EXCLUSIVE: Deadline can reveal the trailer for Giulio Bertelli’s directorial feature debut Agon, co-starring Italian judo athlete and Olympic Gold medallist Alice Bellandi, ahead of its premiere in the upcoming 40th edition of Venice parallel section Critics’ Week.
Set against the fictional Olympic Games of Ludoj 2024, the film follows three female athletes as they prepare and then compete in rifle shooting, fencing and judo.
The work explores the contradictions of these sports, which began as a practice for wartime in peacetime, evolved into professional sports and entertainment, and in recent times, embraced video games to create a new form of competitive sport
Italian judo champion Bellandi, who won a Gold Medal at the 2024 Paris Summer Olympics, plays herself. She is joined in the cast by actresses Yile Yara Vianello (The Beautiful Summer) and Sofija Zobina (La Chimera).
Bertelli is the son of fashion power couple Miuccia Prada and Patrizio Bertelli but is not involved in the family business.
He opted instead to study architecture before becoming a professional offshore sailor, and is now involved in the technical side of performance sailboat development among other activities, which also include visiting lecturer at the Architectural Association (AA) in London, focusing on the relationship between filmmaking, architectural design and scriptwriting.
The Critics’ Week premiere will be accompanied by a theatrical release for Agon in Italy by Mubi, while The Match Factory is handing international sales.
Agon is produced by MIA Film, Big Red Films and Art+Vibes, in co-production with Idev Sas and Financière Marigny Sasu.