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| First still released from Paolo Sorrentino's La Grazia, which will open Venice Film Festival and play in competition Photo: Andrea Pirrello/MUBI |
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| Paulo Sorrentino, who has a long association with Venice, since his feature debut One Man Up played there in 2001 Photo: Michael Avedon |
Venice's artistic director Alberto Barbera said: "I am very happy that the 82nd Venice International Film Festival will open with the new and highly anticipated film by Paolo Sorrentino. I like to recall that one of the most important and internationally acclaimed Italian auteurs made his debut right here at the Biennale di Venezia in 2001 with his first film, One Man Up, in my early years as the artistic director.
"The relationship with the Venice Film Festival became consolidated over the years with the presentation out of competition of the first episodes in the series The Young Pope (seasons one and two) and, above all, with The Hand Of God which, in 2021, won the Silver Lion-Grand Jury Prize. Paolo Sorrentino’s return in competition comes with a film destined to leave its mark for its great originality and powerful relevance to the present time, which the audiences of the Venice Film Festival will have the pleasure of discovering on opening night."
MUBI has the worldwide rights to the film, with the exception of Italy, where it will be distributed by PiperFilm.
