ITALY: Actress Nicole Kidman graces the red carpet at Rome's inaugural film festival

Hollywood actress Nicole Kidman graced the red carpet at Rome's debut film festival on Friday (October 13). The nine-day festival kicked off with Kidman 's intense portrayal of photographer Diane Arbus, who shocked America in the 1960s with her disturbing pictures of people on the fringes of society. Director Steven Shainberg's "Fur" mixes reality with fantasy to explore Arbus' transformation from the posh, uptight housewife of a fashion photographer into one of the most daring artists of her time. That metamorphosis is seen through Arbus' intimate friendship with her bizarre neighbour Lionel, played by Robert Downey Jr. Like most of the events and characters in the film, loosely based on Patricia Bosworth's biography of the photographer, their relationship is invented. Kidman insists the film is not a bio-pic but rather her interpretation of Arbus' character. Arbus became an icon of modern photography for her ground-breaking portraits of a world of outcasts -- among her favourite subjects were dwarves, giants, prostitutes, transvestites, homeless and mentally ill people. At a news conference earlier on Friday, Kidman said it had been a "deep spiritual experience" to interpret a real character, particularly someone as talented and tormented as Arbus, who committed suicide in 1971 at age of 48. The red-headed Australian star, who won an Oscar for her role as writer Virginia Woolf in the 2002 film "The Hours", noted that both had taken their own lives. As she made her way down the red carpet, Kidman stopped to sign autographs for excited fans who have gathered at Rome's Auditorium where all the nearly 100 films are being screened. A group of Italian teenagers were among the lucky ones who got the the chance to see their idol up close and personal. "I was shaking. I still am!" said 25-year-old Maurizio Destefanis. "Mama mia!" said 17-year-old Martina Farci. "She was so nice with everybody because she came to us and she was ready for everyone. She was very friendly," said Giulia Cristofori as she held up an autographed 'Fur' poster. And although he did not get to shake Kidman's hand, Destafanis said: "She touched my pen and for that's enough."

ITN Source | October 19, 2006

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