Bio

"We are made of stars.
But especially, we are made of stories".

Giacomo Arrigoni is an Italian director and screenwriter with a diverse portfolio spanning cinema, television, and new media.

His work encompasses films, series, documentaries, TV commercials, branded content, and corporate films.

Arrigoni has collaborated with major clients including SONY Mobile UK, NETFLIX, Discovery Italia, Google, Mercedes Media, Microsoft, Fox Crime Spain, Vodafone, Red Bull, Swatch, Adidas, Zeiss, Accenture, Land Rover, Avio Aero, and many others.

A hallmark of Arrigoni’s style is the central role of emotion in his genre storytelling.

In the short film Into the Gloom (2010), he uses thriller conventions to condemn violence against women.

His debut feature film, The Rule of Lead (2014), available on Amazon Prime US and other VOD platforms, delves into the theme of invisible children through a supernatural thriller.

His series #Goldfish (2018), produced by Discovery Italia, examines the relationship between teenagers and social networks, blending teen drama with crime elements.

Emotion also plays a key role in Arrigoni’s documentaries, often in unexpected ways.

Spicy Calabria (2021), released in Italian cinemas and available on Amazon Prime Video, merges Italy’s natural, artistic, and culinary treasures with the chili pepper in a romantic road trip where the line between reality and imagination blurs.

In Resilient Warriors: Jose Antonio (2020), he tells the story of a humble farmer from Bahia who sparks an environmental revolution with his dreams cultivated in the Brazilian desert.

Arrigoni’s works have been selected for more than fifty international film festivals and have won numerous awards. His films have been screened worldwide, from the Chinese Theatre in Hollywood to the Chamber of Deputies in Rome, earning him a Golden Globe nomination and a Special Selection at the Nastri d’Argento.

He co-wrote State of Consciousness starring Emile Hirsch (released in Italian cinemas in 2023 and distributed in the US by Lionsgate in 2024) and Eddie & Sunny starring Gabriel Luna (available on Amazon Prime Video), both produced by Iervolino & Lady Bacardi Entertainment.

Arrigoni’s TV series projects have been recognized at prestigious festivals such as the Maison des Scénaristes at the Cannes Film Festival, SerienCamp, Série Series, and the Raindance Film Festival.

His documentary series project Clefs d’Or was presented at the Venice Film Festival 2022 as part of the official selection of the Italian Doc Screenings Academy Series.

His documentary Celebrity Wines premiered at Ischia Global Fest 2024 and was released in Italian cinemas in July 2024. The film features prominent figures including Trudie Styler, Sting, Ronn Moss, Al Bano Carrisi, Carlo Cracco and Rosa Fanti, Gianmarco Tognazzi, Jarno Trulli, Johnson Righeira, and Anderson Hernanes.

Awards and selections:

MIA Mercato Internazionale Audiovisivo – International Factual Forum 2024 – Official Selection for Golden Keys

Ischia Global Fest 2024 – Best Documentary Award for Celebrity Wines

Fiction Factory Showcase BiograFilm 2024 – Semifinalist with Diaries from the Labyrinth

Frome International Climate Film Festival 2024 – Official Selection for The Call

MIA Mercato Internazionale Audiovisivo – International Factual Forum 2023 – Official Selection for Celebrity Wines

Cinema & Industry Award 2023 for Celebrity Wines

Kalakari Film Festival 2023 – Official Selection for Spicy Calabria

Silk Road International Film Festival 2022 – Best Documentary for Spicy Calabria

Italian Doc Screenings Academy Series 2022 – Official Selection for Clefs d’Or

Bergamo Food Film Festival 2022 – Official Selection for Spicy Calabria

Los Angeles: Italia 2022 – Capri Award for Spicy Calabria

The Taste Awards 2022 – Best of Europe Honoree Award for Spicy Calabria

Apulia WebFest 2022 – Best Scenography for Spicy Calabria

HoustonWorldFest 2022 – SIlver Remi Award for Spicy Calabria

Impact Doc Awards 2022 – Award of Merit Documentary Feature and Voice-Over Talent Award for Spicy Calabria

The IndieFEST Film Awards 2021 – Merit Award and Best On Camera Talent Award for Spicy Calabria

