One of the most critically esteemed European animated features of the last few years, Alain Ughetto’s stop-motion family biography No Dogs or Italians Allowed will be available to stream in the U.S., U.K. and Ireland via Mubi for one month (January 19 to February 19). The small screen release which will finally bring the Ughetto puppet family to the States is made possible by a partnership between My French Film Festival (MyFFF) and the streamer.
Synopsis: The beginning of the 20th century — Ughettera, Northern Italy, the Ughetto family’s village. Living in the region having become very difficult, the Ughettos dream of a better life abroad. Legend has it that Luigi Ughetto crossed the Alps to start a new life in France, forever changing the destiny of his beloved family. His grandson now retraces their story.
In this deeply personal and historical tale, Alain Ughetto uses stop-motion animation with a skillful blend of humor, sensitivity, and emotion to portray exile and his family history in No Dogs or Italians Allowed.
César Award-winning French actress Ariane Ascaride (Marius and Jeanette, The Snows of Kilamonjaro) highlights the voice cast as Cesira, Alain Ughetto’s grandmother, while the director narrates.
Completed in May 2022, the film had its world premiere at the Annecy International Animated Film Festival, where it garnered critical and public acclaim before winning the Jury Prize for feature film and the GAN Foundation Prize. The film won more than 20 awards, including the Grand Prize at Bucheon International Animation Festival and the European Film Award for animated film in 2022, the feature films awards at Anima in Brussels and the Tokyo Anime Awards in 2023. The film is nominated for the Lumières Awards, presented by the international press in France — winners will be announced next Monday.
No Dogs or Italians Allowed was released in French cinemas by Gebeka Films in January 2023, surpassing 208,000 admissions and ranking fourth among French animated feature films at the 2023 box office. The movie also performed well in theaters in The Netherlands (25,000 admissions), Italy (55,000) and Switzerland (14,000).
With the 14th edition of My French Film Festival, the first worldwide online festival entirely dedicated to Francophone films, the Ughetto’s film will be accessible to internet users all over the world through MyFrenchFilmFestival.com, and on over 80 VOD partner platforms.
Produced by Alexandre Cornu and Les Films du Tambour de Soie in Marseille for €3.7 million ($4M USD), No Dogs or Italians Allowed is a European co-production between Vivement Lundi! (based in Rennes, France), Foliascope (Valence, France), Nadasdy Film (Geneva, Switzerland), Graffiti Film (Turin, Italy), Lux Fugit Film (Brussels, Belgium) and Ocidental Filmes (Lisbon, Portugal).
The co-production team won the Cartoon Tribute award for Best European production at Cartoon Movie 2023. Ughetto and Les Films du Tambour de Soie will present a new project at the next Cartoon Movie in March: Rose and the Marmots.