20th Rome Film Festival
2025 edition of Rome Film Festival
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The 20th Rome Film Festival was held from 15 October in the Auditorium Parco della Musica, Rome till 26 October 2025.[1] The festival opened with 2025 Italian comedy film Life Goes This Way by Riccardo Milani.[2] Paola Cortellesi, an Italian actress, comedian, film director, screenwriter and producer served as the president of the jury of the Progressive Cinema Competition.[3][4]
Official poster | |
| Opening film | Life Goes This Way by Riccardo Milani |
|---|---|
| Closing film | Vita da Carlo (TV series 4 episodes) |
| Location | Auditorium Parco della Musica, Rome |
| Founded | 2006 |
| Awards | Best Film: Left-Handed Girl by Shih-Ching Tsou |
| Directors | Francesca Via |
| Hosted by |
|
| Artistic director | Paola Malanga |
| No. of films | 198 |
| Festival date | Opening: 15 October 2025 Closing: 26 October 2025 |
| Language | International |
| Website | www |
Ema Stokholma, a DJ, host, actress, writer and singer, hosted the opening of the festival on 15 October in Sala Sinopoli of the Auditorium Parco della Musica Ennio Morricone. She also hosted the closing ceremony and the awards presentation ceremony on 25 October in Sala Petrassi.[5] The Taiwanese-American drama film Left-Handed Girl written, directed and produced by Shih-Ching Tsou, won the Best film award, while French drama film Nino by Pauline Loquès won the Grand Jury Prize, as announced during the presentation.[6][7]
In the 20th edition of the festival 198 films from 38 countries had 436 screenings with the total attendance of 116,503 people.[8]
The festival concluded on 26 October 2025 with re-run of winning films and screening of the final season of Carlo Verdone's TV series Vita da Carlo, which is a portrayal of the drama and the comedy of Carlo Verdone's private life.[9]
Highlights
The festival celebrated birth centenary of Franco Pinna, Italian photographer of the second half of the 20th century. The official poster of the festival is a shot taken by him on the set of Federico Fellini's 1965 fantasy comedy-drama film, Juliet of the Spirits.[10] David Puttnam, British-Irish film producer, educator, environmentalist and former member of the House of Lords, was honoured with Industry Lifetime Achievement Award at the opening ceremony. He received the award from Britain-based Italian director and screenwriter Uberto Pasolini.[11]
Jafar Panahi, Iranian film director, screenwriter, and editor and Richard Linklater, American filmmaker were honoured with Lifetime Achievement Award by Italian film director and screenwriter Giuseppe Tornatore and Italian film director, screenwriter, and actor Marco Bellocchio respectively. On 16 October the New York filmmaker Nia DaCosta was presented with the Progressive Lifetime Achievement Award by the festival's Artistic Director Paola Malanga.[12]
On 19 September 2025, the festival unveiled its line-up. The festival showcased 19i titles from 38 countries. [13][14]
Jury
The jury for the competitive sections was announced on 29 July 2025. The jury will decide Best Film, Grand Jury Prize, Best Director, Best Screenplay, the "Monica Vitti" Award for Best Actress, the "Vittorio Gassman" Award for Best Actor and the Special Jury Prize in Progressive Cinema Competition.[15][16]
Progressive Cinema Competition Award
- Paola Cortellesi, an Italian actress, comedian, film director, screenwriter and producer (Jury President)
- Teemu Nikki, a Finnish director and screenwriter
- William Oldroyd, a British director and screenwriter
- Brian Selznick, an American writer and illustrator
- Nadia Tereszkiewicz, a French-Finnish actress
Progressive Cinema, Freestyle and Grand Public Competition sections
- Santiago Mitre, Argentine film director and screenwriter (Jury President)
- Patrick Dickinson, Anglo-Irish director and screenwriter
- Barbara Ronchi, Italian actress
Events
Celebration of Franco Pinna
Festa del Cinema will honor the 100th birth anniversary of Italian photographer Franco Pinna with three parallel exhibitions titled "Franco Pinna Photographer. Tribute to a Century." Curated by Paolo Pisanelli and organized by Archivio Franco Pinna and OfficinaVisioni, the exhibitions will be showcased in key festival venues, in collaboration with Cinema del reale, Erratacorrige, and Big Sur.[17]
