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Pompeii The Inauguration Of The Film Festival

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Yesterday, Wednesday 3 June 2025, the First International Film Festival of Pompeii officially began , hosted for this first edition at the Nexus Cinema in Maximall Pompeii, in Torre Annunziata (NA).

The opening was preceded by an elegant red carpet—which began around 17:30 p.m.—with the participation of numerous well-known faces from the Italian film scene. ( You can follow the live broadcast on Cronache della Campania here .)

“We hope that school children will participate in this Pompeii film festival and learn how cinema is made”
(Enrico Vanzina)

The artistic director of the festival, Enrico Vanzina , and the president of the event, the lawyer Annarita Borrelli , took turns on the red carpet , accompanied by prominent figures such as Giovanni Esposito , Susy Del Giudice , Alessandro Cecchi Paone , Gino Rivieccio , Carlo Vanzina and Marco Risi, son of Dino Risi, as well as the mayor of Torre Annunziata, Corrado Cuccurullo, and the councilor Alfonso Ascione.

The actors and producers of the film Stabat Mater , chosen by Vanzina himself as the opening film, also took part in the event . A photo call and greetings from officials punctuated the first few minutes, with ritual snapshots and handshakes with the many guests who had gathered for this historic day.

In the photo Susy Del Giudice and Giovanni Esposito at the Pompei Film Festival Credit SV

After the red carpet session, the audience moved to Room 7 of the Nexus Cinema, where Enrico Vanzina and Annarita Borrelli officially opened the festival.

In his speech, Vanzina underlined the main objective of the event: " This festival was born with the aim of combining popular cinema and auteur cinema, as already happened with the great Italian classics ."

As a corollary to this statement, an excerpt from the famous An American in Rome was screened , in which Alberto Sordi — playing the character Nando Moriconi — utters the historic line “«But you provoke me and now I’ll eat you»”, testifying to the link between popular comedy and quality cinema.

Furthermore, the director and Artistic Director of the Festival Enrico Vanzina , who presented the eight films in competition, declared that the event aims to celebrate the culture and identity of different cultures around the world.

In the photo Alessandro Cecchi Paone at the Pompei Film Festival Credit SV

Among the most significant moments of the ceremony, the importance of hosting this festival not in the traditional setting of Naples, but in an area that has been neglected for too long like Torre Annunziata and Pompeii, was emphasized. "It is essential that culture comes back to life here," said Annarita Borrelli. "With this festival we want to offer the local community an international showcase, in the hope that more and more events of this type can liven up the territory."

The competing titles were then presented, divided into short and feature-length films, selected to offer a broad and varied overview of contemporary cinema. The highlight of the evening was, without a doubt, the screening of Stabat Mater , a "tough" feature film of great auteur merit—as Vanzina himself pointed out—chosen to inaugurate the event in style. The entire cast, from the crew to the main actors, was present in the room, receiving the enthusiastic applause of the audience.

In the photo The cast of Stabat Mater at the Pompei Film Festival Credit SV

In closing, it is important to point out that, despite some initial logistical uncertainties, the overall organization of the first day was judged to be quite good by spectators and industry professionals.

With the hope that this new festival will grow year after year, the first evening of the Pompeii International Film Festival concludes , leaving behind a strong legacy: culture and the big screen are returning to life in territories that deserve attention and support.

The festival will continue in the coming days with screenings, meetings with directors, masterclasses, and special events, offering film buffs from across the region a rich program of events ( READ THE PROGRAM ). Tomorrow, June 4, 2025, the Festival really gets going: Gino Rivieccio 's film , "Da cosa nasce cosa," the only Italian film, will be screened. Then, in the coming days, there will be films from Turkey, France, Kenya (in co-production with Germany), Japan, and Mexico.