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Here Where The Sea Shines

Set in the small port of Marina Grande, Sorrento, this short documentary follows Rosy, a ten-year-old dog who has become the beloved mascot of the village. Once the faithful companion of her fisherman owner who has since passed away, Rosy now spends her days helping her new family at the local bar, watching over the fishermen and the sea, and embodying the spirit and traditions of the entire community.

  • Giuseppe A. Modica
    Director
  • Giuseppe A. Modica
    Writer
  • Manuel Mastrofini
    Producer
  • Project Title (Original Language):
    Qui dove il mare luccica
  • Project Type:
    Documentary, Short
  • Runtime:
    17 minutes 9 seconds
  • Completion Date:
    January 10, 2025
  • Production Budget:
    15,000 EUR
  • Country of Origin:
    Italy
  • Country of Filming:
    Italy
  • Language:
    Italian
  • Shooting Format:
    Digital
  • Film Color:
    Color
  • First-time Filmmaker:
    Yes
  • Student Project:
    No
  • Digital Cinema Package:
    Unavailable
  • Metropolis film festival
    Milan
    Italy
    May 16, 2025
    Official selection
  • Filmfest Bremen
    Bremen
    Germany
    March 22, 2025
    German Premiere
    Official selection
  • Ladyface Mountain Film Festival
    Agoura Hills, CA
    United States
    February 7, 2025
    International Premiere
    Official selection
  • Robinson Film Awards
    Poggiomarino, Campania
    Italy
    April 12, 2025
    πŸ†WINNER - Best Documentary Short
  • Spello International Short Film Festival
    Spello
    Italy
    March 10, 2025
    Italian Premiere
    Official Selection
  • Ponza Film Festival
    Ponza
    Italy
    September 13, 2025
    πŸ†Honorable Mention
  • Carmarthen Bay Film Festival
    Llanelli, Wales
    United Kingdom
    May 19, 2025
    United Kingdom Premiere
    Official Selection
  • New Hope Film Festival
    New Hope, PA
    United States
    August 17, 2025
    Official Selection
  • Borgo Film Fest
    Bisacquino, Palermo
    Italy
    May 17, 2025
    Official Selection
  • Love & Hope International Film Festival
    Barcelona
    Spain
    October 2, 2025
    Spanish Premiere
    Nominated
  • Caorle Film Festival
    Caorle, Veneto
    Italy
    September 18, 2025
    πŸ†Honorable Mention - Best Storytelling
  • Mestia International Short Film Festival
    Mestia
    Georgia
    August 1, 2025
    Georgian Premiere
    Official Selection
  • Nebrodi Cinema Doc
    Messina
    Italy
    September 30, 2025
    Finalist
  • Flickers’ Rhode Island International Film Festival
    Rhode Island
    United States
    August 10, 2025
    Semi-Finalist
  • Peshawar International Film Festival
    Peshawar
    Pakistan
    August 3, 2025
    Pakistan Premiere
    πŸ†WINNER - Best Documentary Short
  • International Film Festival Rivoli
    Torino
    Italy
    October 1, 2025
    Finalist
  • Ferrara Film Festival
    Ferrara
    Italy
    September 22, 2025
    Finalist
  • Big Fridge International Film Festival
    London
    United Kingdom
    September 6, 2025
    Official Selection
  • Castiglione del Cinema Film Festival
    Castiglione del Lago, Umbria
    Italy
    September 26, 2025
    Official Selection
  • Procida Film Festival
    Procida
    Italy
    September 25, 2025
    Official Selection
  • Pianeta Mare Film Festival
    Napoli
    Italy
    October 7, 2025
    Official Selection β€œFocus Campania”
  • COLIFFE
    Sardegna
    Italy
    December 13, 2025
    Finalist
  • Glocal DOC
    Varese
    Italy
    November 6, 2025
    Official Selection
  • 𝐁𝐞𝐒𝐣𝐒𝐧𝐠 π‹π’πŸπ­-𝐎𝐟𝐟 𝐅𝐒π₯𝐦 π…πžπ¬π­π’π―πšπ₯
    Beijing, China
    China
    December 1, 2025
    Chinese Premiere
    Finalist
  • Asti International Film Festival
    Asti
    Italy
    November 26, 2025
    Quarter-Finalist
  • Theta Short Film Festival
    Nola, Napoli
    Italy
    November 27, 2025
    Official Selection
  • Lulea International Film Festival
    Lulea
    Sweden
    November 27, 2025
    Sweden Premiere
    Finalist
  • Sweden Film Awards

    Sweden
    November 29, 2025
    Finalist
  • New Jersey Film Awards
    New Jersey
    United States
    December 1, 2025
    πŸ†πŸ†Winner - Best inspirational short and Best original score
  • East Village New York Film Festival
    New York
    United States
    December 7, 2025
    πŸ† Winner - Best Short Documentary
  • Florence Film Awards
    Florence
    Italy
    December 7, 2025
    πŸ† Winner - Best Picture
  • Stockholm City Film Festival
    Stockholm
    Sweden
    December 21, 2025
    πŸ† Honorable Mention
  • Moonlight Short Film Fest

