Alumni Cyril Aris '17 and Federica Gianni '17 Represent Columbia at the 2018 MedFilm Festival
Two alumni were recognized at the MedFilm Festival in Rome.
The Swing, directed by Cyril Aris '17, won the Jury Prize at the Festival. The Swing (2018) premiered at the 53rd Karlovy Vary IFF. It also won the El-Gouna Bronze Star Award at the El-Gouna Film Festival, and an honorable mention at London’s Open City Docs. The Hollywood Reporter called the film “intimate and moving,” and a “meditation on truth, love and lies in the face of illness and death.”
Aris is currently in development on his first feature, It’s a Sad and Beautiful World. He has taught Film at Columbia University, NHSI at Northwestern University and Barnard College. Aris’s last fiction short film, The President’s Visit (2017), premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF), won the US National Board of Review (NBR) grant, was shortlisted for a student BAFTA, won the Muhr Jury Prize at the Dubai IFF, and the oscar-qualifying Grand Jury Prize at the Nashville Film Festival. It played in over 50 film festivals worldwide. Previous credits include the short film Siham (2013), Jury Award at the Palm Springs ShortFest, LBC’s TV series Beirut, I Love You (2011, 2012), and Yahoo’s web-series Fasateen (2012), both gathered several million views.
Primo, written & directed by Federica Gianni '17, also screened at the Festival. It previously won the IFP Audience Award and the Adrienne Shelly Foundation Award for Best Female Director at the 30th Columbia University Film Festival. It was also shown at Palm Springs Int. ShortFest, Lago Film Festival, Film Femmes Mediterranee, Cortinemetraggio Film Festival, and the CinMed Destival. It went on to be selected by Vimeo as a Staff Pick and was added to their Best of Month and Best Dramas of 2018 lists. Federica was recently interviewed by Good Short Films.
Federica is currently developing her first feature film, Karaoke King, set in the working-class neighborhood of Primavalle in Rome. She is a fellow of the 2017-2018 mentorship program Queer|Art|Mentorship. Her previous work, The Friend from Tel Aviv (2015) won a DGA Award for Best Student Film in the Women’s category, and was also shown at Palm Spring Int. ShortFest, Frameline, Outfest, Newfest and more.