NEW DELHI: Around 274 films from 47 different countries – features, shorts and those of medium-length – are being screened at the ongoing 67th edition of the Festival del film Locarno.

The second under Carlo Chatrian’s stewardship as artistic director was officially inaugurated earlier this month by its President Marco Solari.

The festival paid a tribute to Charlie Chaplin to mark the centenary of his creation, The Tramp, via a screening of Modern Times with live musical accompaniment by the Orchestra della Svizzera italiana conducted by Philippe Béran.

The award of the Pardo alla carriera was given to Jean-Pierre Léaud. The film Lucy introduced by its director Luc Besson was screened at the opening.

The 67th edition’s guests will include, among others, Dario Argento, Olivier Assayas, Juliette Binoche, Garrett Brown, Suzanne Clément, Pedro Costa, Julie Depardieu, Lav Diaz, Víctor Erice, Mia Farrow, Florian David Fitz, Tony Gatlif, Giancarlo Giannini, Hippolyte Girardot, Melanie Griffith, HPG, Guido Lombardo, Fernand Melgar, Armin Mueller-Stahl, Rita Pavone, Alex Ross Perry, Matías Pi?eiro, Roman Polanski, Jonathan Price, Martín Rejtman, Eran Riklis, Jason Schwartzmann, Emmanuelle Seigner, Nansun Shi, Aleksandr Sokurov, Andrea Staka, Agn?s Varda, Paul Vecchiali and Jürgen Vogel.

Among the institutional guests, the Federal Councillor Alain Berset at the opening day and, on Sunday, the Federal Coucillor and president of the Swiss Confederation Didier Burkhalter, as well as Navi Pillay, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights.

While the three official competitions offer an opportunity to take the pulse of current production all over the world, an important part of the programme is dedicated to film history, and those who have created it, giving viewers an intimate insight into those artists whose work they can discover, or re-discover, also via the numerous ‘in conversation’ events that are open to the public. 

The festival will conclude over the weekend with the prize-giving ceremony on 16 August.