Official sections
The twentieth edition will have following sections:[18][19]
- Progressive Cinema Competition
- Freestyle
- Grand public
- Special screenings
- Best of 2025
- History of cinema
- Special events
Opening film
La vita va così starring Virginia Raffaele, Diego Abatantuono, and Aldo Baglio, a "humorous twenty-year story set in a wonderful corner of Sardinia" was selected as the opening film of the festival.[20]
| English title | Original title | Director(s) | Production country(ies) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Life Goes This Way | La vita va così | Riccardo Milani | Italy |
Progressive Cinema Competition - Visions for the World of Tomorrow
| English title | Original title | Director(s) | Production country(ies) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 40 Seconds | 40 secondi | Vincenzo Alfieri | Italy |
| The Eyes Of Others | Gli occhi degli altri | Andrea De Sica | Italy |
| Good Boy | Jan Komasa | Poland, United Kingdom | |
| Hen | Kota | György Pálfi | Germany, Greece, Hungary |
| This Island | Esta Isla | Lorraine Jones Molina, Cristian Carretero | Puerto Rico |
| Left-Handed Girl | 左撇子女孩 | Shih-Ching Tsou | Taiwan, France, United States, United Kingdom |
| Mad Bills to Pay (or Destiny, dile que no soy malo) | Joel Alfonso Vargas | United States | |
| Nino | Pauline Loquès | France | |
| Our Hero, Balthazar | Oscar Boyson | United States | |
| The Piano Accident | L'Accident de piano | Quentin Dupieux | France |
| Queen of Coal | Miss Carbón | Agustina Macri | Spain, Argentina |
| Re-creation | Jim Sheridan, David Merriman | Ireland, Luxembourg | |
| Roberto Rossellini, More Than a Life | Ilaria de Laurentiis , Andrea Paolo Massara and Raffaele Brunetti | Italy, Latvia | |
| Sciatunostro | Leandro Picarella | Italy | |
| Six Days in Spring | Six Jours Ce Printemps-There | Joachim Lafosse | Belgium, France, Luxembourg |
| The Things You Kill | Alireza Khatami | Turkey, France, Poland, Canada | |
| Wild Nights, Tamed Beasts | Chang Ye Jiang Jin | Wang Tong | China |
| Winter of the Crow | Kasia Adamik | Poland, Luxembourg, United Kingdom | |
Freestyle
Films
| English title | Original title | Director(s) | Production country(ies) |
|---|---|---|---|
| The Big Bowl | Karen Di Porto | Italy | |
| California Schemin' | James McAvoy | United Kingdom | |
| The Council Chamber | La camera di consiglio | Fiorella Infascelli | Italy |
| Keep Me in Mind | Alberto Palmiero | Italy | |
| Malavia | Nunzia De Stefano | Italy | |
| Unseen Pictures | L'Oeuvre Invisible | Avril Tembouret, Vladimir Rodionov | France |
| Peter Hujar's Day | Ira Sachs | United States | |
| Mehdi's Little Cuisine | La petite cuisine de Mehdi | Amine Adjina | France |
| Queens of the Dead | Tina Romero | United States | |
Arts
| English title | Original title | Director(s) | Production countr
y(ies) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cannibals | Cannibali | Hilary Tiscione | Italy |
| Catartis - Preserving The Future | Ferdinando Vicentini Orgnani | Italy | |
| Comedy Doesn't Exist. Salemme Tries Eduardo | Raffaele Rago | Italy | |
| Dacia, My Life - Japanese Dialogues | Izumi Chiaraluce | Italy | |
| Easy to Love - The True Story Of Massimo Urbani | Paolo Colangeli | Italy | |
| Ellroy Vs La | Francesco Zippel | Italy | |
| L'énigme Velázquez | L'énigme Velázquez | Stéphane Sorlat | France |
| I Love Lucca Comics & Games | Manlio Castagna | Italy | |
| It's Never Over, Jeff Buckley | Amy J. Berg | United States | |
| The Force of Destiny | Anissa Bonnefont | Italy, France | |
| Looking for Nivola | Peter Marcias | Italy | |
| The Librarians | Kim A. Snyder | United States | |
| Beyond the Border: Images Of Francesco And Mimmo Jodice | Matteo Parisini | Italy | |
| Pirandello - The Giant In Love | Costanza Quatriglio | Italy | |
| Procès D'un Jeune Poète | Procès D'un Jeune Poète | Philippe Van Cutsem | Belgium |
| Rino Gaetano - Ever Blur | Giorgio Verdelli | Italy | |
| Stardust: A Story of Love and Architecture | Jim Venturi, Anita Naughton | United States | |
| Stile Albert | Michele Masneri, Antongiulio Panizzi | Italy | |
