Black Cats & Chequered Flags

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Black Cats & Chequered Flags

original title:

Black Cats & Chequered Flags

cast:

Christian Zecca, Ian Thomas Szemere, Giorgio Shön, Patrizia Ascari, Saverio Buono

screenplay:

Lewis Ball

editing:

set design:

Carlo Borean, Stephen Stephenson, Paolo De Rocco

music:

Mustafa Bal

country:

Italy

year:

2025

film run:

20'

format:

VR - colour

status:

Ready (22/07/2025)

festivals & awards:

Black Cats & Chequered Flags begins with a haunting Spatial Memory Fragment that immerses viewers in the emotional world of Alberto Ascari. Echoes of his father, legendary driver Antonio Ascari, blend with childhood flashes and the superstitions that shaped his fate.
The experience then shifts into high gear with a multiplayer MR pit stop — a collaborative challenge that brings users into the adrenaline and precision of a 1950s Formula 1 team.
The journey continues in a stylised VR narrative that weaves archival footage, interactive storytelling, motion capture actors, and immersive sound to explore Ascari’s victories, rituals and tragic destiny. 360° films shot on location in Turin, the Ferrari Museum in Maranello, and the Monza racetrack add historical depth. Ascari — the only Italian double Formula 1 World Champion with Ferrari — was fearless, superstitious, and chivalrous: a man both heroic and haunted.