Actor-turned director Anna Foglietta is back in Venice in a different guise this year, after serving as the event’s official emcee in 2020.
Foglietta — who is best-known to international audiences for her role in Italy’s smash hit “Perfect Strangers” — is on the Lido with her directorial debut, “A Common Story.” It’s a marriage drama toplined by Alba Rohrwacher, whose credits include Pablo Larraín’s “Maria” and who served on the 2025 Cannes competition jury panel. Rohrwacher plays a middle-aged woman named Erika whose relationship with her husband, Mauro, and their simple life in the countryside is disrupted when their daughter Irene leaves to go to university abroad. Their house feels empty, and the balance on which they had based their lives seems to crumble.
The film, being sold by True Colours, is produced by HT Film, Indigo Film, Tenderstories and Blu One Lab with support from Rai Cinema and in collaboration with HBO Max.
Foglietta spoke to Variety about working with Rohrwacher and shares her thoughts about Venice’s gender imbalance.
How did “A Common Story” germinate?
