TuFilm

TuFilm, auteur cinema at the foot of the Trigno

TuFilm is the film festival that every year, in late August, fills the village of Tufillo with stories and images. This tiny municipality in the province of Chieti is perched on a rocky spur overlooking one of the wildest stretches of the Middle Trigno Valley, in the Abruzzo region's Upper Vasto area. Originally a small local event, the festival has established itself over the years as a highly anticipated gathering for auteur cinema lovers across the entire Vasto district.

A high-quality festival in a tiny village

Organized by the Tufillo Municipal Administration, TuFilm showcases cinema that avoids mainstream commercial circuits: auteur films, documentaries, short films, and, above all, encounters with the protagonists of the seventh art. Each evening is designed as a moment for reflection and dialogue, where screenings are often accompanied by directors, critics, and actors who share the work behind the scenes. All this takes place in a suggestive setting, between the Sala delle Cisterne and the Town Hall Terrace, overlooking the hills and the badlands of the Trigno valley.

Tufilmino: cinema for the little ones

The heart of the event is also Tufilmino, the section dedicated to children: screenings of animated films, free stop-motion workshops, and creative activities designed to introduce younger generations to the language of cinema. It is a way to build community and keep a village in the hinterland alive, as it welcomes back its residents and many returning emigrants during the summer months.

An ancient village telling its story through cinema

Tufillo is a village with ancient origins: excavations on the nearby Monte Farano have yielded ceramics dating from the 6th to the 2nd century BC and a famous bronze votive key with an Oscan inscription dedicated to the goddess Venus, now preserved at the National Archaeological Museum of Chieti. In this context of history and nature, TuFilm represents a precious piece of the Abruzzo cultural summer, capable of attracting audiences and enthusiasts well beyond the borders of the small municipality, fitting into the rich calendar of events that accompanies Tufillo from June to September.

Free admission

As per tradition, the festival's screenings and meetings are free of charge, in the spirit of accessibility to culture and the promotion of the inland Abruzzo territory.