On 7 and 8 November, the City of the Sassi will host a summit bringing together the audiovisual industries of Italy and five other countries from the southern and eastern Mediterranean basin: Morocco, Tunisia, Lebanon, Jordan and Egypt.
Cinema is increasingly made across national borders, with shared budgets, mixed crews and stories that cross the sea. That is the purpose of the Mediterranean Audiovisual & Cinema Summit, taking place in Matera: an opportunity to turn institutional relations between neighbouring countries into practical production partnerships.
The event is conceived and organised by Cinecittà with the support of the Ministry of Culture and in collaboration with the Italian Trade Agency (ICE). It is part of the programme for Matera – Mediterranean Capital of Culture and Dialogue 2026, run on behalf of the Municipality and the Fondazione Matera Basilicata 2019. The venue is the Alvino Relais Mulino Contemporaneo, where institutional panels, industry discussions and working meetings will take place. The stated goal is to establish Italy as the gateway to the European market for content, talent and technologies from the Mediterranean region.
Co-productions will be the key element of the summit, with producers from different countries meeting to discuss new partnership opportunities. Another section is devoted to the Film Commissions of Southern Italy, which will present the incentives and services available to foreign productions interested in shooting in the region. The programme will also address innovation, from artificial intelligence to digital transformation, with a look at the impact on production and distribution. The summit will conclude with a strategic Think Tank to identify the shared priorities that emerge over the two days.
Running alongside the Matera Film Festival, the summit hosts a special section of Italian Screens, the programme promoted by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation (MAECI) and the MiC’s Directorate-General for Cinema and Audiovisual, with operational coordination by Cinecittà’s International Relations Department. It is the first time in Italy that the showcase pairs professional meetings with an actual film selection, dedicated to dialogue between Mediterranean cinemas. Five films are on the programme. The opening title is Le Rose di Marrakech by Ginevra Elkann, with the director attending alongside actress Nisrin Erradi. It is followed by Breath by Ilaria Congiu, Yunan by Ameer Fakher Eldin, Ritratto di un certo oriente by Marcelo Gomes and The Goat by Ilaria Borrelli.
Welcoming the delegations for Italy will be Massimo Osanna, Head of the MiC’s Department for Cultural Activities; Giorgio Carlo Brugnoni, Director-General for Cinema and Audiovisual and Deputy Chief of Staff of the MiC; Antonio Saccone, President of Cinecittà; and Roberto Stabile, Director of International Relations at Cinecittà. On the other side of the table will sit film institutions, production companies and cultural organisations from the five guest countries.
Photo credit: Cinecittà Website
