Darkest Dreaming Film Festival

A widespread festival in the heart of Syracuse

The Darkest Dreaming Film Festival is a cinematic outreach project that unfolds over four months, from September to December, in the historic center of Syracuse, in the heart of south-eastern Sicily. Curated by the Cinedrome ETS association, presided over and artistically directed by Giuseppe Briffa, and held under the patronage of the Municipality of Syracuse, the festival was created with the declared goal of exploring the darker, dreamlike, and experimental side of cinema through different genres, styles, languages, and eras.

Four sections, four months, one vision

The festival is divided into four monthly segments, each with a distinct identity:

• Dark Mode On (September) — dedicated to dreamscapes and surrealism in the seventh art;
• Cine Oktober Fest (October) — the historical heart of the project, a tribute to the cinema of the past with the motto "The cinema of the past is our future";
• Noirvember (November) — noir cinema in all its forms, from classics to auteur post-horror;
• Silent Nights (December) — great masterpieces of silent cinema accompanied by live music.

Venues and atmosphere

Screenings, conferences, and workshops take place in a network of institutional spaces and local venues across the city: the Urban Center, the Antico Mercato, Biblios Cafè, Hmora Pub, Sonica, Il Cerchio, the Made Program - Accademia Rosario Gagliardi, and the Ex Convento del Ritiro. This widespread format turns Syracuse into an open-air and indoor cine-forum, where cinephilia meets the typical conviviality of the city center's venues.

Roots and identity

The festival has its roots in Cineoktoberfest, a review born in 2021 which reached its fifth edition in 2025, now merged as the October section under the broader umbrella of the Darkest Dreaming Film Festival. The December section dedicated to silent films, "The Birth of Cinema," also boasts its own project continuity. The result is an event that, despite being young under its umbrella name, carries with it years of Cinedrome's work in support of Syracuse's cinematic culture.

Free admission

All screenings and meetings of the Darkest Dreaming Film Festival are free of charge, reflecting the educational and popular vocation of the project, designed to bring the local public and visitors closer to great auteur and repertory cinema.