• First prize at the International Festival of Sports Film in Kazan (Russian republic of Tatarstan), 2009

Documentary on Argentine football player Diego maradona.

Often considered as the best football player in the world, Diego Maradona is also known for his addiction to drugs. Wishing to show his true face, Emir Kusturica signs in this film an intimate portrait of the Pibe de Oro.

French teaser

French trailer

• Diego Maradona …. himself
• Emir Kusturica …. himself
• Manu Chao …. himself
• Stribor Kusturica …. himself

Manu Chao has written a song specially for the film : La vida tombola. The rest of the soundtrack is signed by Stribor Kusturica and comes partly from Promise me this' soundtrack.

The official website (in French) is open : maradona-lefilm.com

Download the press kit (in French) :

Emir Kusturica has talked of this project several times :

• It is the first film that will treat all the aspects of the life of Maradona.
• The film will be very complex to make, because I want to show the tru personality of Maradona. Football is a science of a great mathematic precision !
• The film ends when the former football player is in good health, and has no more addiction to drugs.
• The film will show “the three Maradonas” I've discovered during the shooting : the football teacher, the politically incorrect citizen against the unilateral politics of the USA and the family man. These three Diegos will be in the end of the film I will shoot in the Aztec Stadium in Mexico, where Diego scored one of his most famous goals, during the World Cup 1986 against the English team.

Invited to the show of Diego Maradona in novembre 2005, Emir Kusturica was introduced as the genius director, his brother. They even played with a foot ball.

During the Summit of the Americas on 4th november 2005, Emir Kusturica took part of the protest train organised against the venue of the president of the USA Georges W. Bush in Argentina. He could shoot Diego Maradona in his politic combat.

Diego Maradona went to Cannes in 2005 when Emir Kusturica was president of the festival.

Recovering health after serious accidents, the main problem of Emir Kusturica during year 2005 was to manage the physical changes of his main actor : fat at the beginning of the year, ha had seriously lost weight at the end of the year.

Manu Chao : ”We met all the three in Naples and it was wonderful. Emir wanted me to sing “Santa Maradona”, but I didn't like the idea, so I composed a new song.”

About the film, Diego Maradona declared : ”When you become a well-known figure, you aren't allowed to talk about the United States or George W. Bush; there's a whole lot of subjects you're not allowed to talk about anymore. But Emir Kusturica gave me the respect that every human being deserves. Even if you're a football player, you have the right to express your opinions about somebody. This is why we actually started on this film. This is why we brought this film to birth. What I'm trying to say through the film that Emir has made is that I have my own opinion, and through me, the Argentinian people can express an opinion, in the same way that Emir sometimes expresses the point of view and the way of life of his own country. We made this film by opening our hearts to one another. In Emir's film, you find all the elements which are essential to understanding who is Maradona, who is Diego, who is his father, who is this football player who took drugs but who managed to escape from the world of drugs. I believe that Emir's film is really my film. In Emir's film, nothing is invented. Emir tells things as they are, because it's my story. ”

The film was first presented in Cannes, in 2008. Emir Kusturica and Diego Maradona even had some fun during the photo-call with a foot ball…

CANNES, FRANCE - MAY 20: Diego Maradona and Director Emir Kusturica attend the 'Maradona' - Photocall at the Palais des Festivals during the 61st International Cannes Film Festival on May 20 , 2008 in Cannes, France. (Photo by Francois Durand/Getty Images)	CANNES, FRANCE - MAY 20: Diego Maradona and Director Emir Kusturica attend the 'Maradona' - Photocall at the Palais des Festivals during the 61st International Cannes Film Festival on May 20 , 2008 in Cannes, France. (Photo by Francois Durand/Getty Images)	CANNES, FRANCE - MAY 20: Diego Maradona (R) kicks a ball to Director Emir Kusturica at the 'Maradona' - Photocall at the Palais des Festivals during the 61st International Cannes Film Festival on May 20 , 2008 in Cannes, France. (Photo by Francois Durand/Getty Images)	CANNES, FRANCE - MAY 20: Diego Maradona and Director Emir Kusturica arrive for the 'Maradona' - Photocall at the Palais des Festivals during the 61st International Cannes Film Festival on May 20 , 2008 in Cannes, France. (Photo by Kristian Dowling/Getty Images)	CANNES, FRANCE - MAY 20: Football Legend Diego Maradona and Director Emir Kusturica attends the 'Maradona' Premiere at the Palais des Festivals during the 61st International Cannes Film Festival on May 20 , 2008 in Cannes, France. (Photo by Pascal Le Segretain/Getty Images)
CANNES, FRANCE - MAY 20: Football legend Diego Maradona and director Emir Kusturica and their families attend the 'Maradona' Premiere at the Palais des Festivals during the 61st International Cannes Film Festival on May 20 , 2008 in Cannes, France. (Photo by Gareth Cattermole/Getty Images)	CANNES, FRANCE - MAY 21: Director Emir Kusturica (L), an unidentified guest, football legend Diego Armando Maradona (R) and his daughter Dalma arrive at the 'Che' Premiere at the Palais des Festivals during the 61st International Cannes Film Festival on May 21, 2008 in Cannes, France. (Photo by Sean Gallup/Getty Images)