Open-Air Cinema Returns to Piazza Pitti with International Films

Florence’s summer film season will return to Piazza Pitti from 15 June to 26 July as Apriti Cinema, the city’s annual open-air cinema programme, offers more than six weeks of free evening screenings under the stars.

Part of the Florence Summer programme organised by the Municipality of Florence, the festival will once again transform one of the city’s most iconic squares into an outdoor cinema. Screenings begin at 9.45 p.m. and admission is free, subject to available seating. All films will be shown in their original language, with Italian and English subtitles, making the programme particularly accessible to Florence’s international community and visitors.

The 2026 edition combines classic cinema, contemporary international productions, documentaries and selections from Florence’s major film festivals, including the Florence Korea Film Fest, River to River Florence Indian Film Festival, Middle East Now, Festival dei Popoli, Florence Queer Festival and Lo Schermo dell’Arte.

Three cinema centenaries

One of the main themes of this year’s programme is the celebration of three important centenaries.

The section “Marilyn 100” honours Marilyn Monroe with Billy Wilder’s classic Some Like It Hot. Another tribute, “Carlo Rambaldi – The Matter of Dreams”, celebrates the Oscar-winning Italian special-effects pioneer through Steven Spielberg’s E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial. The programme also marks the 100th anniversary of Italian director Florestano Vancini with a screening of The Mattei Affair.

International cinema at the centre

The programme places a strong emphasis on international productions and films rarely screened in commercial cinemas.

Among the highlights are It’s Never Over, Jeff Buckley, Amy Berg’s new documentary about the late American singer-songwriter; Olivier Assayas’s Clouds of Sils Maria and Personal Shopper; Gabriel Mascaro’s Brazilian feature The Blue Trail; Aranya Sahay’s Indian drama Humans in the Loop; and Ha Myung-mi’s South Korean historical film Hallan.

Other notable titles include the French comedy Antoinette dans les Cévennes, the Lebanese documentary To Close My Eyes and See Fire, Meriem Bennani and Orian Barki’s hybrid feature Bouchra, Laila Abbas’s Palestinian film Thank You for Banking with Us, and Mascha Schilinski’s German drama Sound of Falling.

The programme also features documentaries on Jeff Buckley, Thelonious Monk and Sinéad O’Connor, alongside artist films and works exploring contemporary social issues.

Literary adaptations and cinema classics

Several evenings will be dedicated to films adapted from literary works.

The schedule includes Sidney Lumet’s Murder on the Orient Express marking 50 years since the death of Agatha Christie, Stanley Kubrick’s The Shining based on Stephen King’s novel, Vittorio De Sica’s Oscar-winning The Garden of the Finzi-Continis, and Luigi Comencini’s celebrated television adaptation of The Adventures of Pinocchio, presented during the bicentenary celebrations of Carlo Collodi.

Practical information

Apriti Cinema 2026

When: 15 June – 26 July 2026
Where: Piazza Pitti, Florence
Admission: Free, until capacity is reached
Screening time: 9.45 p.m. (9.30 p.m. on selected dates)
Languages: Original versions with Italian and English subtitles

The arena will be closed on 24 June, Florence’s patron saint holiday. The complete programma on the Teatro delle Compagnia website.

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