Padre padrone

An autobiographical tale of the life of a young boy, who grows up to become a linguistics professor, thereby escaping the despotic tyranny of his father who wants him to train as a shepherd. Using both professional actors and untrained locals from the Sardinian countryside, this story of the virtual imprisonment of young Sardinians by their rural surroundings was originally filmed by the Taviani brothers for Italian TV, but went on to win the Best Film Award at Cannes in 1977. (Arrow Films)