    Italy
    December 21, 2025
    Nominated for Best Documentary
  • Sorrento Film & Food Festival
    Sorrento
    Italy
    January 2, 2026
    Official Selection
  • Alternative Film Festival
    Toronto
    Canada
    December 27, 2025
    Canadian Premiere
    πŸ† Winner - Best Documentary
  • Top Indie Film Awards
    Tokyo
    Japan
    January 31, 2026
    Japanese premiere
    πŸ† Winner - Best Short Documentary πŸ† Winner - Best Cinematography
  • London Movie Awards
    London
    United Kingdom
    January 7, 2026
    πŸ† Winner - Best Short Documentary
  • The IndieFEST Film Awards
    La Jolla, California
    United States
    January 19, 2026
    πŸ† Winner - Award of Excellence
  • The Impact DOCS Awards
    La Jolla, CA
    United States
    February 6, 2026
    πŸ† Winner - Award of Excellence (Short Documentary)
  • Selene International Short Film Festival
    Atene
    Greece
    February 2, 2026
    Greek Premiere
    πŸ† Winner - Best Short Documentary
  • Kodaikanal International Film Festival

    India
    January 28, 2026
    Indian Premiere
    πŸ† Winner
  • Los Angeles Italia - Film, Fashion and Art Fest
    Los Angeles
    United States
    March 9, 2026
    Official Selection
  • Filmmaker Sessions Volume 2
    Lift-Off online session
    United Kingdom
    February 9, 2026
    Official Selection
  • International Gold Awards
    New York
    United States
    February 7, 2026
    πŸ† Winner - Best Short Documentary
  • AIMAFF
    Athens
    Greece
    February 4, 2026
    πŸ† Honorable Mention
  • Accolade Global Film Competition
    La Jolla, CA
    United States
    February 25, 2026
    πŸ† Winner - Award of Excellence (Short Documentary)
  • International Film Festival on Cultural Tourism
    Mumbai
    India
    April 27, 2026
    Official Selection
  • ThurrockIFF Seasonal Shorts
    Grays
    United Kingdom
    March 29, 2026
    πŸ† Winner - Best Director
  • Best Shorts Competition
    La Jolla (CA)
    United States
    March 17, 2026
    πŸ† Award of Excellence Special Mention - Documentary Short
  • Reale Film Festival
    Milan
    Italy
    March 3, 2026
    πŸ† Honorable Mention
  • New York Movie Awards
    New York
    United States
    March 7, 2026
    πŸ† Winner - Best Director
  • Monza Film Fest
    Monza
    Italy
    March 5, 2026
    πŸ† Winner - Best Medium Lenght Film (under 30 min.)
  • Golden Bridge Istanbul Short Film Festival
    Istanbul
    March 15, 2026
    Finalist
  • Kalpavriksha International Film Festival
    Mumbai
    India
    March 28, 2026
    πŸ†Winner - Best Producer (Manuel Mastrofini) πŸ†Winner - Best Director Documentary πŸ†Winner - Best Writer Documentary
  • Kyoto Cinematica
    Kyoto
    Japan
    April 6, 2026
    πŸ† Winner - Best Short Documentary
  • Night of Shorts
    Milano
    Italy
    April 5, 2026
    πŸ† Honorable Mention - Best Italian Film
  • AmiCorti IFF
    Roccaraso, Abruzzo
    Italy
    June 6, 2026
    Official Selection
  • Festival del Cinema di Pompei
    Pompei
    Italy
    June 2, 2026
    Official Selection
  • BCT – FESTIVAL NAZIONALE DEL CINEMA E DELLA TELEVISIONE
    Benevento
    Italy
    July 10, 2026
    Official Selection
  • Direct Monthly Online Film Festival
    Canton, Michigan
    United States
    May 6, 2026
    Official Selection
  • EMBERLIGHT INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL
    Michigan
    United States
    May 29, 2026
    Finalist
  • NY Dog Film Festival
    New York City
    United States
    September 27, 2026
    Official Selection
  • Afterlight Film Festival
    Online Event
    June 16, 2026
    Official Selection
Director Biography - Giuseppe A. Modica

Italian-American director and screenwriter, born in the USA in 1985, to Italian parents. He lives in the province of Rome and studied directing, screenwriting and theater at academy. He began his film career working his way up through the ranks on sets as a directing or production assistant, including in the USA. He made his first short films on very low budgets starting at the age of 16. In 2025 he made the short documentary β€œQui dove il mare luccica”, produced by Last Horizon and with the patronage of the municipality of Sorrento. Currently the short film has 63 selections at international festivals and won 30 awards.

Add Director Biography
Director Statement

I prefer movies that convey emotions and are shot with sincerity, without seeking ideas just to win awards.