The Seamstresses of Villarey


Inspired by an extraordinary true story, The Seamstresses of Villarey is a powerful, deeply moving tribute to the courage of women in wartime. With strength, resilience, and quiet defiance, they turned stitches into acts of rebellion—reminding us that even in the darkest of times, hope can be sewn into every seam.

Ancona, 1943. As war rips through Italy, families are torn apart and homes left empty. Eighteen-year-old Laura knows this all too well—her mother has just passed away, her father is missing in action in Greece, and she is left to care for her younger brother, Milo.

Everything changes when she meets Alda, a strong and compassionate widow who has raised four daughters on her own and works as a seamstress and caretaker at the Villarey military barracks. Alda takes Laura under her wing, teaching her the art of sewing—but soon, needle and thread become tools of resistance.

As the tide of history turns with Mussolini’s fall and the Badoglio armistice, Italy is thrown into chaos. On September 15, German forces occupy Ancona and imprison over 3,000 Italian soldiers at Villarey, marking them for deportation to Nazi labor camps.

But Alda refuses to stand by. In secret, she orchestrates a daring plan for a mass escape—a plan that will change the course of many lives.