Ponza Film Festival

A film festival in the heart of the Pontine archipelago

The Ponza Film Festival is the international film showcase of the island of Ponza, in the province of Latina, in the far south of Lazio. Born in 2023 as an evolution of the online Ponza Film Awards, the festival has quickly established itself as one of the most intriguing events at the end of the Italian summer: three evenings of screenings on an island that, in September, rediscovers a slower pace and a light that many directors consider unrepeatable.

Where it takes place

The headquarters is the Sala Polifunzionale Carlo Pisacane, on Via Roma, just a few steps from the port of Ponza. It is an intimate space that fosters direct dialogue between authors and viewers: at the end of the screenings, it is not uncommon for the directors in attendance to stay in the hall to answer questions from the audience. The Municipality of Ponza and the Pro Loco of Ponza grant their patronage to the initiative, which also benefits from the collaboration of Rai and ActsTheater.

The program

The official selection is built from submissions gathered throughout the year on the FilmFreeway platform and awarded in the festival's monthly sessions. The result is a deliberately heterogeneous program that alternates very different registers and formats:

• Short films of fiction, both Italian and foreign, often debut works;
• Documentaries by auteur directors, with a particular focus on artist portraits and social stories;
• Animated films and experimental works;
• Music videos and video art pieces;
• a section dedicated to productions created with artificial intelligence, among the first of its kind in Italy.

Awards are given in categories including Best Documentary, Best Director, Best Animated Film, and Best AI-generated film.

A diverse audience

What makes the Ponza Film Festival unique is the composition of its audience: islanders, vacationers enjoying the last week of the season, authors arriving from the mainland, and enthusiasts who take the hydrofoil specifically for the occasion. Admission is free and open to everyone, with no mandatory reservation, which contributes to an informal atmosphere, far removed from the glitz of major festivals.

Ponza, the island that acts as a set

Ponza is no stranger to cinema: its coves, sea stacks, and Roman caves have hosted shoots for Italian and international productions, and the island often recurs in the visual imagery of the Tyrrhenian Sea. The festival gathers this legacy and returns it to the local community, at a time of year when mass tourism has already retreated and the island returns to being inhabited primarily by its residents.

Why it's worth the trip

Attending the screenings means combining two experiences: a day at the sea, boat excursions, or walks toward Le Forna and Chiaia di Luna, followed by the evening in the screening room. It is a simple formula that works, and which explains why the festival, in just a few editions, has already become a small point of reference for independent cinema in Lazio.