Summer 2026: Rome’s piazzas are once again transformed into movie theaters thanks to the Ragazzi del Cinema America
The outdoor film festival Il Cinema in Piazza returns this summer, transforming some of Rome’s most beautiful squares and parks into open-air cinemas from May 28 to July 12.
From Wednesday to Sunday, every evening at 9.15pm, Il Cinema in Piazza presents free screenings in original language with subtitles, as well as Italian classics with English subtitles, making the programme accessible to Rome’s international audience. This year’s edition features 95 screenings, 34 special encounters and several retrospectives across three locations: Piazza San Cosimato in Trastevere, Parco della Cervelletta in Tor Sapienza and Parco di Monte Ciocci in Valle Aurelia.
After the success of last year’s edition, which welcomed over 120,000 attendees, the event, organized by Fondazione Piccolo America, celebrates its twelfth anniversary with a programme that revisits great cinema from the past while also showcasing new independent works from Italy and around the world.
The 2026 edition also welcomes a rich line-up of national and international guests, including Marco Bellocchio, Stefano Nazzi, M¥SS KETA, Fabrizio Gifuni, Barbora Bobulova, Carlotta Gamba, Romana Maggiora Vergano, Bruce LaBruce, Paweł Pawlikowski, David Lowery, Isabella Rossellini, Elettra Rossellini Wiedemann, Ben Russell, Josh O’Connor, Gabriele Muccino, Ian McKellen, Saverio Costanzo, Oliver Stone, Jacques Audiard, Jane Campion, Pablo Larraín, Carlo Verdone, Léa Seydoux, Thom Yorke, Bruce Goldstein, Matteo Garrone, Nicolas Winding Refn, Olivier Assayas, Luca Marinelli and many more.
The programme brings together a rich series of retrospectives dedicated to some of the most influential voices in Italian and international cinema. At Piazza San Cosimato, the focus is on Elio Petri, Josh and Benny Safdie, Hayao Miyazaki and Studio Ghibli, and Gabriele Muccino.
At Parco della Cervelletta, the programme shifts to Alice Rohrwacher, Kenneth Anger, David Lynch’s Twin Peaks and Steven Spielberg, with screenings for both cinephiles and younger audiences.
At Monte Ciocci, the festival explores New York and Rome through Film Forum, alongside retrospectives on Takashi Miike and Edgar Wright, plus a family-friendly selection of DreamWorks Animation classics.
The 2026 program of “Il Cinema in Piazza”
SAN COSIMATO PROGRAMME (28 May – 12 July)
- May 28 – Marco Bellocchio and Stefano Nazzi present Portobello episodes 1-2-3, moderated by M¥SS KETA. With a reading by Fabrizio Gifuni.
- May 29 – Barbora Bobulova, Carlotta Gamba and Romana Maggiora Vergano present Portobello episodes 4-5-6, moderated by Lisa Ginzburg.
