At first sight

A small boy, carrying a suitcase and dressed in short pants, trudges down a street which is wet after a rain. "Punta Verde" is visible on a sign across the street, and while the little boy is unable to read it, the inscription is not really necessary for orientation. The viewer just knows: Italy, vacation, family, happiness.

A Prima Vista is an essay about the innocence of the gaze, that "first" look at the world which only small children and great filmmakers are capable of. Without a trace of inhibition and with the curiosity of someone who has no particular...