A documentary series venturing inside the cinema of one of the most beloved directors of all time: Woody Allen. An exciting journey into the films, background and creative process of an authentic icon of world cinema and culture.

Exactly fifty years after Pier Paolo Pasolini's tragic death, five meetings dedicated to the great director will allow participants to venture into one of the most original and exciting authorial journeys in the entire history of cinema. Pasolini explored the possibilities of cinematic language from a very personal point of view, defining it as “the written language of reality”, capable of showing the changes and contradictions of Italian society at the turn of the 1960s and 1970s. This research brings together some of Pasolini's great cultural influences, including Marxism, religion, myth, the body and painting, which were never separate from one another.

Meeting 5: In search of the lost myth

In the last part of his career, Pasolini confronted one of the strongest cultural roots of his artistic and intellectual journey: Greek myth. First in Oedipus Rex (1969) and then in Medea (1970), Pasolini showed a strength and richness still available to man today, myth being the dark and vital core of lived experience. This theme continued in the three films of the “trilogy of life”, only to be interrupted in his last film, Salò or the 120 Days of Sodom (1975).

François Truffaut and Jean-Luc Godard: two great masters of film history, undisputed protagonists of an unrepeatable season as the French Nouvelle vague. First friends, then rivals, very different from each other, but both bound by a visceral love for cinema: at Giunti Odeon a series of documentary films recounting their contrasting relationship. 

The illustrator Elena Triolo will join us to present her book L'oro bianco. Il segreto rivelato (Gallucci Balloon).
Joining her on stage will be Livia Frescobaldi (President of Amici di Doccia), Oliva Rucellai (Chief Curator of the Ginori Museum), and Pierdomenico Baccalario, who will moderate the event.

The Book:
From the European courts to the Tuscan hills, the story of porcelain tells a journey through Italian craftsmanship — a tale of dreams, work, and passion.
Through the voices of six characters, blending reality and imagination, we relive the birth and development of the Ginori manufactory in a choral narrative that brings to life the beauty of this extraordinary material, capable of uniting eras and destinies.

The Author:
Born in 1988, Elena Triolo graduated in Comics and earned a degree in Art History.
She first gained recognition on social media, where she published a series of witty comic strips, and began collaborating with Hop! Edizioni, which led to several published works.

She has worked with the Galileo Museum in Florence, illustrating educational materials for museum learning, and has published with major Italian publishers including Kleiner Flug, BD, DeAgostini, Rizzoli, Hoepli, Giunti, Mondadori, and Sperling & Kupfer.

At Giunti Odeon, three great classics of American cinema from the 1970s will immerse you once again in the psychedelic and futuristic atmospheres of a decade that forever marked the imagination of cinema, music, visual culture and fashion.

Lavinia and Mariangela Rinaldi will join us on the GO stage to present Profumo d'incenso, profumo di arrosto(Trenta Editore). They will be accompanied by Giuseppe Calabrese of Repubblica Firenze.

The book:

Twelve stories that skilfully weave together history, spirituality, and the art of the table, just like the twelve months of a Holy Year. Profumo d’incenso, profumo d’arrosto. Storie di Papi golosi tra un Giubileo e l’altro takes us on a curious and fascinating journey to discover several Popes—complex figures suspended between holiness and earthly indulgence—portrayed not only through their pastoral deeds, but above all through taste, their love of food, and the convivial traditions of their time.

With a respectful yet surprisingly human gaze, the book pauses on the threshold of their kitchens, where the scents of incense and roasting meat mingle with the ancient flavours of their favourite dishes and the glimmer of wines selected for papal banquets. Guiding us along this path are the memories of the great court chefs, the silent architects of the banquets and receptions that have shaped Vatican history.

The authors:

Mariangela Cianti Rinaldi
A historian and enthusiast of culinary traditions, she has already published Sapor di note with Trenta Editore.

Lavinia Rinaldi
A freelance journalist and expert in cultural communication, she is head of the press office at the Palazzo Strozzi Foundation.

When one of the greatest British actors and directors meets the queen of detective stories. In recent years Kenneth Branagh has begun adapting Agatha Christie's most famous novels for the cinema, impersonating with originality and sophistication the most famous of her characters: Hercule Poirot. Giunti Odeon offers the first two films of this ‘series’.

