Fresko Film - Open-Air Cinema

The open-air cinema that defines summer in Portici

Fresko Film is the open-air cinema festival of Portici, in the province of Naples, Campania. Every summer evening for two solid months, a screen is set up outdoors, and the audience gathers under the stars to catch the films that filled theaters throughout the year. This is not a showcase for industry insiders or an auteur film festival; it is a neighborhood cinema that steps outside its walls, with a deliberately low ticket price and a program designed for the whole family.

Nearly thirty years of screenings

The festival is one of the longest-running in the Vesuvius area: in 2025, organizers celebrated nearly thirty years of activity. Behind Fresko Film is the Perasole family, who manage the Cinema Teatro Roma on Via Roma in Portici, under the artistic direction of Sergio Perasole. It is the town's local theater that moves outdoors during the summer, keeping the habit of going to the movies alive even when the hot season closes the doors of traditional cinemas.

Over the years, the event has changed venues several times, always remaining within school grounds in the municipality. In the early 2020s, it was held in the outdoor area of the Leonardo da Vinci-Comes Comprehensive Institute on Viale Bernini, while in 2025 it took place in the park of the Don Bosco-Melloni Comprehensive Institute on Via Roma. Some editions have been dedicated to the memory of figures dear to the cultural life of Portici.

How an evening works

• Box office opens around 8:30 PM, with screenings starting at 9:00 PM.
• One screening every night, with no days off, from early July to late August.
• Each title stays on the bill for two to four consecutive nights: if you miss a date, you can easily catch up.
• Single, affordable ticket price — €3.50 per person in the 2025 edition.
• Free parking for cars and motorcycles in the spaces in front of the school complex.

The program

The typical lineup features about twenty-five films spread over sixty evenings. It alternates between the biggest hits of the recently concluded season, animation for children, comedies, and Italian cinema, with a special focus on films set in Naples. In 2025, the screen featured titles such as Elio, Diamanti, Lilo & Stitch, Bridget Jones, Emilia Pérez, Partenope, Napoli New York, and Minecraft.

A neighborhood audience

The Fresko Film audience is the local community: families with young children, groups of friends, couples, and elderly residents who walk over from the streets around Via Roma. The affordable price and evening schedule do the rest, turning the festival into a social event even before it is a cinematic one. On the hottest nights, the school park becomes one of the few open, shaded spaces where the city gathers, and it is not uncommon for the screening to be preceded by a steady flow of chairs, ice cream, and chatter.

Portici, between the Royal Palace and the sea

Portici is one of the most densely populated municipalities in Italy, nestled between the slopes of Mount Vesuvius and the Gulf of Naples along the 'Golden Mile' (Miglio d'Oro). Here you will find the Bourbon Royal Palace, now home to the Botanical Garden and the University's Agricultural Department, and it was from here that Italy's first railway, the Naples-Portici line, departed in 1839. The town's summer is marked by the municipal program R...Estate a Portici, which features concerts, theater, and other film festivals in the spaces of the Royal Palace and the Parco a Mare: Fresko Film has long represented its most popular and daily soul.

2026 Edition: What we know

As of the update of this entry, an official calendar for the 2026 edition of the festival has not yet been published. Being a well-established event for nearly thirty years, the usual window remains July and August, with daily evening screenings. Before planning your trip, it is advisable to check dates, venue, and tickets through the channels of the Cinema Teatro Roma in Portici, which announces the festival each year shortly before it begins.