THE DOCUMENTARY ‘NEAR LIGHT’ by NICCOLÒ SALVATO - FB

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THE DOCUMENTARY ‘NEAR LIGHT’ by NICCOLÒ SALVATO

Screened for the first time in Florence on the occasion of the XV Florence Biennale

The documentary ‘Near Light’ by Niccolò Salvato (UK, 2023) will be screened for the first time in Florence on the occasion of the XV Florence Biennale (Fortezza da Basso, Florence, 18-26 October 2025), themed “The Sublime Essence of Light and Darkness. Concepts of Dualism and Unity in Contemporary Art and Design”. 

 

The documentary focuses on Mattia, a young man convicted murderer who, after spending seven and a half years in one of Europe's maximum security prisons, is given a chance of redemption when he is allowed to attend in-person classes for a Master's degree course in Marketing at Bocconi University, the best Italian Business School. 

 

Selected by the Florence Biennale's Curatorial Board for its ability to make us reflect on very sensitive issues, such as the re-education of prisoners and their reintegration into society, and for its adherence to the theme of the XV edition, which in dealing with dualisms (such as good and evil) emphasises the need for an overall vision and to rise towards the highest ideals, ‘Near Light’ shows a path that sees evil turn into good and despair into hope.

 

Prison, on the other hand, represents one of those places where a democratic country measures its rate of adherence to universal human rights: “it is the fulcrum where the use of force, regulated by the State in the process, seeks its most difficult balance with the humanity of punitive treatment and with the re-educative response that the Constitution entrusts to punishment” (1). It is precisely in relation to this difficult balance that the Florence Biennale has chosen to include in the programme of the XV edition this important documentary, which has already won awards at the second edition of Vision 2030, the sustainable film festival in Noto, and at the Liberazioni Festival in Turin (special mention).

The Director

 

Niccolò Salvato is an award-winning writer/director and producer from Milan. He works across Narrative Film and Documentaries and focuses on unheard voices and unconventional perspectives. His films have been screened worldwide across multiple renowned festivals and film theatres. He graduated in Film at the University of Westminster, London.
He is currently developing the long form of his latest narrative short with EP:IK Pictures and shaping “Near Light”, his debut feature with Melancholia Pictures based on his latest short documentary shot in Italy’s biggest high-security prison.
The project is also in development as a docuseries selected at the prestigious Mercato Internazionale Audiovisivo 2023 as one of the three projects for the Co-Production Market & Pitching Forum, and in the Ex Oriente Film Lab.
With “Near Light” Niccolò Salvato has received numerous recognitions, including: Official Selection at Palladium Film Festival (2023); Special Mention at LiberAzioni Film Festival (2024); Award for Best Documentary at Visions 2030 (2024); Award for Best Documentary at Watersprite Film Festival (2024) and the Young Director Award 2024.

The producer

 

Mara Cracaleanu is a Romanian-born London-based film producer, director and writer. She has won over 60 international awards and official selections at Academy Award Qualifying and well-known film festivals such as BFI Flare, Torino FF, DocuDays, FipaDoc, Watersprite, Rhode Island, etc. her projects being screened and distributed in several countries. She regularly participates in markets such as the EFM, Marché du Film, MIA and at festivals, Cannes, Venice Film Festival, Berlinale, TIFF, BFI. The docu-series project she is developing was selected and pitched at the MIA Market in the Doc Forum, as well as in the Ex Oriente Lab, organised by the Institute of Documentary Film.
She also serves as a jury member at 3 US-based film festivals and is a member of Women in Film & TV UK and Women In Film Los Angeles. 
Mara is the founder of the London-based film production company Melancholia Pictures, with a focus on international co-productions, bridging a way between Europe, North America and Asia, and is currently developing several international projects.

Credits & Cast

 

DIRECTOR: Niccolò Salvato
PHOTOGRAPHY: Kristof D. Keszthelyi
EDITING: Gustav Arthur Simon, Mireia Albinyana Siegert, Sophie-Dominique Parea
SOUND: Omar Gabriel Delnevo
MUSICS: Ádám Salomvári
PENITENTIARY INSTITUTE: Casa Reclusione Opera Milano
PRODUCER: Mara Cracaleanu
PRODUCTION: Melancholia Pictures, University of Westminster
GLOBAL RIGHTS: Melancholia Pictures
CAST: Mattia, Gaetano

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