Copyright Variety
Oscar-winning director Giuseppe Tornatore‘s upcoming documentary about Brunello Cucinelli, the fashion designer known as Italy’s “King of Cashmere,” is being launched in earnest at the American Film Market by London-based sales and production company Twenty-Nine Palms Entertainment. Variety can exclusively reveal first-look images of the buzzy hybrid film, which mixes documentary and fiction and is titled “Brunello: The Gracious Visionary.” It chronicles Cucinelli’s rise from being a farmer’s son to becoming creative director and executive chairman of a global luxury lifestyle brand with a market capitalization of more than $7.8 billion. The film is described in promotional materials as “an intimate portrait of Brunello Cucinelli, a ‘philosopher-designer’ revered for his distinctive integration of humanistic values, craftsmanship and ethical entrepreneurship.” After a soft launch in September at the Toronto International Film Festival and market, Twenty-Nine Palms — a new outfit that debuted at Cannes headed by former Amazon MGM Studios exec Edoardo Bussi — is now ramping up sales efforts on “Brunello: The Gracious Visionary” ahead of its release via RAI Cinema’s 01 Distribution in Italy on Dec. 9, followed by an international roll out in 2026. Popular on Variety Cucinelli, who was born in the ancient Umbrian hamlet of Castel Rigone in 1953, founded his company in 1978 and became successful by dyeing cashmere in “pop colors” at a time when, as he has put it, there was no colored cashmere for women. Cucinelli has said the doc, which was shot in Umbria, will depict key moments in his career, showcasing his passion for Italian craftsmanship and commitment to a concept he calls “humanistic capitalism,” under which every stitch of clothing his company creates is made in Italy and mostly in the area where he comes from. “Brunello: The Gracious Visionary” will feature re-enactments in which Cucinelli is played by several actors. The image above with the neon “BAR” sign features the actor Francesco Ferroni, while the younger actor in the wheat field (image below) is Francesco Cannevale. Cucinelli is also being re-enacted by rising Italian star Saul Nanni, who played the prince’s nephew Tancredi Falconeri in Netflix’s lavish Italian original “The Leopard.”
