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. But when Chiara sees her father and her cousins leave the party abruptly in a black car, she becomes suspicious. When he is still not home the next morning, the bright teenager begins her own investigation. Her search takes her into the dark underworld of the Calabrian mafia where she faces a momentous decision.
"I don’t think I’ve bad-mouthed the Roma community, whom I love with all my heart and consider as family. The important thing is to show the human side, looking beyond the stereotypes. I try to avoid being a “do-gooder” at all costs; the challenge I set myself, and which I also set for the viewer, was to show what they really are, and love them in spite of everything, making people realise that they are people just like us, even if they steal." (Jonas Carpignano)
Jonas Carpignano
Born in 1984 in New York, spent his childhood between Rome and New York City, studied film at NYU. His award-winning cinematic output comprises mostly short films and often deals with world migration and xenophobia in Italy. He lives in Italy and works as a writer and director. A Chiara is his third feature film.