Europeo di Design, the festival aims to celebrate legends of Italian cinema and exhibit restored classics from past decades.

The 68-year-old filmmaker’s visit will include presenting the FHF Lifetime Achievement Award for Cinema Projection, leading a masterclass for aspiring filmmakers and participating in a fireside chat with film enthusiasts and industry professionals.

The festival program features a mini retrospective of Tornatore’s work, including “Cinema Paradiso” (1988), “Malèna” (2000), and “Ennio” (2021). Additionally, restored films from Italian masters will be showcased, including Luchino Visconti’s “Senso” (1954), Federico Fellini’s “La Dolce Vita” (1960), Vittorio de Sica’s “Marriage Italian Style” (1964) and Sergio Leone’s “Once Upon a Time in America” (1984).

Tornatore said: “I am so happy to be coming to India for the first time. I was delighted to hear that my film ‘Cinema Paradiso’ is known and loved in India and I am honored that my films will be presented alongside the films of great Italian masters like Vittorio de Sica, Luchino Visconti, Federico Fellini and Sergei Leone.”

Shivendra Singh Dungarpur, director of Film Heritage Foundation, added: “Watching these beautifully restored classics will remind the world that cinema is an art form that must be preserved and restored for future generations to enjoy.”

Francesca Amendola, director of Istituto Italiano di Cultura di Mumbai, said: “The seven great Italian classic movies of this festival have all been restored by highly skilled laboratories that adopt the most advanced and innovative technologies, and I am proud to mention, amongst them, l’Immagine Ritrovata, from Bologna, that has been working also on the restoration of several Indian masterpieces that belong to the world heritage, like, just to mention one, Satyajit Ray’s ‘Apu Trilogy.'”

The three-day event runs Sept. 27-29 at Mumbai’s Regal Cinema.

The Film Heritage Foundation’s most recent restoration, Girish Kasaravalli’s 1977 masterpiece “Ghatashraddha,” which premiered at Venice last week.