Stefano Calvagna

From the book is then the eponymous film, which has been presented at the 68th Venice Film Festival in Venice and also, under the title "Bad Times", at the Sunshine Cinema in New York.

Stefano Calvagna started his career in the United States. In New York, studied at the Actors Studio before moving to Los Angeles starting his studies in directing, participating as an assistant director on the hit television series Beverly Hills 90210. Back in Italy, in 1992, Calvagna participate in small roles as an actor dividing his time between cinema, fiction and theater.

Began his career as a director in 1999, for a few episodes of the TV series "Vivere". He made also his first film titled "Senza paura": a real Italian pulp taken from news stories related to a criminal group known as "Band of the cutter".

This film is well received by critics, which gives it the appointment of "Italian Quentin Tarantino" and also receives the Premio De Sica at the Festival of Salerno in 2000 and the prize of the Youth Section at the Australian Festival in 2001.

In 2005, Stefano Calvagna returns to directing with "L'uomo spezzato", a drama centered on the damage that news industry can cause to a man, desperately against him at the time of the prosecution, without rehabilitate him into society once proven his innocence.

With this film he participated and won a prize for best film at Telesia Film Festival 2006 and the "Gold Fibula" in Lucca as best director. The same year, Calvagna travels to Thailand to shoot a real movie about child prostitution entitled "Viaggio all'inferno". In the following year, he directed "Apugni chiusi, a cuore aperto", a documentary on boxer Vincenzo Cantatore.

In 2007 he was again director of three feature films. First was "E guardo il mondo da un oblò", a funny comedy set in a laundry room, with which the director won the sixth edition of the Monte-Carlo Film Festival de la Comédie Ezio Greggio. Subsequently it was the turn of "Il lupo", fictional film about the life of Luciano Liboni (starring Massimo Bonetti), whose purpose, according to the director, "gives the impression of an execution". The film was coolly received by critics and raised many controversies by the widow of Alexander Giorgioni, the policeman killed by Liboni. Nevertheless, the film manages to land in the United States under the title "The Wolf". With this film Calvagna wins his second "Gold Fibula".

The third film, released in theaters in 2007, then, is "Il peso dell'aria", a dramatic feature about usury and loansharking.

The film was awarded first in "Capri, Hollywood" for best direction and then in 2008, under the title of "The weight of air", at Grauman's Chinese Theatre in Los Angeles.

In March 2009 he wrote, directed and starred "L'ultimo ultras", a story about the inaction of a fan who hits a guy to death of an opposing football team at the stadium.

In 2011 he wrote and directed £Rabbia in pugno", an action-movie shot entirely inside a gym of 17,000 m2, and published the book "Cronaca di un assurdo noemale", based on judicial vicissitudes of a man before the victim of attempted murder and then arrested.

In 2013 Calvagna directed his first thriller movie, "MultipleX", shot entirely in the largest multiplex in Italy. The film, inspired by a real true story happened in the US, tells abount six young boys who, after watching a movie, decide to spend the night locked up in complex, not knowing they will face a disturbing hide and seek with the guardian of the cinema, a man of extreme mania that considers his life's mission to maintain order within the structure. In the same year he distributes in Italy the Danish animated film "The great Bear", with the italian title "Il grande orso", a tale inspired by the Nordic legends that enhances the beauty of nature and the strength of a particular friendship that comes from understanding and overcoming the fear of difference.

In 2014, Calvagna directed "Non escludo il ritorno", dedicated to the last years of the life of his friend Franco Califano, a famous italian songwriter.

The film will be presented at Marché du Film at the Cannes Film Festival 2015.