This exhibit was organized in order to celebrate the 25th anniversary of the first screening of Cinema Paradiso, directed by Giuseppe Tornatore and produced by Franco Cristaldi.

The launch in Los Angeles will be the first homage exhibition dedicated to the movie that in 1989 won the Grand Jury Award at Cannes Film Festival and the Oscar for Best foreign movie the following year. The world wide premiere of the digital restoration of the movie and the simultaneous exhibition are realized with the support of Dolce & Gabbana and in collaboration with Cinecittà Luce and Cineteca di Bologna.

The exhibition will take place at the Italian Cultural Institute of Los Angeles from the 13th of November to the 15th of January. It will demonstrate how great the international success of the movie was through the display of rare advertising materials originating from countries all over the world. Andrea Crisanti’s unpublished sketches regarding the building of the Cinema Paradiso will be shown for the first time along with the costumes worn by Beatrice Bordone. There will be a behind the scenes look at Elena Green’s work and her realization of the famous neon sign, Cinema Paradiso, that became the symbol of the movie. The exhibition will contain many relics from the movie, such as, the sculpture of the lion mouth where the magic light beam comes from, Toto’s folder, costumes from the movie and other materials coming from Giuseppe Tornatore’s personal archive, including the original script. The numerous, and often unpublished, behind the scenes pictures of the movie’s protagonists, Philippe Noiret and Totò Cascio will also be on display.

The exhibition is also a great oppurtunity for introducing two importat sicilian personalities, Renato Guttuso and Leonardo Sciascia, both of which had significant influence on the movie. Two Guttuso’s paintings will be present in order to compare them with two scenes in the movie that, according to the director, represent an homage to the Sicilian painter. Sciascia’s article, which written was after the private screening of Cinema Paradiso only a few months before his death, will also be on display for viewing.