Il buco
On the surface, Il Buco chronicles a visit through depth and darkness to discover the unknown. At its root however, it presents us with another dimension of underground escapades: leading to hidden labyrinths, this hole in the ground is a kind of gate to Hades, an entrance to the kingdom of the dead, around which an old, sick shepherd circles every day. Filled with deep, spiritual content and the beauty of nature, Frammartino’s docufiction is a masterful example of meditative, focused slow cinema. (Festival information, Cinefest Miskolc, 2022)
The Ecumenical Jury has chosen to award a film that invites the viewer to reflect on the passing of time and the various spheres of creation. Its contemplative pace, the originality of its cinematic language, the strength of its aesthetics and the absence of words convey a poetic atmosphere. The experience becomes spiritual, though the story is based on a historical event and set in a specific geographical area, recounting an old shepherd’s departure from this world and, in a parallel manner, a young group’s exploration of the depths of the earth. The film empowers us to face our own fragility even as we long for eternity.