
THE FIRST CHILD
Italy, 2025, color, DCP, 92’
MARIO VERDONE AWARD
Finalist
➔ program in progress
Direction: Mara Fondacaro
Screenplay: Mara Fondacaro
Cinematography: Fabio Paolucci
Editing: Christian Marsiglia
Set Design: Rossella Tilli
Music: Alessandro Ciani
Costumes: Marisa Vecchiarelli
Cast: Benedetta Cimatti (Ada), Simone Liberati (Rino), Lorenzo Ferrante (Andrea), Astrid Meloni (Paola), Manfredi Saavedra (Gino), Giulio Maroncelli
Producers: Ines Vasiljevic, Stefano Sardo, Pilar Saavedra Perrotta
Production: Nightswim, Sajama Films
Ada and her partner Rino move into a secluded villa surrounded by nature. Expecting their second child, Ada finds herself haunted by the unresolved grief of losing their firstborn. As the due date approaches, the sorrow she has long suppressed resurfaces, and she begins to sense a disturbing presence—convinced that her late son has returned from beyond to prevent the birth of his sibling. Is something truly supernatural at play, or is Ada slowly losing her grip on reality?
Mara Fondacaro (Naples, 1994) attended the degree course in Photography - Cinema and Television at the Academy of Fine Arts in Naples and then graduated as a screenwriter from the Centro Sperimentale di Cinematografia. In 2022, she participated in the Berlinale as a screenwriter with the short The Dependent Variables by Lorenzo Tardella, which went on to garner the David di Donatello Award for best short film the following year.
2025 Mostra Internazionale del Nuovo Cinema di Pesaro - Cinema in Piazza
