Ferzan Ozpetek's Facing Windows swept the Italian Golden Globe awards last night, taking five awards including Best Film, and Best Actor and Actress for Filippo Nigro and Giovanna Mezzogiorno, respectively.

The film also picked up the Best Music prize, for Andrea Guerra, and Best Screenplay, for Ozpetek and writing partner Gianni Romoli.

The Best Director award, however, went to former Oscar winner Gabriele Salvatores for I'm Not Scared.

Best non-Italian European Film was awarded to Roman Polanski's The Pianist and RAI Cinema-Canal Plus offshoot, 01 Distribution, was named Best Distribution Company.

A secondary award, the Grand Prize of the Foreign Press, was given to Roberto Faenza for his ten-years-in-the-making drama, The Soul Keeper (Prendimi l'anima). Other special mentions went to Domenico Procacci (Remember Me, The Embalmer) for best producer, Diego Ronsisvalle's The Astronomers and Roberto Benigni's Pinocchio.

Italian director Ettore Scola and composer Armando Trovajoli were presented with lifetime achievement awards. "Seeing as how you can lose your career at any moment in the film industry," joked Scola, "this prize should be re-named the Lifetime Duration Award for those of who have managed to survive!"

Other prizes included:

Best Debut Film: Passato Prossimo (Present Perfect) by Maria Sole Tognazzi

Best Short Film: Rosso Fango by Paolo Ameli

Best Photography: Daniele Nannuzzi for El Alamein

Best Debut Actor: Paolo Briguglia in El Alamein

Best Debut Actress: Elizabetta Rochetti in The Embalmer

Best Acting Revelation (female): Donatella Finocchiaro in Angela

Best Acting Revelation (male): Ernesto Mahieux in The Embalmer

Best Forgotten Film: Fate Come Noi by Francesco Apolloni