AGON
Embedded Files
SYNOPSIS
As the fictional Olympic Games of Ludoj 2024 approaches, AGON shows the stories of three athletes as they prepare and then compete in rifle shooting, fencing and judo. These women are portrayed against the political, social, technological and physical contexts that dominate the highest level of sports competition and performance. Informed by the historical figures of Joan of Arc, Cleopatra and Russian cavalry officer Nadezhda Durova, AGON explores a contemporary account of the contradictions of these sports, which began as a practice for wartime in peacetime, evolved into professional sports and entertainment, and in recent times embrace video games to create a new form of competitive sport.
DIRECTOR’S
BIOGRAPHY
Giulio Bertelli was born in Milan in 1990. He studied architecture at the Architectural Association (AA). Since 2012, he has been a professional offshore sailor, involved in the technical side of performance sailboat development. As a visiting lecturer at the AA, Giulio focuses on the relationship between filmmaking, architectural design and scriptwriting. He's the founder of OKOMdsu, a research and design studio, and most recently launched Akta, a freeze-dried food company.
COMMENTS OF
THE DIRECTOR
ἀγών (agōn): ancient Greek word for competition, conflict, struggle, used in various fields: sports, military, literary and legal.
Ludoj 2024: imagined Olympic Games deprived of the public and where sport events take place within soundstages to feature a new layer of information: sound.
AGON:
How it feels to not be able to do what you want to do.
Measuring everything: performance, tools and preparation.
The credibility of documentary dives into fictional narrative.
Blurred reality; you must focus to explore it.
Pattern recognition at macro scale - wide shot.
Detailed investigation of specific processes - extreme close-up.
Intersection between organic matter and technical apparatus.
Explorer of actions: crafting the interface between the frailty of humankind and technology.
Emotional saturation: speed and pressure blending into one another.
Techno-realism: hard human emotional journeys set sail like ships over a sea of technology where at times waves breaks over the deck.
MAIN CAST
BIOGRAPHY
Alice Bellandi
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Olympic and World Judo Champion
Alice Bellandi is one of the brightest stars in international judo and a true symbol of Italian sport.
Born in 1998 in Brescia, she is the reigning Olympic Champion at Paris 2024 and World Champion in the -78 kg category, achievements that have secured her place at the top of her sport on the global stage.
Her career is marked by an impressive list of results:
Gold Medal – Olympic Games Paris 2024
Gold Medal – World Championships 2023 (Doha)
Silver Medal – World Masters 2023
Bronze Medal – World Championships 2022 (Tashkent)
Multiple-time European Championship medalist
Gold – Grand Slam Tel Aviv 2023
Gold – Grand Slam Antalya 2022
With a fighting style that is both determined and technically refined, Alice has stood out from a young age as one of the world's top athletes, becoming a role model for future generations.
Beyond her sporting success, she is known for promoting values such as inclusion, inner strength, and the freedom to be oneself, becoming an inspiration not only in sport, but in wider social and cultural contexts.
Determination, talent, and authenticity make Alice Bellandi not only a champion on the mat, but also a respected and influential voice in today’s society.
Yile Vianello
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Yile Yara Vianello was born in Brazil in 1999. She grew up in the Tuscan Apennines, in an ecovillage, where she met Alice Rorhwacher, author of their first film in 2011: Corpo Celeste; presented at the Directors’ Fortnight (Cannes).
Subsequently, she acted in Sow the Wind (D. Caputo), The Peacock’s Paradise (L. Bispuri), Il vento soffia dove vuole (Marco Righi), Beautiful Summer (L. Luchetti) and The year of the egg (C. Casale).
FILMOGRAPHY
Features
2025 Agon,
director Giulio Bertelli
2025 “L’age d’or”
director Berenger Thouin
2024 The year of the egg (L’anno dell’uovo),
director C. Casale
2023 Beautiful Summer (La bella estate),
director L. Luchetti
2023 Il vento soffia dove vuole (Where the Wind Blows),
director M. Righi
2022 The Peacock’s Paradise (Il paradiso del pavone),
director L. Bispuri - La Biennale di Venezia 2021: Orizzonti
2020 Sow the Wind (Semina il vento),
director D. Caputo - Berlinale 2020: Panorama
2011 Heavenly Body (Corpo Celeste),
director A. Rohrwacher - Quinzaine des Réalisateurs 2011
TELEVISION
2021 Nudes,
director L. Luchetti
Sofija Zobina
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Sofija Zobina is an actress and playwright of Russian origin, born in Lithuania and raised in Italy. She studied at the Paolo Grassi Academy of Dramatic Arts. She has worked with Alice Rohrwacher (La Chimera), Maurizio Nichetti (AmicheMai), and Giulio Bertelli (Agon).
MAIN CAST
Yile Vianello as Giovanna Falconetti
Alice Bellandi as Alice Bellandi
Sofija Zobina as Alex Sokolov
Michela Cescon as Dola
Francesco Acquaroli as Maestro
Chiara Caselli as Delegation President
Louis Hofmann as Yuri
MAIN CREW
Directed by: Giulio Bertelli
Screenplay: Giulio Bertelli
Producers: Giulio Bertelli, Max Brun, Jules Daly, Stella Rossa Savino, Joe Anton, Pietro Caracciolo, Matthew E. Chausse
Dop: Mauro Chiarello
Production Designer: Ludovica Ferrario
Costume Designer: Marco Alzari
Editors: Tommaso Gallone, Francesco Roma, Giulio Bertelli
Composer: Tom Wheatley
Sound Editing and Re-Recording Mixers: Massimo Mariani, Tommaso Barbaro
Visual Effects Supervisor: Stefano Leoni
Titles and Graphic Design: Michael Rock
Music Supervisor: Randall Poster
TECHNICAL DETAILS
Original Title: Agon
International Title: Agon
Duration: 100 min
Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1
Format: DCP
Sound: Dolby Digital
Year: 2025
Original Languages: Italian / English
Countries of Production: Italy, United States, France
Production Companies: MIA Film, Big Red Films, Art+Vibes
Co-production Companies: IDEV SAS, FINANCIÈRE MARIGNY SASU
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