Italian director Matteo Garrone said
Sunday his 'Io Capitano' Oscar bid had been a "fantastic
journey" and thanked all those in Italy who supported it after
losing out to British director Jonathan Glazer's 'Zone of
Interest' for best international feature film at the 2024
Academy awards in Los Angeles.
"It has been a fantastic journey, a great adventure," said
Garrone, whose disturbing tale of two young Senegalese migrants
who travel from Dakar to Europe won him the best-director award
at last year's Venice Film Festival.
"I thank all those who supported us in Italy during this period,
who cheered for us, the production partners Rai Cinema and
Pathe, the culture ministry, and all those who followed the film
and loved it," continued the 55-year-old Rome-born director best
known for Cannes second prize winner Gomorrah (2008).
"All the people who saw it in cinemas around the world and gave
us great emotions," he added.
Io Capitano, for which Senagalese newcomer Seydou Sarr has won
acclaim as one of the protagonists, has been lauded for showing
the reality of the horrors faced by African migrants on their
arduous and often perilous journeys to Europe.
The title, which translates as I, Captain, comes from Sarr's
character's being forced to steer the migrant boat from Libya to
Sicily after suffering terrible ordeals including torture at the
hands of trafficking gangs and his pride at succeeding in
getting everyone to shore alive.
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