La Pivellina (The Little One) is a 2009 Austrian feature film debut directed by Tizza Covi and Rainer Frimmel. The film premiered at the 2009 Cannes Film Festival in the Directors' Fortnight, where it has been awarded the Europa Cinemas Label as Best European Film.

Plot

Abandoned in a park, the two-year-old girl Asia is found by Patty, a circus woman living with her husband Walter in a trailer park in San Basilio on the outskirts of Rome. With the help of Tairo, a teenager who lives with his grandma in an adjacent container, Patti gives the girl a new home for an uncertain period of time. However, Walter is concerned that they may be accused of kidnapping the girl, and he plans to report Asia's presence to the police. Patty receives a letter from the mother in which she announces that she will collect the girl two days later. They have a farewell party, but the mother does not show up.

Cast

Release

La Pivellina has been screened in more than 130 International Film Festivals (including Berlinale, Toronto, Karlovy Vary, New York, San Francisco, Palm Springs) and received over 35 awards. La Pivellina is being released in more than 20 countries worldwide (including USA, Argentina, France, Italy, Brazil, Germany). The film was selected as the Austrian entry for the Best Foreign Language Film at the 83rd Academy Awards, but it didn't make the final shortlist.

Awards (selection)