ROME – One day longer this year, and one more screening hall next year: the Rome Film Fest is expanding and lengthening its stride, challenging its audience and aiming for even greater growth. The festival opened on Tuesday evening and runs until October 25., boasting a lineup of 150 films, masterclasses with directors and actors, and red-carpet appearances by stars like Julianne Moore and Javier Bardem, who are in town to receive lifetime achievement awards.
Opening night
The festival launched on a Tuesday rather than its traditional Wednesday start. On the red carpet at the Auditorium Parco della Musica—where Democratic Party leader Elly Schlein and Rome Mayor Roberto Gualtieri were also in attendance—celebrities from across Italian cinema turned out in force: Carlo Verdone, Christian De Sica, Luisa Ranieri, and maestro Marco Bellocchio, who presented a career award to composer Nicola Piovani. Figures from the music world were also out in full strength, including Anna Pepe, Ariete, Tommaso Paradiso, and Brunori Sas.
Record-breaking numbers
According to festival president Salvo Nastasi, the 2027 edition will finally secure the long-coveted Sala Santa Cecilia—the Auditorium’s largest venue, seating 2,744.
While the festival maintains its core venue at the Auditorium—where fans are eagerly awaiting pop icon Jovanotti, football coach Daniele De Rossi, Hollywood star Jenna Ortega, and tributes to late music legend Pino Daniele—it is expanding across the entire city, extending into hospitals and prisons as well as theatres, venues, and museums.
Demand for tickets continues to climb year after year. Last year’s edition drew 116,000 spectators and 80,000 accredited professionals. To find out how many there will be this year, we'll have to wait until the festival's final day.
The lineup: Genovese opens the Fest
What is already certain is that the program crafted by artistic director Paola Malanga strives to cater to every taste—blending auteur cinema, genre films, highlights picked from major international festivals, documentaries, and TV series. Ample space is dedicated to Italian cinema "to encourage and support our national film industry," says Malanga.
This focus begins right with the opening film, helm-directed by popular filmmaker Paolo Genovese, fresh off box-office hit comedies such as Perfetti Sconosciuti (Perfect Strangers) and FolleMente (Madly). With Il rumore delle cose nuove (The Sound of New Things), Genovese returns to exploring relationships, albeit with a darker, more mournful tone and an all-star ensemble cast including Emanuela Fanelli, Claudia Pandolfi, Vittoria Puccini, Stefano Accorsi, Lino Musella, Edoardo Pesce, and Claudio Santamaria—who walked the red carpet together en masse.
"Rome becomes an open-air screening room"
The opening ceremony was hosted once again by TV and radio host Ema Stockholma, who admitted as she took the hall: "Even my toes are trembling." Last year, I actually stumbled over saying ‘good evening’, but this year I feel more at ease. We're going to have fun." Then, from the stage: "My heart is racing—can I say that, Tommaso?" she added with a wink to singer Tommaso Paradiso. "Starting today, we take over the city. Rome becomes an open-air theatre, more widespread than ever, and for the next ten days there will be more cinemas than construction sites," she quipped, greeting Mayor Gualtieri.
"Going to the movies is good for everyone," she continued. "It means being curious, listening to new stories, and seeing different perspectives. In times like these, listening to other people's stories is a political act, and one that should be practiced outside the cinema, too."
Marco Bellocchio Honors Nicola Piovani
One of the evening's most moving moments was Nicola Piovani receiving a career honour from Marco Bellocchio. Introducing him, Bellocchio remarked: "I am happy and honoured to present this award to Nicola Piovani, who is a great friend, but above all, a great composer. "Together we made films that are very dear to me: I'm thinking of In the Name of the Father, The Seagull, and The Traitor. A collaborator of Fellini, Monicelli, and so many others, Nicola is a great composer because his music is instantly recognizable, much like Morricone and Rota. Time and again, sitting in front of the TV, I've heard a score and immediately known it was his—he is remarkable."
"A Great Artist and a Dear Friend"
"This is deeply moving for so many reasons: it's a prestigious lifetime achievement award, but I'm not done yet," joked Piovani. "The word 'career' can sometimes invite scepticism, but etymologically it comes from the path where the cart used to pass: day after day, film after film, a career is built. It's a term I really like. It's wonderful to receive this award here as a guest of Cinema per Roma.
But let me say that the greatest thrill of all is accepting it from the hands of an extraordinary artist. We were both very, very young when, with his trademark daring, he entrusted me with his third film—I was just a beginner. Thanks to him, I went on to score 230 films. He is a master of his craft, but also a dear friend, and true friends are rare."
Lifetime Industry Award for Tessa Ross
Producer Tessa Ross—the force behind hits like Billy Elliot, Slumdog Millionaire, The Last King of Scotland, In Bruges, 12 Years a Slave, and The Zone of Interest—was honoured with the Lifetime Industry Award. The award was presented by one of her frequent directors, Germany's Edward Berger, who worked with her on Conclave (shot at Cinecittà) and launched his Oscar campaign right here at the Rome Film Fest.
Reading an open letter to her, Berger said: "You have shaped our culture through so many films and guided so many directors that the list is endless. The truth is, you love life and you love cinema. Thanks to you, movies still possess a vision; you are brave and a radical thinker. You never complain, and you inspire us by your example."
"Thank you for being here in this wonderful city, Edward, where we made Conclave together at Cinecittà. It's extraordinary to receive this award in this marvellous city alongside such a dedicated crew," Ross replied. "I feel so fortunate for the journey I’ve shared with all these films. Filmmaking forces you to look forward, but looking back, I must thank all the incredible people who shared this journey with me: the visionary directors, the screenwriters whose imagination makes cinema possible, and the artists in front of and behind the camera."
The Jury President
While last year's festival opened with a tribute to Claudia Cardinale, this edition features Monica Vitti's enigmatic gaze gracing the official poster. The jury tasked with selecting the winning film—among 18 titles in competition, 3 of which are Italian—is headed by Polish director Jan Komasa, who made his debut with the horror film Good Boy.
With a genre film representing Italy in this year’s Oscar race, perhaps the genre itself will make its mark at the festival's final awards ceremony.
Remembering Jeremy Thomas
"It is a joy to be here," said the Polish director in Italian, paying tribute to the recently deceased producer Jeremy Thomas.
"Jeremy loved Italy, its cinema, its people, and its way of life. That love brought us together. Jeremy, I dedicate my presence here to you. If you were here, we would be planning our first Italian film together.
"We live in uncertain times. Europe must stand united in defending democracy, rights, and creative freedom. Our diverse voices are what bring us into this same room today, looking each other in the eye."
This article was reviewed by an external translation partner