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| Trieste Science+Fiction Festival | |
|---|---|
| Name | Trieste Science+Fiction Festival |
| Location | Trieste, Italy |
| Founded | 2000 |
| Founders | Stefano Della Bella |
| Language | Italian, English |
Trieste Science+Fiction Festival The Trieste Science+Fiction Festival is an annual international film festival and cultural event held in Trieste that focuses on science fiction, fantasy film, and genre cinema. The festival combines film screenings, retrospectives, industry panels, and special events that engage scholars from European Commission cultural programs, curators from the British Film Institute, distributors from Cannes Film Festival circuits, and critics associated with Sight & Sound, Cahiers du Cinéma, and Variety.
The festival was inaugurated in 2000 by founder Stefano Della Bella alongside collaborators from Istituto regionale per la cultura and regional partners such as the Friuli-Venezia Giulia cultural offices and the Comune di Trieste, evolving from local genre showcases into an international event that attracted delegations from Festival de Cannes, Venice Film Festival, and Berlinale. Early editions featured retrospectives on filmmakers like Federico Fellini, Andrei Tarkovsky, George A. Romero, and Carl Theodor Dreyer, while later programs included tributes to studios such as Hammer Film Productions, Toho Company, Studio Ghibli, and distributors like MUBI and The Criterion Collection. Throughout its history the festival forged partnerships with institutions including the European Film Academy, Institut Français, British Council, Istituto Luce, and archives like the Cineteca di Bologna and the Museum of Modern Art.
Programming spans competitive and non-competitive strands: international premieres, retrospectives, mid-length showcases, and themed cycles influenced by curators from Cannes Classics, scholars from Harvard Film Archive, and programmers associated with Fantasia International Film Festival. Sections often reference auteurs such as David Cronenberg, Ridley Scott, Stanley Kubrick, Hayao Miyazaki, and Akira Kurosawa, while highlighting contemporary directors including Denis Villeneuve, Alex Garland, Nicolas Winding Refn, Ari Aster, and Jordan Peele. The festival also features restored prints from institutions like the British Film Institute National Archive, the Library of Congress, and the Cinémathèque Française, and curates conversations with producers from Netflix, Amazon Studios, A24, and distributors such as Kinostar. Industry events cater to representatives from European Audiovisual Observatory, sales agents from FilmNation Entertainment, and funding bodies like Creative Europe.
The festival confers awards across categories including Best Feature, Best Short, and Best Italian Film, judged by juries composed of members from European Film Academy, critics from Variety, curators from Cineteca Italiana, and filmmakers associated with Sundance Film Festival. Prizes have honored films connected to festivals like Tribeca Film Festival, SXSW, and Locarno Festival, and have supported filmmakers represented by agents from ICM Partners, WME, and European agencies. Special awards have commemorated achievements by industry figures such as Ennio Morricone, Carlo Rambaldi, Giorgio Moroder, and designers from Pixar Animation Studios.
Screenings and events take place in historic and contemporary venues across Trieste including the Cinema Ariston, the Teatro Miela, and city institutions like the Stazione Rogers and the Molo Audace waterfront area, while special screenings have been hosted at venues linked to Castello di Miramare, the Museum of Natural History of Trieste, and temporary spaces curated in collaboration with the University of Trieste. The festival’s urban footprint interacts with local partners such as the Port of Trieste, the Trieste Airport, and hospitality providers linked to Associazione Albergatori Trieste.
The festival has attracted filmmakers, actors, scholars, and industry professionals including guests associated with Alfred Hitchcock, James Cameron, Guillermo del Toro, Christopher Nolan, Terry Gilliam, Satoshi Kon, Luca Guadagnino, Dario Argento, Pupi Avati, Isabella Rossellini, Maggie Gyllenhaal, and critics from Sight & Sound and The Hollywood Reporter. Retrospectives and masterclasses have involved archivists from the Cineteca di Bologna, composers connected to RCA Records, and special appearances by visual effects artists from Industrial Light & Magic, Weta Digital, and prosthetics designers with credits for Star Wars and The Lord of the Rings.
The festival is organized by a local cultural association working with municipal bodies like the Comune di Trieste and regional authorities from Friuli-Venezia Giulia, supported by national bodies such as the Ministero della Cultura and European funding instruments including Creative Europe. Operational partnerships include collaborations with industry stakeholders like RAI, Mediaset, Sky Italia, and private sponsors from companies similar to Ferrero and Illy. Governance involves a board with representatives from institutions such as the University of Trieste, cultural foundations like Fondazione CRTrieste, and advisory input from professionals affiliated with European Film Academy and trade organizations including the International Federation of Film Archives.
Critical reception has been documented by outlets such as Variety, The Guardian, Le Monde, Corriere della Sera, and La Repubblica, while academic analysis appears in journals associated with Oxford University Press, Cambridge University Press, and conferences hosted by Society for Cinema and Media Studies. The festival has influenced regional tourism promoted by Trieste Convention Bureau, contributed to cultural programming strategies endorsed by the European Commission, and helped foster careers of filmmakers later screened at Sundance Film Festival, Venice Film Festival, and Berlinale.