Culture · 25 August 2026

St. Ali Italian Film Festival Shares Full 2026 Program

Catch the box office Italian romantic comedy hit 'Holy Cannoli'.

Holy Cannoli - photo supplied

Palace Nova Eastend and Nova Prospect Cinemas are excited to share the full program for the St. Ali Italian Film Festival 2026.

The largest festival of Italian cinema in the world takes over Adelaide's Nova Cinemas from Wednesday 16 September to Tuesday 13 October, with a program featuring works from contemporary Italian auteurs, documentaries, comedies, a retrospective focus on iconic Italian actor Anna Magnani and the premiere of a new Australian-Italian co-production.

This year's festival opens with the box office hit Holy Cannoli (Che Dio perdona a tutti), a romantic comedy about a real estate agent with a passion for desserts who falls for a devoutly Catholic pastry chef.

The Festival Centrepiece is the award-winning drama Sweetheart (Gioia mia), which follows a young boy who spends the summer in Sicily with his elderly aunt, while the festival closes with a screening of director Andrea Pallaoro's The Echo Chamber, a film based on Bernardo Bertolucci's final screenplay starring Alicia Vikander, Luca Marinelli, and Susan Sarandon.

Three Goodbyes (Tre ciotole) is the 2026 Festival Special Presentation, with the New Italian Cinema selection of films including the drama A Brief Affair, the biographical drama Almost Grazia (Quasi Grazia), the psychological thriller The Lesson (La lezione) and the chamber drama Andrea's Island (L'isola di Andrea).

The 2026 program also includes several documentaries, Italian comedies and family flicks.

Check out the full program of films at this year's St. Ali Italian Film Festival at italianfilmfestival.com.au.

Speaking about this year's program, Festival Director Elysia Zeccola said, "Australia's favourite love affair with Italy is back for another exciting year with 33 films in the line-up. We're thrilled to be sharing the annual celebration of Italian culture with our passionate audiences nationwide."

Lachlan Ward, CEO of ST. Ali, Festival Naming Rights Partner added, "We're proud to partner with the Italian Film Festival for the 7th year and celebrate the beauty and rich heritage of Italian cinema here in Australia. As a coffee company with Italian heritage, ST. ALi has always believed coffee and Italian culture go hand in hand, and we look forward to sharing ST. ALi's speciality coffee with festival goers this spring."

The St. Ali Italian Film Festival 2026 takes place at Palace Nova Eastend and Palace Nova Prospect Cinemas from Wednesday 17 September to Tuesday 14 October. Check out the program and buy tickets at italianfilmfestival.com.au.