Short film in competition

Dove le lacrime aspettano Where the Tears Await

Directed by Caterina Bertini, Blu Diego Fasoli
Italy 2026
Runtime 20'

Large pools of sulphuric white water shimmer in the evening sun at the Manziana caldera, near Rome. The wind ruffles the hair of three children playing in the mud. The three siblings are named Zoe, Ettore, and Marta. Their laughter keeps shattering the silence. They are used to playing by themselves. When they go home, their mother isn’t there and because of Zoe’s silly mistake they find themselves locked outside. To pass the night, they will have to face the darkness, the noises, the unknown. But above all, they will have to face their own imagination.

Directed by
Caterina Bertini, Blu Diego Fasoli

Screenplay
Caterina Bertini, Blu Diego Fasoli

Cinematography
Ilya Sapeha

Editing
Marco Balzano

Music
Matteo Pavesi

Sound
Amitt Darimdur

Production Design
Giada Esposito

Costumes
Livio Pilla, Francesco Fedele

Cast
Ludovico Carissimi, Chiara Cassiano, Sophia Burelli

Production
Pietro Valsecchi, Camilla Nesbitt (CamFilm), Blu Diego Fasoli,  Caterina Bertini (BigFish)

Italian Distribution
Premiere Film

SIC@SIC 2026 - Bertini

Caterina Bertini (2001) is an Italian director and screenwriter. She moved to London to study Creative Direction at the University of the Arts London. After several professional forays into cinema, in 2025 she co-directed the short film Dove le lacrime aspettano. She earned a Master’s Degree in Documentary at the International School of Film and TV in Cuba, where she completed the essay film Para mí.

SIC@SIC 2026 - Fasoli

Blu Diego Fasoli (1999) is a director and screenwriter. In 2024, Fasoli earned a Master’s Degree in Documentary at the University of the Arts London. Fasoli has collaborated in the development of several screenplays for Italian TV. Dove le lacrime aspettano is Fasoli’s first fiction short film.