The Greek Film Archive is once again opening its doors to Cinema Made in Italy, the annual tribute that brings a carefully curated selection of new Italian films to Athenian audiences. This year’s program features five Greek premieres and two newly restored black-and-white treasures from the 1950s—cinematic gems rarely screened on the big screen—running November 20–23.
With distinguished guests, emerging filmmakers, unforgettable heroines, and award-winning titles fresh from major festivals, the event highlights the breadth and vitality of Italian cinema today. All films will be screened with Greek and English subtitles.
What to Expect at the 5th Edition of Cinema Made in Italy
November 20
The festival opens with the Greek premiere of Heads or Tails (Testa o croce?), directed by Alessio Rigo de Righi and Matteo Zoppis. Zoppis will attend the invitation-only screening.
Opening remarks will be delivered by Paolo Cuculi, Ambassador of Italy to Greece; Maria Komninou, President of the Greek Film Archive; and Livia Azzolini from Cinecittà’s international promotion department.
November 21
19:00 — The Kidnapping of Arabella (2025)
In its Greek premiere, Carolina Cavalli’s film follows Holly, a 28-year-old woman convinced she has somehow become the “wrong version” of herself. When she meets seven-year-old Arabella—eager to escape her own home—the two embark on a quietly surreal journey toward reinvention. Cavalli, known for co-writing the American feature Fremont, brings a sharp, idiosyncratic voice to this offbeat character study.
20:00 — The Time It Takes (Il tempo che ci vuole) (2024)
Directed by Francesca Comencini, this deeply personal film reflects on the moments, memories, and emotional textures shared between the filmmaker and her father, the renowned director Luigi Comencini. Told with tender distance, the film explores cinema as a refuge, an inheritance, and a language that shapes the bond between them. Images drift in and out like recollections—sometimes vivid, sometimes elusive.
November 22
19:00 — Rome, 11 O’Clock (Roma ore 11)
A cornerstone of Italian neorealism, Giuseppe De Santis’ masterwork remains strikingly modern. Based on a true incident that shook 1950s Rome, the film follows hundreds of women crowding the steps of an office building as they vie for a single secretarial job—each seeking dignity, independence, and a chance at a different life. What begins as quiet anticipation unfolds into a collective portrait of hope, inequality, and the fragile place of women in postwar society.
21:00 — Elisa
Barbara Ronchi delivers a haunting performance in Elisa, 2025, nominated for the Golden Lion at Venice.
Elisa, imprisoned for a decade for the murder of her older sister, claims to remember almost nothing of the crime. When she agrees to meet criminologist Alaoui and participate in his research, their tense, probing conversations begin to unearth memories long buried beneath silence—leading her toward a painful reckoning and the faint possibility of redemption.
November 23
19:00 — The Window to Luna Park (La finestra sul Luna Park)
Recently restored and hailed as a revelation at Bologna’s Il Cinema Ritrovato, this overlooked 1950s gem stands as one of Luigi Comencini’s most sensitive works.
The story follows Aldo, a laborer returning to Rome after years abroad and the death of his wife, as he attempts to reconnect with his young son, Mario. During Aldo’s absence, Mario has found comfort in the kindness of Rigetto, a gentle outsider who offered the affection the boy craved. Wandering through postwar Rome, father and son navigate grief, jealousy, and uncertainty, while Comencini crafts a tender study of a man learning—and failing, and learning again—what it means to be a father.
21:00 — Duse (2025)
Nominated for the Golden Lion, this biographical drama traces the life of legendary stage actress Eleonora Duse during Italy’s turbulent transition from WWI to the rise of fascism. Played by Valeria Bruni Tedeschi, Duse feels an overwhelming pull back to the stage—not only out of desire, but from a profound need to reclaim herself in a world shifting around her. The film arrives in Greece for the first time during this tribute.
All screenings include English and Greek subtitles.
For more information or tickets, click here.
