Manuela Caniato

Crossing Cultural Borders: How does the Italian Film Fare in Flanders?

Abstract This article presents the outcome of an empirical study into the background of Italian films that were screened in Flanders between 2000 and 2006. Reconstructing the histories of the films on the basis of in-depth interviews with selected gatekeepers, it also imparts the results of a pilot study on La meglio gioventù, an Italian film that experienced a high level of success in Belgium. Whilst conveying the findings relative to the Flemish market for Italian cinema, I will describe how the industry participants contend with Italian films and how the attributes of imported Italian films are managed by buyers and sellers alike. When cultural products cross borders, their product lives are invariably compromised by the language of these products, their cultural specificity, and the uncertainty of their reception in the importing countries.