New York Independent Cinema Awards 2021 – Official Selection for Spicy Calabria

Boston Independent Film Awards 2021 – Official Selection for Spicy Calabria

Stockholm City Film Festival 2021 – Official Selection for Spicy Calabria

Culver City Film Festival 2021 – Official Selection for Spicy Calabria

Los Angeles Independent Film Festival Awards 2021 – Best Foreign Feature Film for Spicy Calabria

CineCibo – Festival del Cinema Gastronomico 2021 – Doc Travel Award for Spicy Calabria

Miami Indie Film Awards 2021 – Official Selection for Spicy Calabria

New York International Women Festival 2021 – Official Selection for Spicy Calabria

Procida International Film Festival 2021 – Best Documentary Award for Spicy Calabria

Visioni dal Mondo 2021 – Official Selection for Resilient Warriors: Jose Antonio

Ischia Global Fest 2021 – Official Selection Panorama Section for Spicy Calabria

MIA Mercato Internazionale Audiovisivo – Italians Doc It Better 2020 – Official Selection for Spicy Calabria

Awareness Film Festival 2020 – Merit Award for Resilient Warriors: Jose Antonio

Journeé du Green Documentaire Film Festival 2020 – Official Selection for Resilient Warriors: Jose Antonio

Houston WorldFest 2020, Gold Remi Award for Savage

SerienCamp, Special Mention for Savage

Série Series – Spotlight on Trailers 2019, Official Selection for Broken Run

Raindance Film Festival – London TV PitchBox 2018, Official Selection for Butterflies

Cannes Maison des Scénaristes 2018, Official Selection for Islands of Wind and Stars

Cortinametraggio 2018 – Medusa Award, Finalist with Love for Dinner

Houston WorldFest 2015, Platinum Remi Award for The Rule of Lead

Miami Bright Minds Film Festival 2014, Best Feature Film Award for The Rule of Lead

Screening Into the Gloom at the Chamber of Deputies, Rome, May 2013

Screenings of Into the Gloom during events about violence against women in Milan, Forte dei Marmi, Acqui Terme, Savona. The short film has been used in a Viareggio school as a study tool for high school classes.

Nastri D’Argento (Silver Ribbons) 2011, Special Selection In Vetrina for Into the Gloom

Globo D’Oro (Golden Globe) 2009/2010, Nomination for Into the Gloom

Los Angeles Art-House Film Festival, Special Mention for Into the Gloom

Manhattan Film Festival, Film That Heals Award for Into the Gloom

Rutger Hauer’s I’Ve Seen Films International Film Festival, Special Mention for Into the Gloom

Houston WorldFest, Gold Remi Award for The Quester

Europe Crystal Festival, Young Directors Forum Shortlist or The Quester

Houston WorldFest, Silver Remi Award for The Woodshed Shade

Short Film Festival of India, Best International Short Film for The Woodshed Shade

Houston WorldFest, Bronze Remi Award for Syntony

International Fest of Cinema and Technology, Best Dance Film for Syntony

Earth Spirit & Love Film Festival, Second Jury Prize for Syntony

Albisola Corto Festival, Best Director, Best Cinematography for Syntony

"Spicy Calabria, Giacomo Arrigoni's inspiring and energetic documentary, is bursting with passion for culture and is a celebration of art and tradition. The film brings spiciness back into life with its fresh and vibrant outlook and entertaining interviews and insights".

(2022)

Silk Road International Film Festival

"Each scene is elegant and at the same time sober, genuine. Spicy Calabria is a docufilm that tells the story of a land linked to a taste with class and refinement, without garish abuses of folklore"

(2021)

Parole di Vita

"Spicy Calabria is an original and enthralling road trip, which leads the viewer to discover traditions, legends, artistic masterpieces and natural landscapes. With a red thread that unites everything: spiciness"

(2021)

Rolling Stone

"One of the most exciting emerging directors in Europe"

(2016)

Sony Mobile UK

The international scope of Arrigoni's projects emerges from the choice of his stories - unusual for traditional Italian films - and from his stylistic approach.

(2016)

Film 4 Life

"Arrigoni's cinematic stage is filled with characters that deal with contradictions, faults and existential conflicts"

Cinema4Stelle

(2016)