Beyond Selinunte (2006)

Run Time - 56 min.  |   Countries - Italy  |  
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Synopsis by Mark Deming

Selinunte is a city in Sicily that for centuries has been a crossroads of human migration, and as a consequence its ruins are a treasure trove for archeologists curious about life in ancient Europe. However, in the Forties many researchers began to fear that as the city grew, some of its richest treasures would be lost as the demand for new housing and business construction cut into the unprotected ruins. When Professor Vincenzo Tusa was named Superintendent of Antiquities for Western Sicily, it was his job to protect Selinunte's history from the demands of progress, and he established a permanent archeological dig site that would maintain the ancient ruins and artifacts for future study. Tusa spent twenty years making this dream come true, and filmmaker Salvo Cuccia explores both the struggle to guard the ancient past and how Selinunte balances the needs of past and present in the documentary Oltre Selinunte (aka Beyond Selinunte). Oltre Selinunte received its North American premiere at the 2007 Full Frame Documentary Film Festival.