Valentina Ippolito

Award winning documentary Filmmaker; Lecturer in Film Production; Founder of Pembroke Film Masterclass Series at the University of Oxford. Dr Valentina Ippolito is an Italian born filmmaker grown up and educated in England. She has obtained a Doctor of Philosophy degree in Film Studies from the University of Oxford (Pembroke College). Her doctoral thesis titled 'The dialogical gaze: the migratory journey to Italy in contemporary Italian and Romanian cinema' constitutes the first in-depth critical comparative study of the journey of migration to Italy in contemporary Italian and Romanian cinema. Valentina holds a MA in Documentary by Practice (Royal Holloway), a PGCert and a BA from University College London. Valentina's documentary work is centered around the representation of Otherness: indigenous cultures in North Thailand, Nepal and India; men as warriors in Basha Miao Village (China); women and babies in prison and the migrant identity. Her most recent photography work titled "Red Wind"-representing a mother and her baby in the streets of Jodhpur-has won several awards including 'Best International Documentary Photograph' at Melbourne Documentary Film Festival, 2019. Her documentaries have been screened at international film events across the world including Africa, Brazil, Canada, China, Europe, Mexico, India and the United States. Valentina was awarded the Sarajevo VIVA Film Festival "Grand Prix" in September 2017 for her doc film "The Last Warriors" (UK, China: 2016). "The Last Warriors" has also won Best Doc at the Mediterranean Film Festival in Sicily in the summer 2017; Best Doc at FotoFilm Tijuana 2017 (Baja California) and Best International Documentary at the Alternative Film Festival, 2019 (Toronto, Ontario). The film was also selected and screened by Global Revolution Film Festival in New York, Aug 25-27 at Smithtown Performing Arts Centre. A more inclusive list of awards and screenings of "The Last Warriors" is provided below: Looking China Official Screening Ceremony 2016 (Guizhou, China) Official Selection Chinese American Film Festival 2016 (Los Angeles, US) Official Selection South London Shorts 2017 (London, UK) WINNER, BEST DOCUMENTARY - Barcelona Planet Film Festival 2017 (Barcelona, Spain) Nominated for Best Woman Filmmaker by Barcelona Planet Film Festival 2017 (Barcelona, Spain) Official Selection Gold Movies Awards Goddess Nike 2017 (London, UK) Official Selection Roma Cinema Doc 2017 (Rome, Italy) Official Selection Short to the Point 2017 (Bucharest, Romania) Semi-Finalist Los Angeles Cinefest (Los Angeles, US) Official Selection New York Eurasian Film Festival 2017 (New York, US) Nominated for Best Documentary by Bucharest ShortCut CineFest 2017 (Bucharest, Romania) Finalist European Cinematography Awards 2018 (Warsaw, Poland) Official Selection Golden Bridge International Film Festival (Moscow, Russia) WINNER, BEST DOCUMENTARY - Mediterranean Film Festival (Siracusa, Italy) GRAND PRIX PRIZE WINNER - Viva Film Festival 2017 (Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina) Official Selection Zagreb Tourfilm Festival (Zagabria, Croatia) WINNER BEST DOC - FotoFilm Tijuana 2017 (Tijuana, Baja California) Semi Finalist Frame by Sound, 2017 (Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic) Official Selection Global Revolution Film Festival, 2017 (New York, US) WINNER BEST DIRECTION (DOC) India Great Message Film Festival, 2017 (Pune, India) Official Selection Cardiff International Film Festival (Cardiff, UK) Official Selection Native Spirit Film Festival at SOAS University of London (London, UK) HONORABLE MENTION FOR QUALITY - Asia South East Short Film Festival, 2018 (Ho Chi Minh, Cambodia) Official Selection Echo Film Festivals Brics, 2018 (Moscow, Russia) Official Selection Ethnografilm Paris, 2018 (Paris, France) Nominated for Best Documentary by Utah Film Festival and Awards, 2018 (Provo, Utah) Official Selection Lake View International Film Festival, 2019 (Ludhiana, Punjab) Africa International Film Festival, 2019 (Lagos, Nigeria) Finalist Near Nazareth Festival, 2019 (Afula, Israel) Official Selection Beyond Earth Film Festival, 2019 (Chennai, India) Semi-Finalist Aphrodite Film Awards, 2019 (NYC, New York) WINNER BEST INTERNATIONAL DOCUMENTARY - Alternative Film Festival 2019 (Toronto, Ontario) Valentina's other doc films include: "Voiceless Reel Goes Digital" (2012) Shortlisted as winning short of the Next Generation Shorts Film Competition, run as part of ArtsFest Birmingham, UK, 2012 "Paths" (2011) Finalist at AltFF Alternative Film Festival, Toronto, Ontario "Voiceless Reel"(2010) Female Lens Networking Event, London, UK, 2010 I've Seen Films International Film Festival, Milan, Italy, 2010 Portobello Film Festival, London, UK, 2010 Hello Digital 2010, Birmingham, UK, 2010 The London International Documentary Festival (LIDF), London, UK, 2012 "Bye Bye Bunny" (2010) Broadcast Credit: Media Trust, Sky 539 Featured on 4docs.co.uk "Sex and Power" (2009) Cinemissimo Film Festival, Amsterdam, The Netherlands, 2009 Smart Project Space, Amsterdam, The Netherlands, 2009 "Babies Behind Bars" (2007) A Corto di Donne Film Festival, Naples, Italy, 2009 "Ladies Room" (2007) A Corto di Donne Film Festival, Naples, Italy, 2008 Ljubljana International Short Film Festival, Ljubljana, Slovenia, 2009 Cinemissimo Film Festival, Amsterdam, The Netherlands, 2009 Turin City Council, Turin, Italy, 2009