Italy Submits 'The Spiral' for Best International Feature Oscar — SkimNews
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- Italy selected Paolo Strippoli's "The Spiral" (L'Estranea) as its entry for Best International Feature Film at the 99th Academy Awards, choosing it from a 21-film shortlist overseen by cinema guild Anica.
- "The Spiral" stars Jasmine Trinca as a woman who arrives at her daughter's apartment during a storm to confess a lie that "will undermine the family's foundation," joined by Romana Maggiora Vergano, Adriano Giannini, and Valeria Bruni Tedeschi.
- The film world premiered in Competition at this year's Venice Film Festival and will be released in Italy by 01 Distribution on October 18, with Le Pacte handling international sales.
- "The Spiral" is lead-produced by Marina Marzotto and Mattia Oddone at Rome-based Propaganda with Rai Cinema, in coproduction with France's Kazak Productions, Belgium's Tarantula, and Italy's Dinamo Film.
- Paolo Strippoli directs his fourth feature after "The Holy Boy" (2025), "Flowing" (2022), and "A Classic Horror Story" (2021) — a body of work the committee praised as that of "a young director who has recently begun his career and has been appreciated by audiences and national and international critics."
- The 21-film shortlist also included two other Venice 2026 Competition titles — Nanni Moretti's "It Will Happen Tonight" and Marco Bechis' "Back To Buenos Aires" — alongside Orizzonti winner "The House of the Monkey" (Best Screenplay, Best Actor for Riccardo Scamarcio).
- Italy last won Best International Feature Film in 2014 with Paolo Sorrentino's "The Great Beauty."
Why it matters: The five-member Anica committee passed on Nanni Moretti — one of Italy's most decorated living directors — in favor of a fourth-feature genre filmmaker, signaling a bet on emerging talent over established names as Italy tries to end an 11-year drought since "The Great Beauty." Strippoli's selection from a competitive 21-film shortlist elevates a Venice Competition title into the international Oscar race ahead of its October 18 Italian release.
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