Rosarno Film Festival 2026 – Fuori dal Ghetto (Out of the Ghetto)

Istituto Comprensivo Marvasi-Vizzone · Rosarno, Costa Viola, Calabria

5 November 2026 – 17 December 2026

From 5 November to 17 December 2026 the fifth Rosarno Film Festival – Fuori dal Ghetto (Out of the Ghetto) brings documentaries, short films, theatre and books about farm work, caporalato (illegal gangmaster recruitment) and migration to seven towns in the province of Reggio Calabria: Reggio Calabria, Palmi, Cinquefrondi, Camini, San Ferdinando, Rosarno and Oppido Mamertina. It opens on Thursday 5 November at 7.15pm in the Waldensian church in Reggio Calabria with Angelo Resta's documentary Cutro 94... And more; on Friday 20 November at 3.30pm the short film competition, judged by farm labourers and students, takes place at the Marvasi-Vizzone school in Piazza Duomo, Rosarno; the festival closes on Thursday 17 December at 6pm at the Casa della Cultura in Palmi with Ascanio Celestini. It is promoted by Mediterranean Hope (Federation of Evangelical Churches in Italy), Rete Comunità Solidali and SOS Rosarno. The programme does not mention tickets or prices; for information write to fuoridalghetto2022@gmail.com.

Fifth edition: dates, towns and themes

The Rosarno Film Festival – Fuori dal Ghetto (Out of the Ghetto) was launched in 2022 and reaches its fifth edition in 2026. The programme runs from Thursday 5 November to Thursday 17 December and visits seven towns in the province of Reggio Calabria: the city of Reggio itself, Palmi, Cinquefrondi, Camini, San Ferdinando, Rosarno and Oppido Mamertina. Screenings, plays, book talks and workshops focus on migration, caporalato (the illegal recruitment of farm labour by gangmasters), rights and racism.

The 2026 call for entries centred on labour exploitation, workplace safety and caporalato, looking beyond the Gioia Tauro plain to Saluzzo, Nardò, Latina and Ragusa. The festival is promoted by Mediterranean Hope, the refugee and migrant programme of the Federation of Evangelical Churches in Italy, together with Rete Comunità Solidali and SOS Rosarno, with funding from the Waldensian Church's Otto per mille.

5 November in Reggio Calabria: Cutro 94... And more

The festival opens on Thursday 5 November at 7.15pm in the Waldensian church in Reggio Calabria, Via Possidonea 2, with a screening of Cutro 94... And more, directed by Angelo Resta and co-written with Vincenzo Montalcini, Bruno Palermo and Francesco Pupa, under the patronage of Amnesty International Italia. The documentary tells the story of the shipwreck off the coast of Cutro on 26 February 2023, in which 94 people died, through the voices of survivors, rescuers and local residents.

Director Angelo Resta, journalist and co-author Bruno Palermo and civil protection volunteer Gaetano Rossi will attend the screening. Cutro returns at the closing evening in Palmi, with an excerpt from a documentary by Mimmo Calopresti.

In schools: Super Umani and Disegni di frontiera

From 9 to 11 November the festival goes into schools with Super Umani (Super Humans), a collective drawing workshop devised by Lorenzo Terranera and Francesco Piobbichi: instead of superheroes, pupils invent characters with positive powers to tackle racism, the climate crisis, war and loneliness. On Monday 9 November in Palmi the sessions are at 8.15am at the Istituto San Francesco (T. Minniti building) and at 10.30am at the Zagari-Milione school.

On Tuesday 10 November the workshop moves to Cinquefrondi at 9.30am (Anoia-Giffone school) and to Camini at 3.30pm, within the Jungi Mundi project, with the Disegni di frontiera (Border drawings) workshop. On Wednesday 11 at 8.15am the workshop reaches the Vizzone middle school in San Ferdinando; more meetings are planned around the Gioia Tauro plain. On Wednesday 18 November at 10.15am, at the Raffaele Piria high school in Rosarno, Piobbichi presents Racconti dalla frontiera (Tales from the border) to the student jurors.

20 November in Rosarno: the Fuori dal Ghetto short film competition

The heart of the festival is Friday 20 November at 3.30pm at the Marvasi-Vizzone school in Piazza Duomo, Rosarno. As every year, the jury is made up of farm labourers and students. The programme includes five five-minute stories from Oltre il Ghetto, the storytelling contest of the Su.Pr.Eme. 2 anti-caporalato programme funded by FAMI 2021-2027, Italy's share of the EU asylum, migration and integration fund: the Mani e Terra cooperative, Moisés and Yancouba, Yerro, Filmon and his Nahla beekeeping business, and Fatima and her Digital Company.

