Sugar Play

An in-depth documentary into the life of renowned Italian composer Nino Rota, who wrote the score for 16 films directed by Federico Fellini, including “La Strada,” “8 1/2,” “Juliet of the Spirits” and “Amarcord,” besides “La Dolce Vita.” He also composed music for Franco Zeffirelli’s “Romeo and Juliet” and the Sicilian-inspired theme for “The Godfather,” whose “Part II” score won him his only Oscar. Rota’s 150 films also included collaborations with King Vidor (“War and Peace”) and Luchino Visconti (“The Leopard”). Rota died at 68 in 1979.

The daring story of two friends, with a common musical past and a future to be written.

On 19 February 2023, the Teatro alla Scala opened its doors to an event of exceptional importance for Italian culture: Paolo Conte presented a concert with his ensemble of instrumentalists with a ladder designed specifically for the occasion. For the first time the world temple of opera has chosen an Italian singer-songwriter: a recognition of the iconic stature achieved by Paolo Conte in the music scene of our country and his appreciation at international level This extraordinary and unrepeatable concert has become a docufilm, interspersed with footage that tell the preparation of the show, rehearsals, the arrival of Paolo Conte in the theater, snapshots of the soundcheck, backstage and a valuable story of Paolo Conte and his relationship with music.

Among the ruins of a magical place in the middle of the Tuscan countryside, as if arriving from another planet, two giant amplifiers, sixteen musicians, and their instruments touch down. Despite the Abbey’s lack of a roof, which would allow the sound an easy escape into the sky, Lucio Corsi and his companions manage to trap the music in an original and evocative film.