Director: Luca Vullo, Executive Producer: Liana Vullo, Production: Ondemotive, Italy, 20′, 2011, Rights: World
“No man deserves to be praised for his goodness, who has it not in his power to be wicked. Goodness without that power is generally nothing more than sloth, or an impotence of will.”
Francois de La Rochefoucauld
It’s the year 2023, five individuals; a financially troubled company director, a priest, a beautiful but ageing woman, a politician caught up with the mafia and a mother with a sick child. All are seated around a table in a small darkly lit room. They have all bet their life savings or in some cases their borrowed or dirty money, and the prize is 10 times that. They all give their reasons why they should be the winner of the money, recounting their story, and what they would do if they won, all make a strong case, some altruistic some selfish. The players have to choose one and the one who gets most votes win, a painful choice to achieve your goal. But is it reality or fiction?
The answer lies in the acronym VRT, Virtual Reality Therapy. Luca Vullo’s film takes place in a room, with only five actors and a disembodied voice with each performance giving a heartfelt plea for their cause. It is a play on fiction and reality and on our deepest fears and biggest hopes.
Cast: Massimo Dapporto, Benedicta Boccoli, Rosario Petix, Riccardo Maria Tarci, Rossana Bonafede and Riccardo Peroni.
Awards:
I’ve seen Films – International Film Festival