Three short films follow: Le note di Khaled by Massimo Pellegrinotti, Fiori dal mondo by Giancarlo Santone and Dario Fatello, and Ruggine by Filippo Tamburini. There is no prize money: the first and second placed films receive a basket of farm produce from the Mani e Terra cooperative in Rosarno, and the films are screened at the venues that join the festival.

Palestine 36, Franca Viola and Mafia Caporale

On Friday 27 November at 6pm the Casa del Popolo Giuseppe Valarioti in Rosarno screens Palestine 36 (Palestina 36) by Annemarie Jacir, set in Palestine in 1936 under British rule and following young Yusuf, played by Karim Daoud Anaya.

On Thursday 3 December at 11am, with the municipality of Oppido Mamertina and the SAI reception project of San Giorgio Morgeto, there is theatre for schools: Aurora Miriam Scala performs Franca Viola, a Sciara Progetti production, for pupils of the Gemelli Careri high school (Oppido Mamertina and Taurianova) and the Oppido-Molochio-Varapodio school. It tells the story of the young woman from Alcamo, in Sicily, who in 1965 refused a so-called reparatory marriage. On Friday 4 December at 6pm, in the municipal library of Cinquefrondi, Leonardo Palmisano presents his book Mafia Caporale (Fandango) in conversation with culture councillor Roberta Gallo, with the municipality and the Sankara social enterprise.

No home for farm labourers, and the closing night with Ascanio Celestini

On Monday 7 December at 6pm in San Ferdinando, at Dambe So and with the Patto Territoriale, Salvatore Lucente presents Niente casa ai braccianti (No home for farm labourers, Altreconomia), a collection of written and photographic reports made between 2025 and 2026, from Borgo Mezzanone to Saluzzo. The evening continues with a multi-ethnic dinner and music by Café Toubab.

The festival closes on Thursday 17 December at 6pm at the Casa della Cultura in Palmi, together with the municipality: first a ten-minute excerpt from Cutro Calabria Italia by Mimmo Calopresti, the documentary that quotes Pasolini's poem Profezia, then Ascanio Celestini presents his book Pasolini. Una vita, anzi due (Laterza), in conversation with Mimma Sprizzi and Gianluca Carmosino. The Mondadori Point bookshop in Palmi is a partner.

Admission, contacts and getting there

The official programme does not mention tickets or prices for the public events; the morning sessions in schools are designed for pupils. For information, write to fuoridalghetto2022@gmail.com or to Rete Comunità Solidali (comunita@comunitasolidali.org); the festival website is rosarnofilmfest.it.

Rosarno has its own exit on the A2 motorway and a station on the Tyrrhenian Battipaglia-Reggio Calabria railway; Palmi also has its own A2 exit, while in Reggio the main station is Reggio Calabria Centrale. Rosarno stands on the site of ancient Medma, a city of Magna Graecia, and was the first municipality in Italy to join an anti-mafia trial as a civil party. For restaurants and services in the area, see the list of businesses in Rosarno.

Frequently asked questions

When is the 2026 Rosarno Film Festival?

From 5 November to 17 December 2026. It opens on Thursday 5 November at 7.15pm in Reggio Calabria and closes on Thursday 17 December at 6pm in Palmi.

Which towns host the events?

Reggio Calabria, Palmi, Cinquefrondi, Camini, San Ferdinando, Rosarno and Oppido Mamertina, in schools, libraries, a church and community venues.

How much does admission cost?

The official programme does not mention tickets or prices. To check, write to the organisers at fuoridalghetto2022@gmail.com.

Where and when is the short film competition?

On Friday 20 November at 3.30pm at the Marvasi-Vizzone school in Piazza Duomo, Rosarno. The jury is made up of farm labourers and students.

When is the event with Ascanio Celestini?

On Thursday 17 December at 6pm at the Casa della Cultura in Palmi, after an excerpt from Mimmo Calopresti's Cutro Calabria Italia. Celestini presents his book Pasolini. Una vita, anzi due.

Where is Palestine 36 being screened?

On Friday 27 November at 6pm at the Casa del Popolo Giuseppe Valarioti in Rosarno.

Who organises the festival?

Mediterranean Hope (Federation of Evangelical Churches in Italy), Rete Comunità Solidali and SOS Rosarno, with funding from the Waldensian Church's Otto per mille and the support of several associations.

How do I get to Rosarno?

By car, take the Rosarno exit on the A2 motorway; by train, Rosarno station is on the Tyrrhenian Battipaglia-Reggio Calabria line.

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