Among the events taking place on the first day is the ceremony to award a career Golden Lion to Italian director and screenwriter Liliana Cavani.

The main competition kicks off with a screening of Edoardo De Angelis’s Comandante, starring Pierfrancesco Favino.

It tells the story of Salvatore Todaro, an Italian naval officer and submariner who towed to safety lifeboats carrying the survivors of ships he had sunk during the Battle of the Atlantic in World War II.

A submarine from the period has docked at Saint Mark’s Square for the occasion.

The 2023 edition of world’s oldest cinema festival runs until September 9.

ANSA