A 'mountain homily', a small story of love, family ties, and traditions, shot with extreme rigor, featuring primarily non-professional actors who were selected one by one for the smallest roles, and the dialect of Val di Sole, without which he would have lost the right music. Vermiglio by Maura Delpero, which won the second prize at Venice, the Silver Lion - Grand Jury Prize, and received almost unanimous approval from the jury chaired by Isabelle Huppert, is now Italy's choice for the Oscar for Best International Film. Maura Delpero is both cheerful and sensible. "I'm an outsider; alongside Vermiglio, there will be wonderful films from all over the world, and it's difficult to predict how it will end, but - says the director, whose film has been nominated for an Oscar in Italy - I go on knowing that I have worked hard, that I am serene, and that I have received a lot of positive feedback from the viewers. I lived as a woman, outside the realm of cinema, with enormous limits, and yet I found my center of gravity. I am grateful to Sorrentino for the kindness of his remarks".