- May 30 – Laputa – Castello nel cielo by Hayao Miyazaki
- May 31 – Ecco fatto by Gabriele Muccino
- June 3 – La decima vittima by Elio Petri
- June 4 – The Pleasure of Being Robbed by Josh Safdie
- June 5 – Paweł Pawlikowski presents My Summer of Love, moderated by Martina Barone
- June 6 – Il mio vicino Totoro by Hayao Miyazaki
- June 7 – Come te nessuno mai by Gabriele Muccino
- June 10 – A ciascuno il suo by Elio Petri
- June 11 – Lenny Cooke by Josh and Benny Safdie
- June 12 – FR*CINEMA Gran Finale: Karma B, Porpora Marcasciano, La Tarantina and Loredana Rossi present Ballata Femmenella
- June 13 – La città incantata by Hayao Miyazaki
- June 14 – Gabriele Muccino presents L’ultimo bacio, moderated by Mariella Lazzarin
- June 17 – Indagine su un cittadino al di sopra di ogni sospetto by Elio Petri
- June 18 – Jacques Audiard presents Emilia Pérez, moderated by Enrico Maria Artale
- June 19 – La classe operaia va in paradiso by Elio Petri
- June 20 – Ponyo sulla scogliera by Hayao Miyazaki
- June 21 – Ricordati di me by Gabriele Muccino
- June 24 – Saverio Costanzo presents Private
- June 25 – Heaven Knows What by Josh and Benny Safdie
- June 26 – Pablo Larraín presents Jackie
- June 27 – I giorni contati by Elio Petri
- June 28 – Léa Seydoux presents a surprise carte blanche
- July 1 – La proprietà non è più un furto by Elio Petri
- July 2 – Good Time by Josh and Benny Safdie
- July 3 – Matteo Garrone presents Io Capitano
- July 4 – La storia della Principessa Splendente by Isao Takahata
- July 5 – A casa tutti bene by Gabriele Muccino
- July 8 – Olivier Assayas presents Irma Vep
- July 9 – Uncut Gems / Diamanti grezzi by Josh and Benny Safdie
- July 10 – Il ragazzo e l’airone by Hayao Miyazaki
- July 11 – Gregorio Sassoli and Alejandro Cifuentes present San Damiano
- July 12 – Gli anni più belli by Gabriele Muccino
CERVELLETTA PROGRAMME (4 June – 12 July)
- June 4 – Blue Velvet / Velluto blu by David Lynch
- June 5 – Bruce LaBruce presents short films by Kenneth Anger
- June 6 – Corpo celeste by Alice Rohrwacher
- June 7 – Isabella Rossellini and Elettra Rossellini Wiedemann present Casablanca
- June 10 – Kenneth Anger programme: Lucifer Rising, Don’t Smoke That Cigarette!, Mouse Heaven, Foreplay and The Spells of Kenneth Anger
- June 11 – Alice and Alba Rohrwacher present Le meraviglie
- June 12 – Twin Peaks – Northwest Passage by David Lynch and Mark Frost
- June 13 – Josh O’Connor presents Accattone
- June 14 – Hook – Capitan Uncino by Steven Spielberg
- June 17 – Oliver Stone presents Any Given Sunday / Ogni maledetta domenica
- June 18 – Incontri ravvicinati del terzo tipo by Steven Spielberg
- June 19 – Twin Peaks episodes 2-3
- June 20 – Lazzaro felice by Alice Rohrwacher
- June 21 – L’impero del sole by Steven Spielberg
- June 24 – Kenneth Anger programme: Inauguration of the Pleasure Dome, Kustom Kar Kommandos, Invocation of My Demon Brother, The Man We Want to Hang and Elliott’s Suicide
- June 25 – Eterobasiche and Tahir Hussain present Twilight
- June 26 – Twin Peaks episodes 4-5
- June 27 – Futura by Alice Rohrwacher, Pietro Marcello and Francesco Munzi
- June 28 – E.T. l’extra-terrestre by Steven Spielberg
- July 1 – A Philological Quandary, Kenneth Anger’s ¡Que Viva Mexico! by Bruce Posner and The Loveless by Kathryn Bigelow and Monty Montgomery
- July 2 – Thom Yorke presents Children of Men / I figli degli uomini
- July 3 – Twin Peaks episodes 6-7
- July 4 – La chimera by Alice Rohrwacher
- July 5 – Nicolas Winding Refn presents The Hunger / Miriam si sveglia a mezzanotte
- July 8 – Jurassic Park by Steven Spielberg
- July 9 – Camilla Salvatore presents Il Capitone
- July 10 – Twin Peaks episode 8 and Fire Walk with Me / Fuoco cammina con me + Missing Pieces
- July 11 – Alice Rohrwacher shorts and works, including Un piccolo spettacolo, Una canzone, Quattro strade, Ad una mela, Le pupille, Omelia contadina and Allégorie Citadine
- July 12 – Il GGG by Steven Spielberg
