Caramelle [Italian for Sweets] is a short film that tells the tale of the inextricable tie between three generations: father/grandfather, daughter/mother, grandson/son. A bond so strong as to transcend the boundaries between Life and Death, the Earthly World and the Afterlife, in an atmosphere of compelling magical realism.
It is a simple story. Lucia, a middle-aged woman visits her father’s grave in the local graveyard from time to time. One day she finds a sweet wrapper scrunched up in a ball on top his grave. This strange episode happens over and again until Lucia finds out that… but that would be telling… we won’t spoil your appetite, let’s just say that the whole story revolves around the sweets in the title, in our modern pop revisitation of the Proustian Madelaine!

From the director’s notes
“The idea for this story, as is often the case, was inspired by a real event that happened to my family, exploring and developing the tale by adding an unusual surreal twist. It's a short film made using 3D animation with real photographs for the backdrops which reveal some of Ravenna's less well-known areas including its industrial skyline, the Darsena docks, the companies lining its canals, and its monumental cemetery. (…) We wanted to create loveable characters capable of earning people's sympathy without making their story excessively tragic. The cartoon caricatures aim to soften the leaden grey feel of their environment lifting the general mood of the piece. (…) We wanted to create a poetic story that would be moving at times, but without using any dialogue, ending with a really positive final message. My sisters and I all have a soft spot for memories as well as an open and relaxed relationship with Death and the Afterlife. We feel that the topic of Death and the loss of loved ones is still somewhat taboo in our culture, something to be hidden from children as if to protect them. We believe these things need to be talked about, which is what we aim to do in our cartoons, whilst naturally always keeping things both light and respectful. (…) This short film is dedicated to all the grandfathers and grandmothers in the world, the ones we remember most fondly together with all their best and worst features.”
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