| Tutta Vita | Valentina Cenni | Italy | |
Series
| English title | Original title | Director(s) | Production country
y(ies) |
|---|---|---|---|
| The Anatomy of a Moment | Anatomía de un instante | Alberto Rodríguez Librero | Spain, France |
| Choose Earth | Anne de Carbuccia | United States, Italy | |
| The Deal | Jean-Stéphane Bron | Switzerland, France, Luxembourg, Belgium | |
| Mrs Playmen | Riccardo Donna | Italy | |
| Sandokan | Jan Maria Michelini, Nicola Abbatangelo | Italy | |
| Tupa 13 | Teemu Nikki | Finland | |
| Vita da Carlo | Carlo Verdone | Italy | |
| Warriors – The Rule of Balance | Gianluca Maria Tavarelli | Italy | |
Grand public
| English title | Original title | Director(s) | Production country
y(ies) |
|---|---|---|---|
| & Sons | Pablo Trapero | United Kingdom, Canada | |
| Alla festa della Rivoluzione | Arnaldo Catinari | Italy | |
| ANNA: The First Film on Anna Magnani | Monica Guerritore | Italy | |
| The Big Fake | Il falsario | Stefano Lodovichi | Italy |
| Breve storia d'amore | Ludovica Rampoldi | Italy | |
| Couture | Alice Winocour | United States, France | |
| Dracula | Luc Besson | France | |
| Elena's War | Elena del ghetto | Stefano Casertano | Italy |
| Five Seconds | Cinque secondi | Paolo Virzì | Italy |
| Glenrothan | Brian Cox | United Kingdom | |
| Hamnet | Chloé Zhao | United Kingdom, United States | |
| Hedda | Nia DaCosta | United States | |
| Homo Argentum | Gastón Duprat, Mariano Cohn | Argentina | |
| Illusion | Illusione | Francesca Archibugi | Italy |
| Life Goes This Way | La vita va così | Riccardo Milani | Italy |
| Out of Truth | Fuori la verità | Davide Minnella | Italy |
| Two Pianos | Deux Pianos | Arnaud Desplechin | France |
Special screenings
| English title | Original title | Director(s) | Production country
y(ies) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 Meters to Andriivka | 2000 метрів до Андріївки | Mstyslav Chernov | Ukraine |
| Belén | Dolores Fonzi | Argentina | |
| The Better Truth | Lorenza Indovina | Italy | |
| Cuba & Alaska | Yegor Troyanovsky | Ukraine, France, Belgium | |
| The Guitar in the Rock - Lucio Corsi live at the Abbey of San Galgano | Tommaso Ottomano | Italy | |
| The Diaspora of the Sails | Francesca Comencini | Italy | |
| Ecce Mole | Heinz Emigholz | Italy | |
| The Most Beautiful Son | Giovanni Piperno, Stefano Rulli | Italy | |
| I Am Curious Johnny | Julien Temple | Italy | |
| Kenny Dalglish | Asif Kapadia | United Kingdom | |
| Ni Primera Ni Dama | Barbara Cupisti | Italy | |
| Us and the Great Ambition | Andrea Segre | Italy | |
| Pontifex - A Bridge Between Mercy and Hope | Daniele Ciprì | Italy | |
| The Prince of Madness | Dario D'Ambrosi | Italy | |
| Put Your Soul on Your Hand and Walk | Sepideh Farsi | France, Palestine | |
| Hurry Up. Chefs on Leave | Claudia Gerini | Italy | |
| Wider Than the Sky | Valerio Jalongo | Italy, Switzerland | |
Best of 2025
| English title | Original title | Director(s) | Production country(ies) |
|---|---|---|---|
| The Secret Agent | O Agente Secreto | Kleber Mendonça Filho | Brazil, France, Germany, Netherlands |
| Die My Love | Lynne Ramsay | United States | |
| Dreams | Michel Franco | Mexico, United States | |
| Eddington | Ari Aster | United States | |
| If I Had Legs I'd Kick You | Mary Bronstein | United States | |
| Yes! | כן! | Nadav Lapid | Israel, France, Germany, Cyprus, United Kingdom |
| Leibniz – Chronicle of a Lost Painting | Leibniz – Chronik eines verschollenen Bildes | Edgar Reitz and Anatol Schuster | Germany |
| Nouvelle Vague | Richard Linklater | France | |
| Once Upon a Time in Gaza | Tarzan and Arab Nasser | Palestine, France, Portugal | |
| It Was Just an Accident | یک تصادف ساده | Jafar Panahi | Iran, France, Luxembourg |
History of cinema
Documentaries
| English title | Original title | Director(s) | Production country(ies) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Becoming Hitchcock: The Legacy of Blackmail | Laurent Bouzereau | France, United Kingdom, United States | |
| The Cruise | Bennett Miller | United States | |
| Il cinema secondo Corman | Giulio Laroni | Italy | |
Special events
A Tribute to Susan Seidelman
Susan Seidelman is an American film director, producer, and writer.
