EN
The Embassy of Italy in Hanoi, in collaboration with the Asian Film Festival in Rome, presents the Italian Film Festival 2025. The film festival will take place from October 20 to 25, 2025 at the National Cinema Center (87 Lang Ha, O Cho Dua, Hanoi), with screenings starting at 19:30 every day.
At the press conference held on October 14 in Hanoi, Mr. Marco della Seta - Ambassador of Italy to Vietnam said: "Through 6 carefully selected films, which have won many prestigious awards, the Italian Film Festival 2025 will take Vietnamese audiences on a vivid journey through many different slices of Italy - where stories of love, resilience and creativity continue to shape a unique cinema."
Italian Ambassador to Vietnam Marco della Seta (center) and speakers
Continuing Italy’s storytelling legacy, this year’s festival presents six award-winning films that capture the spirit of a nation in dramatic change. From quiet reflections on love and memory to bold depictions of resilience and resistance, these stories weave a portrait of contemporary Italy – vibrant, ever-evolving and profoundly human.
Nguyen Hoang Phuong - Director of TPD Center for Supporting and Developing Cinema Talents said: "This is the fourth time I have accompanied the event and continue to pay special attention to the field of film directing - a key factor in conveying messages. Italian cinema stands out with prestigious awards such as David di Donatello and Nastro d'Argento, reflecting the artistic depth and creativity recognized by experts. I hope this Film Festival will help Vietnamese audiences feel more clearly the characteristics of Italian cinema that always emphasizes the author's personality and sophisticated visual language."
This year, music is a prominent highlight throughout many productions, from the free-spirited melodies of musicalsGloria!to the sound of the guitar to heal the pain inLife apart. Music is not only an artistic material but also a tool to express the desire to live, protest and connect people. The participating films are all award-winning films, demonstrating the richness and outstanding quality of contemporary Italian cinema.
Speaker Nguyen Hong Quan
Nguyen Hong Quan - Producer, Director, Lecturer of the Faculty of Cinema, Hanoi Academy of Theatre and Cinema shared more about the musicality in Italian cinema: “I see that music appears quite a lot in contemporary Italian cinema, not only for illustration purposes but also closely related to the plot and character emotions. This is a very interesting element, which I am particularly interested in. I admire directors who skillfully integrate music into their works, helping the audience not only watch but also really feel the cinema more deeply. If I have the opportunity, I will definitely continue to pursue and research more deeply on this fascinating topic.”
Discover 6 films at the 2025 Italian Film Festival:
Gloria! (2024 - musical, drama - director Margherita Vicario)
Teresa is a lowly maid, always looked down upon in the Sant'Ignazio convent/music academy. Her life would have passed quietly if Teresa had not accidentally found the piano in the basement. Music is Teresa's language, also her attitude towards injustice and oppression. Perhaps that is why it is so free-spirited, full of joy, making the feet want to dance and the heart want to rebel. Teresa's piano music becomes a flame, connecting the students in the convent to stand up and challenge the rules, even in front of the Pope and the Governor.
"Gloria!" has won numerous prestigious awards in Italy: Golden Globe Award (Italy) for Best First Film and Best Original Score, David di Donatello Award for Best Young Director, BNL BNP Paribas Award for Young Director, Nastro d'Argento Award for Best Original Score.
Notably, the soundtrack for Gloria! written by director Margherita Vicario herself won the “Soundtrack Stars Award” at the 81st Venice Film Festival. Before her debut as a director, she was also known as an outstanding actress, singer, and musician of her generation.
VERMIGLIO (2024 - DRAMA - DIRECTOR MAURA DELPERO)
"Vermiglio" revolves around the Cesare Graziadei family, a strict and large family of teachers in a remote village isolated in the Alps. The film begins slowly, with beautiful blue frames: the snow-white Alps, peaceful houses, peaceful scenes of daily life... and then, events come one after another like a series of dominoes, giving the audience mixed emotions - with the starting event being when Lucia, the eldest daughter of the family, meets and marries a Sicilian soldier who is in hiding because of desertion - Pietro. When the war is over, Pietro returns to Sicily to visit his relatives and then disappears, even though he promised to return to Lucia. She completely loses track of her husband, until she sees information about him in the newspaper, a new wave of tragedy strikes.
"Vermiglio" received the Silver Lion at the 81st Venice Film Festival, and was selected to represent Italy in the "Best Foreign Language Film" category at the 97th Academy Awards. At the 70th David di Donatello Awards, Vermiglio won 7 out of 14 nominations, including Best Picture.