The author Maria Fittipaldi Menarini, accompanied by Niccolò Agliardi, Gianni Mercatali, and Toni Scervino, will tell us about her book Pensa che fortuna (Gruppo Editoriale).

The book:

Maria Fittipaldi Menarini retraces her life with sincerity and irony, from her family origins to the present, weaving together private memories and a generational narrative. Through vivid recollections and clear, engaging language, she tells the story of a great Italian family—from Florentine and Roman residences and Swiss boarding schools to the Tuscan countryside. It is a journey that begins at the roots—among eccentric grandparents, ladies of another era, and stern maternal figures—and leads to her own choices as a woman and a mother, in a continuous dialogue between heritage and freedom.

It is a rich life, marked by difficult moments and new beginnings, by acknowledged mistakes and profound bonds. Above all, there is the love for her daughters, with whom Maria now shares a passion for Bolgheri and its enological excellence through an all-female family project that gave rise to the Donne Fittipaldi winery. The title Pensa che fortuna (“Imagine the luck”) captures the spirit of the book: the ironic, clear-eyed gratitude of someone who has navigated life’s complexities without ever ceasing to seek its beauty.

The author:

Maria Fittipaldi Menarini is the founder and, together with her four daughters, the driving force behind Donne Fittipaldi, a Bolgheri-based winery active since 2004. She combines elegance, entrepreneurial vision, and environmental awareness, focusing on sustainability, biodiversity, and native grape varieties. She is also the promoter of the Vigna di Michelangelo, the first modern urban vineyard in Florence, located near the celebrated piazzale, where historic Tuscan varieties such as Sangiovese, Canaiolo, Foglia Tonda, Pugnitello, and Colorino are cultivated.

Among her wines stand out labels such as Malaroja, Magnetic, and Lady F, expressions of an entirely female-led project that highlights the bond between territory, culture, and innovation. She was included by Forbes Italia among the “100 Successful Women of 2024.”

Wes Anderson is one of the masters of contemporary cinema, beloved by audiences all over the world for his unmistakable style and poetics. Giunti Odeon dedicates a tribute to the great American director with a selection of his most famous films, all in original version with Italian subtitles.

At Giunti Odeon the traditional Sunday appointment with all the great Disney and Pixar classics! To see and see again the great animated films that over many years have enchanted generations of viewers, young and old!

Ellie B. Luin is coming to GO for the signing event of her latest book Wysteria Wood – Sogno Proibito (Sperling & Kupfer).

Remember that starting November 19th, you can pre-order your copy directly at Giunti Odeon! With your preorder, you will receive a priority-pass for the signing line.

Useful information:

• The priority-pass is available with the preorder of the book made in-store, or with the purchase of the book (in-store only) from the release day up to the day of the event. Passes will be assigned in time slots.

• You must show both the priority-pass and the receipt to access the priority line.

• Once the priority line has ended, the signing event will be open to anyone who purchased the book elsewhere (and therefore without a pass).

• The number of books the author can sign will depend on her availability (we recommend giving priority to the new release).

The book:

In a school where power and secrets intertwine like the wisteria vines choking the house of Wysteria Wood, Avalon must choose between who she is and who she wants to become—and learn that love can be the most dangerous weapon of all.

At Wysteria Wood, nothing is as it seems. Within the walls of an ancient law school, the line between right and wrong dissolves into a maze of moral ambiguity and repressed desires. Avalon Wingrave grew up there, overshadowed by a past no one dares to speak of, alongside two beautiful yet very different brothers: Draven, the danger, and Gremory, the refuge. But in that house, no one is innocent, and love tastes like a sin no one dares confess. When Avalon earns a place at the prestigious Triple Crown University, she finally seems ready to leave everything behind. Yet the past does not forget, and the arrival of an enigmatic lawyer ready to change the rules will spark a silent war in which every choice can be fatal.

The author:

Ellie B. Luin is an Italian author writing under a pseudonym. Born in Rome, she holds a degree in Law. Besides writing, she loves traveling, reading crime novels, and losing herself in classical literature. She has a deeply romantic streak and is an untiring dreamer. Since 2023, Sperling & Kupfer has published her Deviant series.