© Festival del film Locarno

The Festival del film Locarno and the City of Milan, as part of a strong desire for a collaboration, announce their intention to establish the Pardo alla Migliore Opera Prima “Città di Milano” (Award for the Best First Film).

The Festival del film Locarno’s President and Board of Directors, along with the City of Milan’s Assessore alla Cultura, Moda, Design, Stefano Boeri, are delighted to announce their desire to establish a prize for the next edition of the Festival del film Locarno. The pardo will go to the the best first film among those selected for the feature film sections Concorso internazionale, Concorso Cineasti del presente and the Piazza Grande.

The Counselor of Culture,Fashion and Design of the City of Milan Stefano Boeri comments: "The award for the Best First Film presented at the Locarno Festival is only the beginning of a collaboration between one of the most prestigious Festivals in the international scene and a city that wants to return to be a leading actor in the world of cinema. An hommage to the Festival del film Locarno".

Festival President Marco Solari comments: “the fact that Milan wishes to establish an award at the Festival del film Locarno is a mark of recognition of the event’s artistic worth, and reinforces Locarno’s international reputation”.

The Mayor of Locarno Carla Speziali is very happy to see “this material expression of the esteem in which our Festival is held in the Lombardian region, and which builds on the spirit of collaboration between Locarno and Milano, particularly in view of Expo 2015”.

The Festival del film Locarno offers various competitive sections including the Concorso internazionale and the Concorso Cineasti del presente for feature films and the Pardi di domani for short films. The Piazza Grande, the heart and showcase of the Festival, has an an open-air cinema which can accommodate an audience of up to 8,000. Comprehensive and detailed information about the Festival can be found on www.pardo.ch.

The 66th Festival del film Locarno will take place 7-17 August 2013.