A silent film by Angelo Drovetti presented by Tony De Bolfo

By arrangement with Fondazione Cineteca Italiana, Milan

Original music by Kavisha Mazzella, all traditional tunes arranged and performed by Kavisha Mazzella, Irini Vela, Dave DeSanti, Mark Holder Keeping

In 1924, the acclaimed Italian film producer Stefano Pittaluga commissioned director Angelo Drovetti to embark on an epic voyage of some 8000 nautical miles armed with his trusted movie camera. The end result is the film regarded by Melbourne’s Italian Historical Society as “the most comprehensive film of the migrant voyage known to be in existence”. Dall’Italia All’Australia, a black and white silent film of 60 minutes duration, chronicles the voyage of the Regina d’Italia (Queen of Italy) – one of three passenger ships first built for the Lloyd Sabaudo Line at the turn of last century. The film was first screened in Italy in May 1925, and premiered in Melbourne eighty years later in 2005, to the glorious accompaniment of the Melbourne Town Hall’s grand pipe organ. The film is now presented with original music and introduced by Tony De Bolfo, the Melbourne author who uncovered the film gem during research for his book Search of Kings. The book examines the history of 108 passengers including his grandfather Silvio De Bolfo and his brothers Francesco and Igino, who disembarked the steamship Re d’Italia (King of Italy) in Melbourne in November 1927.

The film showcases the panoramic views witnessed by Italian, Yugoslav, Greek, Arabic and Jewish migrants as they stood atop the deck of the old steamer during their sevenweek world odyssey from Genoa to Australia, by way of Egypt and Sri Lanka, arriving in September 1924.