Sergio Amidei Award

The City That Celebrates Cinema Writers

Founded in 1981 and named after Sergio Amidei, a screenwriter from Gorizia and one of the fathers of Neorealism (he wrote the screenplays for Rome, Open City and Shoeshine), the Sergio Amidei Award is one of Europe's most prestigious events dedicated to screenwriting. Every summer, Gorizia becomes the capital of film writing for a week, focusing on the often-invisible art of those who construct stories for the big screen.

A Journey Through Screenings and Encounters

The heart of the Award is the competition for the Best Screenplay, judged by a technical jury that evaluates the competing films, chosen from the most significant works of the year. Alongside the main award, the Prize also bestows the Author's Work Award and the Award for Cinematic Culture, bringing screenwriters, directors, and personalities from Italian and international cinema to Gorizia.

The days are filled with screenings, meetings with authors, masterclasses, and discussions open to the public: a rare opportunity to hear from those who imagine and write cinema before it is even filmed.

The Cinematic Venues of Gorizia

The event unfolds across the city's historic venues: the Kinemax in Piazza Vittoria, the evocative Park of Palazzo Coronini Cronberg for evening open-air screenings, the Mediateca.GO "Ugo Casiraghi", and the spaces of Casa Krainer in the heart of the old town. The Award is organized by the Sergio Amidei Cultural Association in collaboration with the DAMS department of the University of Udine and the Palazzo del Cinema/Hiša Filma Association, with the support of the Friuli Venezia Giulia Region, the Municipality of Gorizia, and the Fondazione Cassa di Risparmio di Gorizia.

Border Cinema, European Cinema

As a border city between Italy and Slovenia, and following the experience of Gorizia and Nova Gorica as European Capital of Culture 2025, the Amidei Award naturally embraces the territory's cross-border vocation, making screenwriting a creative, political, and cultural act that transcends borders.