Festival del Tempo Short Film
International short film festival exploring the perception of Time across independent spaces in Rome
About Festival del Tempo
A festival that places Time at the heart of the gaze
The Festival del Tempo was founded in 2020 by Roberta Melasecca, an architect and curator, as the first Italian event dedicated to investigating the nature of Time and how we perceive it through art and culture. Following its initial editions in Sermoneta, in the lower Lazio region, the festival gradually expanded its reach, arriving in Rome, where the seventh edition of the Short Film section took place from May 27 to June 30, 2026.
The event is promoted by the blowart cultural association and is held under the patronage of the Lazio Region and Roma Capitale, in collaboration with Municipio VII and Cittadellarte Fondazione Pistoletto. This is not a mainstream public festival or a commercial showcase; it is an auteur-driven event built on a tight dialogue between short film, contemporary art, and philosophical reflection.
A rigorous international selection
For the 2026 edition, the artistic direction reviewed 2,582 submissions from every continent via the international platform FilmFreeway, resulting in an official selection of 48 films distributed across six categories: short film, animation, experimental film and video art, music video, short documentary, and feature documentary.
- Short Films: twelve titles from Italy, Turkey, France, China, Russia, and Portugal
- Animation: thirteen works, from the United States to Japan, Belgium to Egypt
- Experimental and Video Art: seven works from Italy, Portugal, Russia, and Mexico
- Feature Documentaries: five Italian productions
- Music Videos: five titles from the Czech Republic, Italy, Cuba, and France
- Short Documentaries: six reality-based narratives, mostly Italian
A geography of independent spaces
The festival's formula is itinerant and rejects traditional cinema halls: screenings are distributed across a network of independent city venues, each with its own distinct identity. Studio Campo Boario, in the Testaccio district, hosts the opening nights; Kou Gallery, the AAIE Center for Contemporary Art, and Logical Space host the other screenings and the gala evening; finally, the new blowart contemporary space closes the event with a replay of the award-winning films.
This choice is not accidental: traversing Rome from one end to the other, moving from the former slaughterhouses of Campo Boario to the galleries of the historic center, is part of the festival experience itself, inviting the spectator to measure the time of their own movement through the city.
Awards and Jury
Awards are assigned by a technical jury and the audience present in the screening rooms. Prizes are awarded for the best film in each category, as well as for best direction, best actor or actress, and best screenplay, in addition to special jury prizes. The 2026 jury was composed of Silvia Di Tosti, Alberto D'Amico, Claudio Di Patre, and artistic director Roberta Melasecca herself.
Why it is worth attending
In a region like Lazio, where the summer cinema scene is dominated by outdoor arenas and large generalist festivals, the Festival del Tempo occupies a precious niche: that of research-based cinema, video art, and auteur documentary. Screenings are followed by meetings with directors and conversations about the selected films, in an intimate format that allows for direct contact between authors and the public. It is an event designed for those looking for something different from the commercial circuit in Rome, and for those eager to discover independent cultural spaces that remain active all year round.
Festival del Tempo — edition 2026
Seventh edition: Rome as the capital of research-based short film
The 2026 edition marked the full arrival of the Festival del Tempo in the Capital, with a formula distributed across five independent venues and over a month of programming. The six competition categories — short film, animation, experimental and video art, music video, short documentary, and feature documentary — showcased a vast international geography, from Australia to Mexico, Japan to Lebanon, with a particularly strong Italian presence in the documentary section.
Screenings were concentrated between May 27 and June 6, followed by the gala evening on June 10 and conversations with the authors at the end of June. All evenings were free of charge, in line with the festival's long-standing policy.
Programme Festival del Tempo 2026
Screening evenings
- Wednesday, May 27, 6:00 PM — Studio Campo Boario (Viale del Campo Boario 4A): opening preview and meeting with the directors
- Thursday, May 28, 7:00 PM — Kou Gallery (Via della Barchetta 13)
- Friday, May 29, 6:00 PM — Studio Campo Boario
- Wednesday, June 3 and Thursday, June 4, 7:00 PM — Kou Gallery
- Friday, June 5, 6:30 PM — AAIE Center for Contemporary Art (Via Sermide 7)
- Saturday, June 6, 6:00 PM — Studio Campo Boario
Awards and closing
- Wednesday, June 10, 6:30 PM — Logical Space (Via dei Santi Quattro 27): gala evening with the announcement of the winners
- From Friday, June 26 to Sunday, June 28, 10:00 AM – 9:00 PM — blowart contemporary space (Via dei Savorelli 34a): screening of award-winning films, conversations on selected works, and inauguration of the new space
Competition categories
- Short Film (12 selected films)
- Animation (13 films)
- Experimental Film and Video Art (7 works)
- Short Documentary (6 films)
- Feature Documentary (5 films)
- Music Video (5 titles)
Highlights Festival del Tempo 2026
2026 Awards
- Best Short Film: Qualcosa è caduto dalla luna by Francesco Paolucci (Italy)
- Best Animation: Down The Hatch by Alexandra Lukina (United States)
- Best Experimental/Video Art: Sympoiesis by Ana Baer and Rocio Luna (Mexico)
- Best Short Documentary: La mia parte by Emanuele Gabrieli and Antinea Radomska (Italy)
- Best Feature Documentary: Ensemble by Manuel Cundari and Eugenio Piluso (Italy)
- Best Music Video: Turn My Love by Rosalie Loncin (France)
- Best Director: Francesco Paolucci
- Best Actor: Giacomo Faccini
- Best Screenplay: Andrea Di Salvatore
The Jury
Silvia Di Tosti, Alberto D'Amico, Claudio Di Patre, and Roberta Melasecca, the festival's artistic director.
Prices Festival del Tempo 2026
Practical information — Festival del Tempo
How to get there
Studio Campo Boario is located at Viale del Campo Boario 4A, in the Testaccio district: it can be reached via Metro B (Piramide stop), followed by a ten-minute walk, or by tram 3. The other venues (Kou Gallery at Via della Barchetta 13, AAIE Center at Via Sermide 7, Logical Space at Via dei Santi Quattro 27, blowart contemporary space at Via dei Savorelli 34a) are all served by urban public transport. Those arriving by train should get off at Roma Termini or Roma Ostiense.
Admission and hours
Evening screenings are free of charge. Times vary depending on the venue, generally between 6:00 PM and 9:00 PM; the final showcase of award-winning films takes place continuously from 10:00 AM to 9:00 PM.
Contacts and information
The detailed program and official selection are published on the website www.festivaldeltempo.it. For information: [email protected], tel. +39 349 4945612.
Tips
The spaces are small: it is advisable to arrive a little early, especially for the opening nights and the awards ceremony. Testaccio and Ostiense offer an excellent selection of trattorias and bars for dinner before or after the screening.
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Where does it take place — Festival del Tempo
Studio Campo Boario, Kou Gallery, AAIE Center for Contemporary Art, Logical Space, blowart contemporary space
Viale del Campo Boario 4A, 00154 Roma