Maura Delpero’s lushly told, moving mountainside World War II epic “Vermiglio” kept a low profile at the 2024 Venice Film Festival as one of a handful of Italian films in the competition. To some’s surprise — only because most eyes were on quote-unquote buzzier films like “The Brutalist” and “Babygirl” and “Queer” — this story of a repressed rural community upended by the arrival of a handsome stranger (Giuseppe De Domenico) won the Silver Lion prize, second only to the Golden Lion, from the jury led by Isabelle Huppert. Now, “Vermiglio” represents Italy in the 2025 Best International Feature Film Oscar race — and should land a spot on next week’s shortlist after nods from the Gothams and Golden Globes.

“I was happy when they nominated the [Venice] jury because of Isabelle, but also because of the other members,” Delpero told IndieWire of the filmmaker-heavy jury that included James Gray, Agnieszka Holland, Andrew Haigh,...