Introduzione All'Oscuro

In this essay film by Argentinean filmmaker Gastón Solnicki, the director travels to Austria at the invitation of the Viennale – the film festival that his late friend Hans Hurch directed for two decades. To commemorate him, Gastón has selected a film by Ernst Lubitsch for presentation at the festival, which in his opinion best reflects its essence. Arriving in Vienna, the filmmaker immerses himself in the majestic cityscape, which is a welcome distraction from the sad occasion of his visit. For Gastón, the city becomes an intimate evocation of his deceased friend and draws him into its depths – with all its historical impact, its cult of the dead and its somnambulistic rituals.

World premiere: 75th Venice International Film Festival 2018 (Venice, Italy)