Sweetheart

Written and directed by Margherita Spampinato in her feature film debut, this award-winning drama follows a young boy who discovers ancient mysteries, love and superstition when he is sent to spend his summer holidays with an aunt in Sicily. A lively, cheeky boy, Nico's (Marco Fiore) family lives a modern, technological and hyper-connected lifestyle. He is sent to spend the summer in Sicily, as a guest of an elderly aunt, Zia Gela (Aurora Quattrocchi), a religious and grumpy woman. She lives alone in the house where she was born and raised, a place untouched by technology, without wi-fi, and suspended in time. Nico's aunt welcomes him with annoyance, introducing him to her mysterious world inhabited by angels and spirits, dominated by a magical sense of religion and steeped in superstition. But, as modernity clashes with tradition and science with faith, a reluctant summer together transforms into a spellbinding adventure when Nico learns that the mysterious Sicilian house is full of secrets.

Born in Palermo, Sicily in 1979, Margherita Spampinato graduated in Arts and Humanities from La Sapienza University in Rome. She began working in cinema in Paris, where she lived for several years. Back in Rome, she worked as a script supervisor and worked in casting for films and series. As a director, she has made two short films. Sweetheart is her feature film debut.