The 73rd Venice Film Festival is scheduled to start Wednesday, in a heavy atmosphere as the mourning for the hundreds of victims of the recent devastating earthquake in central Italy casts a heavy shadow on the event. The festival’s artistic director Alberto Barbera, its president Paolo Baratta and the organisers of the Venice Biennale informed media that the traditional formal dinner on the opening day and the gala next to the water had been canceled in a show of respect for the victims of the earthquake. A statement released said that Italy’s Biennale was in mourning and expressed its deepest condolences for the victims and absolute support and solidarity to the communities that were affected by the earthquake. This year, Venice’s big pitch for Oscar augury is La La Land, a Los Angeles-set musical starring Ryan Gosling and Emma Stone, and directed by Damien Chazelle as a follow-up to his remarkable jazz-class drama Whiplash; La La Land has been given the prestigious opening-gala slot.