Hey Joe/Hey Joe (2024 - drama - director Claudio Giovannesi)
“Hello Joe” is set in the 1970s, following Dean Barry, an American veteran haunted by his time in World War II, in Southern Italy, during the Naples–Salerno campaign (1943). Burdened with the past, Dean exists as a ghost, dark and lost. One day, he receives a letter addressed to Italy, saying that he has an illegitimate son in Naples.
So, more than 25 years after the war, Dean Barry is on his way to Italy, not only facing language and cultural barriers, but also having to face wounds that have never healed, reconcile with his son, and also reconcile with himself. Under the hands of Claudio Giovannesi, the post-war harshness of Naples is "softened" in the sounds of jazz, blues and pop, portraying a city, and a class of people, though full of wounds, still resilient, looking towards hope and nurturing love.
This latest work by director Claudio Giovannesi received the Best Sound Award at the Italian National Syndicate of Film Journalists 2025, a Nomination for Best Cinematography at the David di Donatello Awards 2025, and a Nomination for Best Original Screenplay and Best Cinematography at the Italian National Syndicate of Film Journalists 2025.
La Vita Accanto/A Life Apart (2024 - drama - director Marco Tullio Giordana)
Born into a wealthy family, Rebecca Macola was born with a red birthmark on her face, shunned by society and her own mother. To make up for her physical disability, Rebecca had a natural talent for music. With the guidance of her aunt, a famous pianist, Rebecca used music as an escape from pain, social barriers and feelings of alienation.
With strong performances from a talented cast, and written by Oscar-winning composer Dario Marianelli, "A Life Apart" not only won the support of the audience, but also won numerous prestigious awards such as: Dedication Award for Marco Tullio at the Locarno Film Festival 2024. Best Actress Award at Mostra de València-Cinema del Mediterrani 2024, Nominations for Best Supporting Actress and Best Supporting Actor at the Nastro d'Argento Awards 2025.
Diciannove/Nineteen (2024 - drama - director Giovanni Tortorici)
Leonnardo, 19, left his small town to study business in London. However, his excitement for the big city soon faded, replaced by insecurities when he realized that he was not suitable for his studies or the pace of life in London. Leonardo moved to Siena to study literature and continued to find things that were not suitable, and moved to Turin. Leonnardo's journey of escape, struggle, self-discovery, relationships, family and society... makes the work have a strong connection with "lost" young people, who are forced to find themselves among thousands of seemingly attractive and easy choices, and of course, cannot avoid mistakes.
"Nineteen" was selected to participate in many film festivals, such as the Toronto International Film Festival, Viennale International Film Festival, BFI London Film Festival... The film won the Young Talent Award for Best Feature Film at the Hamburg Film Festival 2024. At the Venice Film Festival 2024, "Nineteen" was nominated in 2 categories, Venice Horizons Award - Best Film and Queer Lion Award, and was nominated for the International Cinema Award - Best International Debut Film at the Jerusalem Film Festival 2025.
Nonostante/Feel Better (2024 - fantasy, drama - director Valerio Mastandrea)
"Feeling Better" by acclaimed director/actor Valerio Mastandrea sets up an unrealistic scenario where the world of souls stuck between life and death exists, set in a hospital where many patients are in an endless coma. The souls wander in this hospital, some of them unable to wake up, and some of them choose to delay waking up.
That life of floating freely without any ties or worries was disturbed by a new soul who joined, with a stronger will to live than anyone else, with a hot-tempered and decisive personality. Her appearance aroused the desire to live, love, and feel of the souls who were "living" temporarily in that world to escape reality, thereby further enhancing the value of love and life.
The film won the 2025 Nastro d'Argento Award for Best Original Story. It was also nominated in many important categories such as: Orizzonti Award for Best Film, Orizzonti Award for Best Actor, Orizzonti Award for Best Actor, Orizzonti Jury Prize, Nastro d'Argento Award for Best Screenplay, Orizzonti Award for Best Director.
Schedule of 6 films at the 2025 Italian Film Festival:
- October 20: VERMIGLIO
- 10/21: FEELING BETTER - NONOSTANTE (FEELING BETTER)
- 10/22: LA VITA ACCANTO (THE LIFE APART)
- 10/23: NINETEEN - DICIANNOVE (NINETEEN)
- 10/24: GLORIA! 10/25: HEY JOE
The films will be screened in Italian, with Vietnamese and English subtitles. In particular, after each screening, the audience will have the opportunity to participate in a Q&A and discussion session with Mr. Antonio Termenini, Artistic Director of the Asian Film Festival in Rome and the Italian Film Festival in Hanoi. Tickets cost 30,000 VND/ticket, and will be on sale from 9:00 a.m. on October 15, 2025, directly at the ticket counter and online at the app/website of the National Cinema Center.
