Giffoni to show 100 films on kids' woes

(ANSA) - Rome, July 19 - This year's Giffoni Film Festival will focus on generational conflict, diversity, bullying, migration, feelings, doubts, adolescence and personal growth.
    In this 48th edition of the festival, which focuses on cinema for the young, will open on Friday. The selection of the films looks towards the future and aims to spark the imagination of the 5,601 on the jury from 52 countries around the world. 'More', a Turkish film by Onur Saylak, will be presented on Friday, is in competition for the +13 section and revolves around a 14-year-old who helps his father manage clandestine trafficking in Europe.
    The themes of migration, exploitation, immorality and human suffering. A very powerful fantasy film in the same section will be screened on Saturday, July 21, directed by the Danish director Anders Walter, 'I Kill Giants'.
    The film tells the story of an adolescent who flees the reality of school and a squalid family life by immersing himself in the magical world of Titans and Giants. But it will be his own giants - his fears represented by school bullies - that are the real adversaries for him to defeat. The Kenyan film 'Friend' by Wanuri Kahiu is a surprising film in the +16 section presented on the same day. The section is marked by special attention to issues related to women and the film deals with the theme of female homosexuality in a country where it is against the law. Giffoni is also known for its daring attitude and it will include films like 'Brother', set in Syria in the +18 section and directed by the Dutch Hanro Smitsman. Scheduled for Saturday, July 21, it focuses on a strange set of brothers, one of whom is a cynical cabaret comedian and another an Afghan veteran who are travelling towards their home country in search of those youngest brother, who disappeared after leaving a refugee camp in Jordan. On Sunday, July 22, the spotlight will be on the American 'Some Freaks' (+18) by Ian MacAllister McDonald with Thomas Mann, Marine Ireland and Lily Mae Harrington in a story in which an overweight punk, a one-eyed destitute man and a gay one all struggle to give some sense to their existences. On the same day, in the +16 section, will be the extraordinary debut of the American Jordana Spiro entitled 'Night Comes', on a girl who leaves juvenile detention and undertakes a journey with her sister to get revenge for her mother's death. Other films will focus on child pornography, child prostitution, online bullying and problems for youth in the era of social media. The festival runs through July 27.