Claudio Caligari (1948, Arona, Itálie – 2015, Rome) explored the world of drugs and revolutionary movements in the 1960s as a documentary filmmaker. In 1983 he forged these experiences into the feature film Toxic Love (Amore tossico), a raw look at the world of heroin addicts. Made using non-professional actors, it became a cult film for several generations. It was shown and won awards at festivals in Venice, Valencia and San Sebastián.
Caligari returned to directing 15 years later with The Scent of the Night (L'odore della notte, 1998), which was inspired by Dido Sacchettoni's book about a real-life gang of criminals who terrorized wealthy Romans in the late 1970s and early 1980s. Don't Be Bad concludes not only this trilogy, but also his lifelong search for an uncompromisingly truthful, unadorned depiction of life. Claudio Caligari died at the age of 67, shortly after editing his last film.
MFF Karlovy Vary
