PANTAFA

Marta and her daughter Nina move to Malanotte, a small mountain town. The girl suffers from sleep paralysis, a sleep disorder that can create hallucinations, and Marta thinks that some mountain air and distance from the city can do the little girl good. But the house they move into is anything but cozy and there are no children to be seen on the streets of Malanotte. Right from the first night, Nina's symptoms worsen and the girl's nightmares become more vivid. In them, a ghostly figure sits on her chest, immobilizes her, and steals her breath. Marta, a single mother in a sinister town, finds it harder and harder to protect her daughter.

“The Pantafa is a folk legend. A creature that sits on your chest and steals your breath. Italian folklore is populated by numerous legends that are part of our culture and represent one of the main ways to exorcise evil and fears. To tap into this impressive wellspring of stories means to enter a world made of rites, superstitions, and wonders. A  world that is both fascinating and scary. The Pantafa is a portrayal of the monster. A portrayal of evil. An incarnation of our darkest side. An obscure evil that consumes us every day and erodes every small security we have. […] The Pantafa is one of us, part of our most secret baseness. What scares us isn't horror that is displayed but what we can't see, horror that is evoked. That shouldn't be recounted. Horror stories also serve this purpose, to transform, transmit, and free us of our fears and weaknesses.”

DIRECTOR: Emanuele Scaringi. SCREENPLAY: Emanuele Scaringi, Tiziana Triana, Vanessa Picciarelli. CINEMATOGRAPHY: Simone D’onofrio. FILM EDITING: Gianluca Scarpa. PRODUCTION DESIGN: Alessandro Vannucci. COSTUME DESIGN: Gabriella Pescucci. MUSIC: Ratchev & Carratello. SOUND: Alessandro Palmerini, Alessandro Bianchi, Adriano Di Valerio. CAST: Kasia Smutniak, Greta Santi, Mario Sgueglia, Mauro Marino, Giuseppe Cederna, Betti Pedrazzi, Francesco Colella. PRODUCERS: Domenico Procacci, Laura Paolucci. PRODUCTION: Fandango, Rai Cinema.