For the first time in history! Vatican will seek Oscar nomination

Ientitled “Green Lava”, the 39-minute film features a young Italian named Giacomo Mattivi, who lives with Duchenne muscle dystrophy, a genetic disease that causes weakness and progressive loss of muscle mass.

After the loss of his brother Mattia due to the same condition, Giacomo “regards the limitations imposed by his illness and finds strength in his community and the nature surrounding him”, points out the synopsis.

The film, produced by the Vatican and recorded in the Dolomites Mountain Chain in northern Italy, will be shown this week in Los Angeles as part of the process required for productions that wish to be considered by the Hollywood Academy.

This is the first time that a film produced by the Vatican has competed in the Oscars in the nearly 98 years of the award's history, considered the most prestigious of international cinema.

The project, however, will not specifically represent the Vatican. Unlike the international feature film category, which requires official support from a government or a country-specific committee, the document short film category — to which Green Lava competes — does not require any official presentation.