Truffle Hunters, The


Synopsis

Deep in the forests of Northern Italy resides the prized white Alba truffle. Desired by the wealthiest patrons in the world, it remains a pungent but rarified mystery. It cannot be cultivated or found, even by the most resourceful of modern excavators. The only souls on Earth who know how to dig it up are a tiny circle of canines and their silver-haired human companions—Italian elders with walking sticks and devilish senses of humor—who only scour for the truffle at night so as not to leave any clues for others. Still, this small enclave of hunters induces a feverish buying market that spans the globe. With unprecedented access to the elusive truffle hunters, filmmakers Michael Dweck and Gregory Kershaw (The Last Race, 2018 Sundance Film Festival) follow this maddening cycle from the forest floor to the pristine restaurant plate. With a wily and absurdist flare, The Truffle Hunters captures a precarious ritual constantly threatened by greed and outside influences but still somehow protected by those clever, tight-lipped few who know how to unearth the magic within nature.

Theatrical Release Date

Friday, March 26, 2021
Original Languages: Italian
Theatrical Languages: Italian with English subtitles
Genre: Documentary
Running Time: 84 min
Year: 2020

Credits

DIRECTED BY
Michael Dweck & Gregory Kershaw

Trailer


PHOTOS

Left to Right: Carlo Gonella, Maria Cicciù in THE TRUFFLE HUNTERS Image by Michael Dweck and Gregory Kershaw. Courtesy Sony Pictures Classics
Center: Angelo Gagliardi in THE TRUFFLE HUNTERS Image by Michael Dweck and Gregory Kershaw. Courtesy Sony Pictures Classics
Center: Gianfranco Curti in THE TRUFFLE HUNTERS Image by Michael Dweck and Gregory Kershaw. Courtesy Sony Pictures Classics
Center: Gianfranco Curti in THE TRUFFLE HUNTERS Image by Michael Dweck and Gregory Kershaw. Courtesy Sony Pictures Classics.
Director Gregory Kershaw. Photo by ClÇment Morin. Courtesy of Sony Pictures Classics
Left to Right: Aurelio Conterno, Birba (dog) in THE TRUFFLE HUNTERS Image by Michael Dweck and Gregory Kershaw. Courtesy Sony Pictures Classics.
Courtesy of Sony Pictures Classics
Director Michael Dweck. Photo by Henry Leutwyler. Courtesy of Sony Pictures Classics
Left: Fiona (dog), Sergio Cauda in THE TRUFFLE HUNTERS Image by Michael Dweck and Gregory Kershaw. Sony Pictures Classics
Left to Right: Aurelio Conterno, Birba (dog) in THE TRUFFLE HUNTERS Image by Michael Dweck and Gregory Kershaw. Courtesy Sony Pictures Classics.
Left to Right: Birba (dog), Aurelio Conterno in THE TRUFFLE HUNTERS Image by Michael Dweck and Gregory Kershaw. Courtesy Sony Pictures Classics.
Left to Right: Birba (dog), Aurelio Conterno in THE TRUFFLE HUNTERS Image by Michael Dweck and Gregory Kershaw. Courtesy Sony Pictures Classics.
Right: THE TRUFFLE HUNTERS Image by Michael Dweck and Gregory Kershaw. Courtesy Sony Pictures Classics
Right: Angelo Gagliardi in THE TRUFFLE HUNTERS Image by Michael Dweck and Gregory Kershaw. Courtesy Sony Pictures Classics