Private Project

Inhabited Space and the Mystery of Water and Earth

The autumn of Trasimeno: the mild weather and the soft light allow us to evaluate what happened to the torrid summer just past and what lies ahead for the winter to come. The attentive eyes of a young Italo-Brazilian filmmaker glimpses in the landscape memories of life as it was once lived. What appears to this searching gaze? On what does it rest? How does the material remnants of the past conjoin with the eyes of the present? The Docufilm evokes and provokes this questioning while a series of “paintings” unfold and remember the meaning of living among water and earth. The inhabited places appear in their aesthetic weight and disorients — they ask for the right light and would claim their place among the living, if room were made for them.

  • Neto Leão
    Director
  • Andrea Sedini
    Writer
  • Isabelle Cedotti
    Writer
  • Neto Leão
    Writer
  • Andrea Sedini
    Producer
  • Isabelle Cedotti
    Producer
  • Neto Leão
    Producer
  • Attilio del Vinco
    Key Cast
  • Project Title (Original Language):
    Lo spazio abitato e il mistero dell'acqua e della terra
  • Project Type:
    Documentary
  • Runtime:
    43 minutes 17 seconds
  • Completion Date:
    November 30, 2023
  • Production Budget:
    1,000 EUR
  • Country of Origin:
    Italy
  • Country of Filming:
    Italy
  • Language:
    Italian
  • Aspect Ratio:
    16:9
  • Film Color:
    Color
  • First-time Filmmaker:
    Yes
  • Student Project:
    No
  • Digital Cinema Package:
    Unavailable
  • Bergamo
    Italy
    August 22, 2025
    Special Artistic Direction Award, named after Emanuele Prati
  • Reale Film Festival & Night of Shorts
    Milan
    Italy
    January 5, 2025
    Best Screenwriting and Honourable Mention for Best Director
  • Nuovo Cinema Méliès
    Perugia
    Italy
    April 19, 2024
  • Nuovo Cinema Caporali
    Castiglione del Lago
    Italy
    November 30, 2023
    Italian Premiere
Director Biography - Neto Leão

As a pilgrim, I find inspiration in stories, films, photographs, and friendships cultivated during my travels. My artistic vision has been guided by the artist Isabelle Cedotti, whom I have the privilege of accompanying. My primary teachers of the image include Tarkovsky, Tarr, Fellini, Mario Peixoto, Dreyer, and Kurosawa. My films are born from a way of living, and I search for no specific theme. Instead, I follow my gut instincts.

After completing a Master in Political Ecology from the University of São Paulo, I pursued my doctorate in Environment and Society at the State University of Campinas. My undergraduate studies included International Relations and Economics. As a researcher, my areas of interest include political ecology, environmental sociology, spiritual ecologies, and the radical critique of industrialisation.

I worked with the United Nations Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean in the Division of Social Development, specifically in the area of Latin American youth. I am also co-founder of the Thinking With Ivan Illich project and the periodical Conspiratio.

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