ORME

Beatrice Polo & Marco Sergio Erculiani (Italy)

How the idea for your silent story was born?

Marco Sergio: It was born on a sunny day, listening to a song by Lucio Corsi and watching the sea wash away my daughter’s footprints on the shore while trying to answer the question: why does adulthood steal our ability to appreciate small gifts?

Beatrice: I had the pleasure of being contacted by Marco, who proposed his screenplay to me. I immediately connected with the atmosphere the writer created, which evoked in me the nostalgia for those childhood summers spent in a camper on the Mediterranean coast.

What's the story about?

Marco Sergio: The story is about a long-lasting friendship between a boy and the sea. It is about the joy of discovery and the poetry of passing time. It is about the small treasures that only children can truly appreciate, turning them into experiences and dreams. It teaches us that things may disappear, but wisdom and reveries will last forever.

Beatrice: The book is a moving and romantic journey through childhood memories, the passing of time, and the footprints left on the seashore. A story that evokes the delicate harmony between childhood and the sea, between life and nature.

Why have you decided to enter the contest?

Marco Sergio: I decided to enter the contest to tell a story, reach as many people as possible and deliver this message in a bottle: never stop wondering and appreciating the small gifts the universe gives you.

Beatrice: This opportunity represented a wonderful challenge for me as an illustrator, since wordless books are truly complex and fascinating artefacts to create. It is also exciting to be able to convey, through this contest, the delicate message of positivity and kindness behind this story.

ABOUT BEATRICE

Beatrice was born in October 1999 into a family of book, film, and comic book enthusiasts. Thanks to her loving parents, she was able to cultivate her natural calling for drawing and artistic expression. She has been playing the violin since she was a child and in her free time she proudly volunteers for the Italian Red Cross.

Instagram, Linkedin

ABOUT MARCO SERGIO

He’s a writer, astronomer, and science communicator born in 1981. He observes the sky and turns stars and silences into delicate stories shaped by time and contemplation. A daydreamer and an inventor of everevolving ideas, he loves experimenting, writing everywhere, playing music, and exploring where science meets poetry. 

Instagram, Website