10 of 16 competition films at Torino directed by women

The Torino Film Festival will screen 10 feature films directed by women in its main competition this year, according to the festival's program. The selection represents the second consecutive year that female directors have accounted for nearly two-thirds of the 16 titles in the feature competition.

Artistic director Giulio Base stated that the selection reflects the current output of the industry rather than a specific quota system. "This is part of a worldwide trend in the film industry," Base said. "Women are already doing great work, so it's not about percentages. I only care about good films, and there are plenty of them."

The competition lineup includes several high-profile castings that pair emerging female directors with established actors. Itonje Soimer Guttormsen's "Butterfly" features Renate Reinsve, while Chabname Zariab's "When She Hears the Bells" includes Golshifteh Farahani. Rachel Rose leads the casting for "The Last Day" with Alicia Vikander and Wagner Moura.

Base noted that the festival does not prioritize world premieres over strong content. He prefers to select the best available films for the audience in Turin. The competition also includes works from recent festival breakouts, such as Muriel D'Ansembourg's "Truly Naked," Sarah Arnold's "Too Many Beasts," and Amira Duynhouwer's "Sugar."

To process more than 5,000 submissions, Base formed a selection committee consisting of six members recruited before they turned 30. The group is gender-balanced. "Ultimately, the question of women comes down to who's watching the films," Base explained. "I'm the old guy, so I want fresh eyes on work coming in from all over the world."

The 44th edition of the festival will utilize three women-led juries. Francesca Archibugi will chair the feature competition, Stefania Casini will oversee the documentary competition, and Chiara Francini will judge the shorts. An all-female group of 24 journalists and academics will introduce films in a retrospective dedicated to Marilyn Monroe.

Base said the retrospective aims to present Monroe as more than a sensual object. The full program spans 120 titles across six sections, maintaining the festival's origins as the Festival Internazionale Cinema Giovani, which translates to the Festival of Young Cinema.

Base highlighted "Thirteen in Gaza" by Hosam Abu Da, a recent winner at the Toronto International Film Festival. The film is the first shot and completed in Gaza in 12 years. "I think it's important to hear voices like this, even if the director can't attend for the reasons we all know," Base said. "People shouldn't miss this one."

He also emphasized "Good People," a documentary by Milcho Manchevski. The film examines a disco in Macedonia that caught fire approximately 20 months ago. Manchevski previously won the Golden Lion at Venice. Base described the film as having a touching and unsensationalized testimony.

Base, who holds a doctorate in theology, described the festival as having one-tenth the resources of major industry events. He said he aims to elevate the Torino Film Festival despite these constraints, noting that smaller entities sometimes succeed against larger ones.