Lights! Cameras! Action! Rome!

By Atalia Howe

Tipping back a glass of prosecco. Strolling through one of the most magical cities in the world. Enjoying the hottest new film releases -- and helping revive Italian cinema? That’s right, from Oct. 13 to 21, the RomeFilmFest will hit the streets of Rome. It's an event with with lofty ambitions: to bring the cinema spotlight back to the Eternal City.

Be prepared: this will not be any ordinary film festival. The goal is to get the entire city involved by offering the public an array of activities – artistic and literary exhibitions, concerts, shows on fashion and up to 20 screens across the city. The aim is to provide the public with the knowledge and most importantly, the delight, of great international cinema, both past and present.

The event was not without controversy, however. Weeks before the curtain was due to rise, tensions flaired between the upstart Rome and its more established neighbor Venice. Rome's decision to open a festa six weeks after the Venice Film Festival drew accusations that the Rome organizers were stepping on some precious toes.

The awkwardness beween the two cities still lingers. The comparisons won't fade either. “Unlike the Venice Film Festivalm the Rome Cinema Fest incorporates all aspects of film, from directing to acting to simply being a part of a public that enjoys going to the cinema," says Roberto Scarpetti, a young aspiring director from Rome. "Forty years ago, directors such as Fellini, Bertolucci and de Sica made a name for Italy in cinema. But in more recent years, Italian cinema has faded out of the film scene. The Rome Cinema Fest is an opportunity for people to once again become aware of what Italy has to offer the world.”

In collaboration with the Tribeca Film Festival of New York, the event will kick-off at Auditorium on the 13th and continue for nine days. Via Veneto, once the prime location to get a glimpse of the Italian jet-set, will undergo a complete transformation for the festival. And with stars such as Nicole Kidman, George Clooney and Sean Connery roaming the streets, and a line-up of over one hundred films by some of the most respected directors in the industry and many up-and-comers as well, this will surely be an unforgettable event.