Folktales of the world

“Folktales are real… they provide a catalogue of the various possible destinies of men and women, above all in relation to that part of life concerned with the making of one’s destiny.”

Italo Calvino

Regardless of the culture from which they originate, all folktales present certain common traits, the same structure and the same characters who embody consistent functions in relation to the development of the story. The remixing and reinterpretation of these elements and characters can result in an infinite number of new stories, which maintain the same universal characteristics while introducing specific traits as each narrator brings something new from his own life and sensibility. This year marks the centenary of the birth of Italo Calvino. He reflected at length on folktales, collecting and transcribing hundreds of stories from the Italian oral tradition in his Italian Folktales. This was the starting point from which we put together a small section of big screen adaptations of folktales and popular legends from around the world.
Among the films in this programme is a rare and precious title: Erase una vez…, a 1950 feature film by José Escobar and Alexandre Cirici i Pellicer, an adaptation of Charles Perrault’s Cinderella with various elements and references specific to Catalan culture. Cinema Ritrovato Kids will host the world premiere of the restoration of this film, curated by the Filmoteca de Catalunya. From Italy, we will screen two shorts by the Italian animator and director Beatrice Pucci, realised through the craft of puppet animation and inspired by two stories from Calvino’s Italian Folktales.