Private Project

The Lions of Lissa

The Lions of Lissa is the second chapter of the trilogy of “human adventure” exploration documentaries written and directed by Nicolò Bongiorno. It is based on the backdrop of the story of the legendary “battle of Lissa” (1866), the first fleet battle ever involving Ironclad warships, which triggered a fundamental geopolitical junction for several European nations in the context of the “Italian Risorgimento”. Crossing the boundaries of genres between the classical films of naturalistic exploration, and the literary Greek “circumnavigation Periplo’s” that combined real history and imagined history, the story is represented as a poetic and personal tale full of action and wonder, in a mosaic of visual, historical, anthropological and mythological references. The documentary team has achieved an underwater photography work of the highest technical value, shedding a new light on the spirit of underwater exploration, and from the point of view of naval archaeological history carrying out a deep and complex dive of significant scientific value on a legendary wreck lost in the depths of the Adriatic Sea.

  • Nicolò Bongiorno
    Director
  • Nicolò Bongiorno
    Writer
  • Nicolò Bongiorno
    Producer
  • Tina Hajon
    Producer
  • Nicolò Bongiorno
    Key Cast
    "narrator"
  • Francesco Tiboni
    Key Cast
    "marine archeologist"
  • Jozko Bozanic
    Key Cast
    "linguist"
  • Roberto Rinaldi
    Key Cast
    "underwater explorer"
  • Veljano Zanki
    Key Cast
    "free diver"
  • Roberto Rinaldi
    Underwater Photography
  • Giacomo Berthet
    Director of Photography
  • Project Type:
    Documentary
  • Genres:
    history, adventure, underwater, archaeology
  • Runtime:
    1 hour 16 minutes
  • Completion Date:
    January 7, 2019
  • Country of Origin:
    Italy
  • Country of Filming:
    Croatia, Italy
  • Language:
    Croatian, English, Italian
  • Shooting Format:
    Digital
  • Film Color:
    Color
  • First-time Filmmaker:
    No
  • Student Project:
    No
  • Trieste Film Festival
    Trieste
    Italy
    January 20, 2019
    International
    out of competition
  • Firenze Archeofilm
    Firenze
    Italy
    March 17, 2019
    Italian
    Winner Best Film
  • Mediterranean Film Festival Split
    Split
    Croatia
    July 14, 2019
    Official Selection
  • Vieste Archeofilm
    Vieste
    Italy
    July 14, 2019
    Winner Best Film
  • Liburnia Film Festival
    Opatjia
    Croatia
    August 26, 2019
    Official Selection
  • Rovereto Film Festival
    Rovereto
    Italy
    October 2, 2019
    Official Selection
  • Arkhaios Film Festival
    Columbia, South Carolina
    United States
    October 10, 2019
    North American Premiere
    Winner Best Underwater film
  • Licodia Eubea Film Festival
    Licodia Eubea
    Italy
    October 20, 2019
    Winner Audience Award
  • The Archaeology Channel Film Festival
    Eugene
    United States
    May 13, 2020
    Official Selection
  • International Underwater Film Festival in Belgrade
    Belgrade
    Serbia
    December 22, 2019
    Special Award
  • International Archaerology Film Festival in Split
    Split
    Croatia
    November 6, 2020
    Winner Best Film
  • Agon International Festival
    Athens
    Greece
    May 14, 2022
    Special mention for the cinematography award, Special mention for the archaeological film award, Special mention for the Grand Prix award
Director Biography - Nicolò Bongiorno

Nicolò Bongiorno, born in Milan, Italy, in 1976, is a documentary filmmaker, creative producer, screenwriter and actor. He has written directed and produced biographical and historical documentaries with a very personal touch and a poetic visionary style for Italian television. He is currently working on an exploration documentary series, “3 human adventures” a quest into the dimensions of rock, water and space that becomes a transformative and existential experience.

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