BIOGRAPHY

Gioacchino Balistreri, is an Italian director, screenwriter, composer of soundtracks and theatre music living in Switzerland. He was one of the five members of the Nomination Committee of the Swiss Film Academy for the 2026 Quartz Awards. He regularly performs in the LAC multicultural center of Lugano, where he carries out workshops on the world of the orchestra and soundtracks.

  • He obtained a master degree in Music and Arts from A. Scarlatti Conservatory in Italy, graduating with full marks as a pianist. He studied “Music Composition for Film” at the Chigiana Academy in Siena, under the guidance of the Academy Award-winning Maestro Luis Bacalov. In 2010 he completed a Master of Arts from the Department of Education and Learning in Locarno (CH).
  • Among his latest works as a composer are the original score for the film Reinas by Klaudia Reynicke, co-written with the director, selected by Switzerland for the 2025 Academy Awards®. In 2024, The film won the Grand Prix for Best Film at the Berlinale, the Prix du Public at the Locarno Film Festival, it was in competition at the Sundance Film Festival and the Satellite Awards. He composed the theme for Tramp Limited, the production company founded by Salvo Ficarra, Valentino Picone, and Attilio De Razza. He also composed the original scores for all the animated short films by Nico Bonomolo, including Maestrale, produced by Tramp Limited in collaboration with Studio Rain, winner of the 2022 David di Donatello Award for Best Short Film, for which he received the Best Original Score award at Cine Lido in Rome. The film was included in the shortlist for the 2023 Academy Awards®. He also composed the original music for Bonomolo’s Confino, produced by Lucky Red, nominated for both the David di Donatello and the Golden Globes, winner of the Giffoni Experience and the Santa Barbara International Film Festival. The film also made the long list for the 2018 Academy Awards®. For Bonomolo, he also scored Detours, which received a special mention at the Nastri d’Argento. He composed the music for three plays directed by Mauro Avogadro: Eichmann – Where the night begins by Stefano Massini, with Ottavia Piccolo and Paolo Pierobon, co-produced by Bolzano and Veneto Repertory Theaters, Fine Pena: Ora, written by Paolo Giordano, with Paolo Pierobon and Sergio Leone, produced by Piccolo Teatro in Milan, sold out record with 13,000 spectators in just 26 reruns, and The Blind by M. Maeterlinck, an Accademia Silvio d’Amico production that premiered at Spoleto Festival 2019.
  • His latest short film, Flying Chat, which he wrote, directed and scored, stars Dario Battaglia and Rosario Tedesco. Produced by Film&Beyond with the support of the City of Lugano, the film won Best Silent Short Film at the E FU CINEMA Short Film Festival 2026, a festival founded by Manuela Pineschi, Secretary General of the Italian Cinema Academy, the institution behind the David di Donatello and Vittorio De Sica Awards, where she also served as Jury President. His previous short film, Jolly, which he also wrote, directed and scored, stars Remo Girone and Rosario Tedesco. Produced by Central Productions (Lugano) in collaboration with RSI, the Swiss Federal Office of Culture and the Ticino Film Commission, it received the Best Original Score award at the Pianob Film Festival 2025, organized by the producers of Ennio, Giuseppe Tornatore’s documentary on Ennio Morricone. The film was also selected for the Los Angeles Film Festival and the Ferrara Film Festival 2024 in the International Short Film competition. His first narrative short film, De Angelis, which he wrote, directed and scored, stars Giulio Brogi and Vladimir Randazzo. Distributed by Premiere Film in 2020, it received a Special Mention at the Prato Film Festival 2021. His documentary Écoute-moi, produced by Quartamedia, marked his debut as a filmmaker and writer. It premiered at the Castellinaria – Festival del Cinema Giovane in 2018, where it was introduced by Giancarlo Zappoli, founder and Editor-in-Chief of MYmovies.
  • He conducts annual workshops on film scores and short film production at the Locarno Film Festival.

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Intervista Rete 2 (Part 6) // Player
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