MONTE CIOCCI PROGRAMME (6 June – 12 July)
- June 6 – David Lowery presents A Ghost Story
- June 7 – Audition by Takashi Miike
- June 10 – Shaun of the Dead / L’alba dei morti dementi by Edgar Wright
- June 11 – Speedy / A rotta di collo by Ted Wilde
- June 12 – Spirit – Cavallo selvaggio by Kelly Asbury and Lorna Cook
- June 13 – Visitor Q by Takashi Miike
- June 14 – Ian McKellen presents Les Vacances de M. Hulot / Le vacanze del signor Hulot
- June 17 – Hot Fuzz by Edgar Wright
- June 18 – Risate di gioia by Mario Monicelli
- June 19 – Jane Campion presents Il giardino dei Finzi Contini by Vittorio De Sica
- June 20 – Laura Samani and Celeste Cescutti present Piccolo corpo
- June 21 – Sukiyaki Western Django by Takashi Miike
- June 24 – The World’s End / La fine del mondo by Edgar Wright
- June 25 – The Naked City / La città nuda by Jules Dassin
- June 26 – Kung Fu Panda by Mark Osborne and John Stevenson
- June 27 – Carlo Verdone presents Una giornata particolare by Ettore Scola
- June 28 – Il robot selvaggio by Chris Sanders
- July 1 – 13 Assassins / 13 assassini by Takashi Miike
- July 2 – Bruce Goldstein presents The Taking of Pelham One Two Three / Il colpo della metropolitana
- July 3 – Baby Boss by Tom McGrath
- July 4 – Cine-concert: Häxan / La stregoneria attraverso i secoli
- July 5 – Over Your Dead Body by Takashi Miike
- July 8 – Cine-concert: Stachka / Sciopero!
- July 9 – Lo sceicco bianco by Federico Fellini
- July 10 – Alissa Jung, Luca Marinelli, Juli Grabenhenrich and Cristina Bartoletti present Paternal Leave
- July 11 – Last Night in Soho / Ultima notte a Soho by Edgar Wright + Àcanto by Collettivo MMMH
- July 12 – First Love / L’ultimo yakuza by Takashi Miike
CINEMA TROISI PROGRAMME
- June 3, 9.30pm – Bruce LaBruce presents The Visitor by Bruce LaBruce, moderated by Mariella Lazzarin
- June 10, 9.30pm – Ben Russell presents A Spell to Ward Off the Darkness by Ben Rivers and Ben Russell, moderated by Pier Giovanni Adamo
- June 13, 5pm – Rosario Dawson and Gabriele Muccino present Seven Pounds / Sette Anime by Gabriele Muccino
- June 28, 9.30pm – Scott Pilgrim vs. The World by Edgar Wright
- July 5, 5.30pm – Nicolas Winding Refn presents Her Private Hell
- July 5, 9.30pm – The Running Man by Edgar Wright
- July 10, 9.30pm – The Smashing Machine by Benny Safdie
- July 11, 9.30pm – Marty Supreme by Josh Safdie
All films will be shown in the original language with Italian subtitles.
Cinema in Piazza is organized by “Fondazione Piccolo America,” a group dedicated to promoting culture and film. They say the goal of “Il Cinema in Piazza” is in “the contemporary involvement of the center and the suburbs” which seeks to uniquely “rebuild a sense of community, promoting a knowledge accessible to all with free and shared projections.” Additionally, Cinema In Piazza promotes the cultural importance of the event, saying “the projection does not end in the mere vision of the show, but becomes an experience of intense civil and social value.”
The event had previously been held in Piazza San Cosimato under the name “Festival Trastevere Rione del Cinema,” but faced a dispute with Rome’s deputy mayor and culture councilor, Luca Bergamo. Instead of limiting the hours, like Bergamo wanted, the event grew after being supported by well-known figures in film, such as Martin Scorsese and “Pif” Pierfrancesco Diliberto.
Now, Cinema In Piazza’s project is continuing in an even more concrete direction, seeking to unite all of Rome through film by “connecting three nerve centers [in the city] through the construction of three contemporary arenas.”
FROM 28 MAY TO 12 JULY 2026
Locations:
Piazza San Cosimato – Trastevere
Monte Ciocci – Via Domizia Lucilla, 76
Casale della Cervelletta – Parco della Cervelletta in Tor Sapienza
Movie screenings at 9:15pm
Free entry, no reservation required
One Response
Looks like a great cinematic adventure. Wish I could be there.