To Chiara

2021 2h 1m IT

👍

6.8

SOLID

★6.8TMDB · 121

DramaFantasy

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

The Guerrasio family and friends gather to celebrate Claudio and Carmela’s oldest daughter’s 18th birthday. There is a healthy rivalry between the birthday girl and her 15-year-old sister Chiara as they compete on the dancefloor. It is a happy occasion, and the close-knit family are on top form. However, everything changes the next day when the father disappears. Chiara, unconvinced by the cover story, starts to investigate. As she gets closer to the truth, she is forced to decide what kind of future she wants for herself.

“Some stories are better left unspoiled.”

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Cast

Swamy Rotolo
Chiara
Claudio Rotolo
Claudio
Grecia Rotolo
Giulia
Carmela Fumo
Carmela
Giorgia Rotolo
Giorgia
Antonio Rotolo
Antonio
Vincenzo Rotolo
Enzo
Antonina Fumo
Nina

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Jonas Carpignano
Writers: Jonas Carpignano
Languages: Italian
Countries: Italy, France, Denmark, Sweden, United States of America

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 8

MONEY

Did you know

Shot for just $3.4M — micro-budget by Hollywood standards.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 8

MONEY

Did you know

Earned back only 17% of its budget on initial theatrical — a commercial disappointment on release.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 8

ERA

Did you know

Released 5 years ago.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 8

WORLD

Did you know

International production across 5 countries: Italy, France, Denmark, Sweden, United States of America.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by Jonas Carpignano, shot by Tim Curtin. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Original score by Benh Zeitlin. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Editor Affonso Gonçalves shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

CAST

Did you know

Swamy Rotolo and Claudio Rotolo and Grecia Rotolo carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#08

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Jonas Carpignano directs. Tim Curtin behind the camera. Benh Zeitlin scores. Affonso Gonçalves cuts. A commercial under-performer on release. Produced in Italy, France, Denmark, Sweden, United States of America. Dialogue in Italian.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

1Shot for just $3.4M — micro-budget by Hollywood standards.
2Earned back only 17% of its budget on initial theatrical — a commercial disappointment on release.
3Released 5 years ago.
4International production across 5 countries: Italy, France, Denmark, Sweden, United States of America.
5Directed by Jonas Carpignano, shot by Tim Curtin. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
6Original score by Benh Zeitlin. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
7Editor Affonso Gonçalves shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
8Swamy Rotolo and Claudio Rotolo and Grecia Rotolo carry the top of the cast.
9IMDB entry: tt14324296 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
10Released under 13 different titles around the world.

The technical file

Cinematography: Tim Curtin
Original score: Benh Zeitlin
Editing: Affonso Gonçalves
Costume design: Nicoletta Taranta
Sound: Julien Perez
Runtime: 121 min · 2h 1m
Status: Released
Budget: $3,400,000
Box office: $585,750
Return: 17% of budget
Original language: IT
Certification (US): R
IMDB: To Chiara (2021)

Also by

Jonas Carpignano

Trailers & featurettes

Watch the pieces

Community reviews

What people are saying

CinemaSerf2026-08-09
★ 6/10
"Chiara" (Swamy Rotolo) is a typical fifteen year old girl living with her mum, dad and two sisters who finds herself distraught when he just ups and leaves them. Determined to ascertain just what happened to him, she now embarks on a series of what might be described as adventures all against a backdrop of clues provided to us of exploding cars, a terrified mother (Carmela Fumo) and a message declaring that her father (Claudio Rotolo) has died. Of course, all of this stress is playing havoc with her behaviour but despite some benign attempts at intervention from the school, she will not be dissuaded from her quest - even if that puts her at odds with just about everyone in her life. I might have got more from this had I taken to "Chiara" in any way, but I didn't and so found the story quickly became quite an uninteresting mystery of teenage angst set against one that contrived to include racial tensions and strained familial drama, all filmed as if we were a companion travelling with her as she ponderously seeks her answers. It does pick up a little towards the conclusion, but for me too much of this focusses on developing "Chiara" as a woman and though Rotolo is proficient, she never quite got me hooked one way or the other with her personification of this teenage girl with whom I just didn't engage. Perhaps I just wasn't in the mood, but this didn't do much for me, sorry.

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