The internationally produced documentary “The Mechanics of Things” by Italian director Alessandra Celesia will be released by UCM.ONE on the NONFY Documentaries label in selected arthouse cinemas across Germany on 4 April.
Synopsis:
It was a minor miracle that her cat Tito survived the fall from the eighth floor, paralysed but with the will to survive of a cat that had spent years on the street, but Italian filmmaker Alessandra Celesia would never have dreamed of what this triggered, and this is what the film “The Mechanics of Things” is about. It is the mechanics of things that she shows in this film, through which her own very personal story is intertwined with the world’s first spinal cord transplant using an artificial spinal cord (neurogel).
Will my cat ever be able to walk again? Will we ever be able to walk again? This is the question that every paraplegic asks themselves. The film accompanies six paraplegic French people who have volunteered for a clinical trial in China and Tito the cat on their journey to China, where they will receive artificial spinal cord transplants (neurogel).
The fall of her cat also confronts the filmmaker with her own history. With experiences that reach deep into her childhood and which she allows the audience to participate in coming to terms with.
The “The Mechanics of Things” is a filmmaker’s journey in search of healing, during which she must learn to accept that there are things that cannot be restored and things that we can restore.
The documentary film, an international co-production with German participation, was shown at numerous festivals, including:
- Les Etats généraux du Film Documentaire – Lussas – Expériences du regard 2023
- Torino Film Festival – Turin – Italian competition, 2023
The film was supported by: Eurimages, Région Sud (dev. & prod.), Film Fund – Fondazione Film Commission Vallée d’Aoste, CNC – Fonds d’aide à l’innovation, arte/ZDF, Regionalfonds Hamburg, Ciclic (dev.) PROCIREP, Société des producteurs and ANGOA.
More information about the movie: The Mechanics of Things
