Fabrizio Calanchini

Rossosperanza

In Italy in the 90s, Zena, daughter of the Pope's doctor and granddaughter of a former fascist, is admitted to a reformatory, Villa Bianca, where deviances are “cured”, the last resort for the parents of Italian good society who wish to “repair” a rebellious generation. There, she meets and befriends three teenagers: a young nymphomaniac, Alfonso, a whimsical young man who intends to express his homosexuality, and Adriano, who has been mute since his mother's disappearance.

We Can Do That

The film follows Nello, the recently hired director of a newly developed work cooperative of former mental patients. After the closure of state psychiatric hospitals and asylums in Italy under the Basaglia Law many former patients were left with few resources and little hope of reintegrating into society. With the intention of actually improving the lives of his pupils, rather than just sedating them, Nello encourages them to expand their individual abilities and explore the wider world around them although, regardless of intention, there is sometimes a price to pushing boundaries too quickly.