Submitted on 17.11.2025 by

CiakPolska Film Festival 2025 in Rome – the best of Polish cinema in the Italian capital

kobieta malująca usta, których odbicie widać w lusterku
Kadr z filmu Wojciecha Hasa "Jak być kochaną"

Rome will become the capital of Polish cinema from 11 to 20 November 2025, during the 13th edition of the CiakPolska Film Festival. In the prestigious halls of the Palazzo Esposizioni and Casa del Cinema, audiences will experience films by Agnieszka Holland, Wojciech Jerzy Has, and the latest Polish productions. The Adam Mickiewicz Institute supports the event, which aims to present the diversity of Polish cinema to Italian audiences – from classics to experimental and documentary films.

CiakPolska Film Festival 2025 – contemporary and classic Polish cinema

CiakPolska Film Festival is an annual event that brings the best of Polish cinema to Rome and across Italy, showcasing both contemporary films and classics from one of Europe’s most dynamic film industries. The festival seeks to promote Polish cinema internationally and to introduce Italian audiences to the work of Polish filmmakers. Its programme includes film screenings, meetings with filmmakers, and exciting premieres.

The 13th edition, organised by the Polish Institute in Rome, will take place from 11 to 20 November 2025 at two locations in the city. The Palazzo Esposizioni Roma will host a retrospective of films by Agnieszka Holland, the festival’s guest of honour. The festival will then move to Casa del Cinema, where productions from the New Polish Cinema and notable European successes from the past year will be presented. The programme offers a rich overview of the contemporary Polish film scene – spanning genre and experimental cinema, animation, and documentaries. Admission to all screenings is free.

Contemporary Polish cinema and the AMI co-productions in the New Polish Cinema section

The 13th edition of the festival will also feature co-productions supported by the Adam Mickiewicz Institute, including Wednesday screenings of “Abakamania” and “Solaris mon amour”, and Thursday’s “The Hourglass Sanatorium” by the Quay brothers. Through its activities, the AMI promotes the development of Polish cinema and strengthens the international presence of Polish films.

The festival is further expanding thanks to its collaboration with the project “Fuori orario. Cose (mai) viste” and RAI Cultura, presenting films on public television (Rai3) and online via the RaiPlay platform. In tribute to the brilliant Polish director Wojciech Jerzy Has (1925–2000), on the occasion of the centenary of his birth, the festival will present a cinema screening on Thursday, 20 November 2025, alongside television broadcasts of The Saragossa Manuscript, The Noose, and How to Be Loved. These films will be aired on 15 and 22 November 2025, and will subsequently be available on RaiPlay from 23 November until the end of the year.

Grandi Classici: classics of Polish cinema with Agnieszka Holland

The first part of the festival, Grandi Classici, is dedicated to one of the most outstanding contemporary European directors – Agnieszka Holland. The retrospective will explore both lesser-known and classic films by an artist who has long offered critical reflections on reality, often in opposition to dominant narratives and ideologies. Holland’s cinema combines raw realism with emotional intensity and profound humanism.

The retrospective is organised by Studi Cinematografici WFDiF (Documentary and Feature Film Studios) and the Polish Institute in Rome. The event is financed by the Ministry of Culture and National Heritage as part of the Inspiring Culture project.

The 2025 “Grandi Classici” retrospective programme:

  • Tuesday, 11 November 2025, 8 p.m. – “Screen Tests” (1976)

  • Wednesday, 12 November 2025, 8:00 p.m. – “Spoor” (2017) – meeting with Agnieszka Holland

  • Thursday, 13 November 2025, 8:00 p.m. – “A Lonely Woman” (1981) – meeting with cinematographer Jacek Petrycki

  • Friday, 14 November 2025, 8:00 p.m. – “Fever” (1980)

  • Saturday, 15 November 2025, 5:00 p.m. – “A Girl and Aquarius” (1975) and “Provincial Actors” (1978)

  • Saturday, 15 November 2025, 8:00 p.m. – “Mr. Jones” (2019)

  • Sunday, 16 November 2025, 5:00 p.m. – “In Darkness” (2011)

  • Sunday, 16 November 2025, 8:00 p.m. – “Olivier, Olivier” (1991)

Nuovo Cinema Polacco: the latest cinema releases and experimental films from Poland

The Nuovo Cinema Polacco selection presents Poland in dialogue with the world – through international collaborations, a new generation of artists, and tributes to icons such as Wanda Rutkiewicz and Magdalena Abakanowicz. Four days are devoted to the latest experimental and innovative productions, ranging from feature films to works seeking new forms of artistic expression.

Nuovo Cinema Polacco programme:

Monday, 17 November 2025:

  • 6:00 p.m. “Trains” (2024) – dir. Maciej J. Drygas

  • 7:45 p.m. “The Dam” (2024) – dir. Giovanni Pierangeli – meeting with the director

  • 9:00 p.m. “The Girl with the Needle” (2024) – dir. Magnus von Horn – cinema premiere

Tuesday, 18 November 2025:

  • 5:00 p.m. “Wanda Rutkiewicz. The Last Expedition” (2024) – dir. Eliza Kubarska

  • 6:30 p.m. “25 Years of Innocence. The Case of Tomek Komenda” (2020) – dir. Jan Holoubek

  • 9:00 p.m. “Holofiction” (2025) – dir. Michal Kosakowski – meeting with the director

Wednesday, 19 November 2025:

  • 5:00 p.m. “Abakamania” (2025) – dir. Róża Fabjanowska, Sławomir Malcharek – meeting with the directors

  • 7:30 p.m. “Solaris mon amour” (2023) – dir. Kuba Mikurda – meeting with the director

  • 9:30 p.m. “IMAGO” (2023) – dir. Olga Chajdas

Thursday, 20 November 2025:

  • 4:00 p.m. “Scarborn” (2024) – dir. Paweł Maślona

  • 6:30 p.m. “Sanatorium Under the Sign of the Hourglass” (2024) – dir. the Quay brothers

  • 8:30 p.m. “The Saragossa Manuscript” (1964, ed. 2025) – dir. Wojciech Has – introduction to the film: Roberto Turigliatto (Fuori Orario – RAI)

Wojciech Jerzy Has: Tribute to the legend of Polish cinema on the 100th anniversary of his birth on Italian television

The year 2025 in Poland has been declared “The Year of Has”, in tribute to the director of “The Saragossa Manuscript”. The CiakPolska Festival, in collaboration with Fuori Orario / RAI Cultura, will dedicate a special section to him, including screenings of lesser-known films such as “The Noose” and “How to Be Loved”.

Screenings of Wojciech Jerzy Has’s films on Rai3:

  • Saturday, 15 November 2025 – 11:45 p.m. “The Saragossa Manuscript” (1964)

  • Saturday, 22 November 2025 – 11:45 p.m. “The Noose” (1958) and “How to Be Loved” (1962)

After the television broadcast, all three films will be available on the RaiPlay platform from 23 November to 31 December 2025.

CiakPolska Film Festival in Italy – practical information

  • Grandi Classici – 11–16 November 2025

    • Venue: Palazzo delle Esposizioni – Sala Cinema (scalinata di via Milano 9a, Rome)

    • Tickets: free admission until full capacity is reached, advance booking recommended at www.palazzoesposizioniroma.it

  • Nuovo Cinema Polacco – 17–20 November 2025

    • Venue: Casa del Cinema – Sala Cinecittà (Largo Marcello Mastroianni 1, Rome)

    • Tickets: free admission until full capacity is reached

  • More information: Polish Institute in Rome – CiakPolska 2025

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