| English title | Original title | Director(s) | Cast |
|---|---|---|---|
| Desperately Seeking Susan | Susan Seidelman | United States | |
The Anniversaries
| Year of release | English title | Original title | Director(s) | Production country(ies) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | One Hundred Steps | I cento passi | Marco Tullio Giordana | Italy, Spain |
| 1975 | The Rocky Horror Picture Show | Jim Sharman | United Kingdom, United States | |
| 2025 | Strange Journey: The Story of Rocky Horror | Linus O'Brien | United States | |
A Tribute to Claudio Caligari
Claudio Caligari was an Italian director and screenwriter. The production country of all the films is Italy.
| English title | Original title | Director(s) | Cast |
|---|---|---|---|
| Don't Be Bad | Non essere cattivo | Claudio Caligari | Luca Marinelli, Alessandro Borghi, Silvia D'Amico, Roberta Mattei |
| Toxic Love | Amore tossico | Claudio Caligari | Cesare Ferretti, Michela Mioni, Enzo Di Benedetto, Roberto Stani |
| The Scent of the Night | L'odore della notte | Claudio Caligari | Valerio Mastandrea, Marco Giallini, Alessia Fugardi, Giorgio Tirabassi |
| The Madness of the Revolution | La follia della rivoluzione | Claudio Caligari | Documentary |
| The Lower Part | La Parte Bassa | Claudio Caligari, Franco Barbero | Documentary |
Restorations
| English title | Original title | Director(s) | Production country(ies) |
|---|---|---|---|
| The Big Heat (1953) | Fritz Lang | United States | |
| The Day of the Locust (1975) | John Schlesinger | United States | |
| The Assassination of Matteotti (1973) | Il delitto Matteotti | Florestano Vancini | Italy |
| Dirty Harry (1971) | Don Siegel | United States | |
| Libera (1993) | Pappi Corsicato | Italy | |
| Victory March (1976) | Marcia trionfale | Marco Bellocchio | Italy |
| Misery (1990) | Rob Reiner | United States | |
| Norma Rae (1979) | Martin Ritt | United States | |
| Who Killed Pasolini? (1995) | Pasolini, un delitto italiano | Marco Tullio Giordana | Italy, France |
| A Pilot Returns (1942) | Un pilota ritorna | Roberto Rossellini | Italy |
Tribute to David Puttnam – Industry Lifetime Achievement Award
David Puttnam, British-Irish film producer, educator, environmentalist and former member of the House of Lords.
| English title | Original title | Director(s) | Production country(ies) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chariots of Fire | Hugh Hudson | United States, United Kingdom | |
| Local Hero | Bill Forsyth | United Kingdom | |
| The Mission | Roland Joffé | United States, United Kingdom | |
Awards
The jury awarded the following prizes to the films presented in the festival:[21][22]
Progressive Cinema Competition - Visions for the World of Tomorrow
- Best Film: Left-Handed Girl by Shih-Ching Tsou, Taiwan, France, United States, United Kingdom
- Jury Grand Prix: Nino by Pauline Loquès
- Best Director: Wang Tong for Wild Nights, Tamed Beasts
- Best Screenplay: Alireza Khatami for The Things You Kill
- Best Actress – Monica Vitti Award
- Prize: Jasmine Trinca for [The Eyes Of Others
- Best Actor – Vittorio Gassman Award
- Prize: Anson Boon for Good Boy
- Special Jury Prize: To the cast of film 40 secondi
Poste Italiane Best First Feature Award
- Keep Me in Mind by Alberto Palmiero
Best Documentary Award
- Cuba & Alaska by Yegor Troyanovsky
Terna Audience Award
- Roberto Rossellini, More Than a Life by Ilaria de Laurentiis , Andrea Paolo Massara and Raffaele Brunetti
Industry Lifetime Achievement Award
- David Puttnam, British-Irish film producer, educator, environmentalist and former member of the House of Lords.[23]
Lifetime Achievement Award
- Jafar Panahi, Iranian film director, screenwriter, and editor[24]
- Richard Linklater, American filmmaker[25]
Progressive Lifetime Achievement Award
- Nia DaCosta, American filmmaker[26]
Master of Film Award
- Edgar Reitz, German filmmaker and Professor of Film at the Staatliche Hochschule für Gestaltung (State University of Design) in Karlsruhe[27][28]
Lazio Terra di Cinema Award
- Can Yaman, Turkish actor
(awarded by the Lazio Region)