RUFA ON SCREEN 2026: the creativity of RUFA students and alumni returns to the big screen.
14 – 15 – 16 April 2026 – Nuovo Cinema Aquila (Pigneto – Via L’Aquila 66/74) – Free admission subject to availability.
RUFA is pleased to present RUFA ON SCREEN 2026, the film showcase dedicated to audiovisual works created by students and alumni of the Cinema, Film arts and Computer animation and visual effects, Photography and Audiovisual.
The 2026 edition took place from April 14 to 16, 2026 at Nuovo Cinema Aquila in Rome, featuring three days of screenings, talks, and networking opportunities with companies and professionals from the audiovisual industry.
The showcase was created to enhance the talent of young authors trained at the Academy, offering them the opportunity to present their works on the big screen and connect directly with the worlds of production, distribution, and film promotion.
The selected works in competition were divided into the following categories:
❯ Fiction short films
❯ Animation or experimental works
❯ Documentaries
During the showcase, RUFA’s young authors had the opportunity to engage with directors, producers, distributors and industry professionals through dedicated talks and meetings.
Among the invited guests were directors, screenwriters, cinematographers and actors such as Matteo Rovere, Carolina Crescentini, Daniele Ciprì, Riccardo Grandi, screenwriter Laura Luchetti and Mirko Perri, sound designer and four-time David di Donatello award winner. Also participating as guests were Carlo Rodomonti, Head of Marketing and Innovation at Rai Cinema, Michele Franzese, Founder of Future Week® and Creative Director of SCAI Comunicazione, Nicolò Cuccì and Salvo Di Paola, co-founders of Megadrago – Story-driven Animation Studio.
Awards and distribution opportunities.
RUFA ON SCREEN 2026 included the assignment of several awards designed to support the distribution of the selected works. The four official awards consisted of one-year distribution contracts, aimed at submitting the winning films to national and international festivals.
In addition to the official awards, further recognitions were assigned thanks to the contribution of the initiative’s partners, including the Rai Cinema Channel Special Award, dedicated to promoting the selected work on its platforms, the Best Production Award in collaboration with One More Pictures, the SCAI Comunicazione Innovation Award, and the Audience Award, determined by audience votes at the end of the screenings.
A network of partners supporting new authors
RUFA ON SCREEN 2026 was carried out with the support of audiovisual industry partners, including Rai Cinema, Esen Studios, Sayonara Film, One More Pictures, SCAI Comunicazione, Lers Film and Allegorie Film. Thanks to the involvement of these organizations, the showcase confirms itself as a concrete opportunity to support young authors in their transition from education to the professional world, enhancing the talent and creative experimentation of new generations of filmmakers.
A major new feature of this edition: for the first time, the screenings also included works by students from the Photography and Audiovisual program. This choice highlights the renewal of the undergraduate course, which RUFA has enriched over the past two years by integrating a strong video component alongside traditional photography.
The 28 works presented over the three days of the showcase were selected from projects submitted by students and alumni by an internal committee, whom we thank, composed of Andrés Rafael Zabala, Alessandro Marinelli, Andrea Costantini, Pietro Ciccotti and Livia Barbieri.
Out of competition: Fellini revisited through the eyes of new generations
Alongside the competition works, several out-of-competition screenings were part of the Grand Tour AFAM project, an international initiative promoting Italian culture and creativity, coordinated by RUFA, involving 14 AFAM institutions (Higher Education in Art, Music and Dance), together with organizations such as CNR, Sapienza University of Rome, the Municipality of Rimini, Confindustria – Young Entrepreneurs, and the MAECI.
Through short films, documentaries and visual experimentation – including the use of emerging technologies such as computer animation and artificial intelligence – students were invited to reinterpret Fellini’s imagery, restoring its visionary power in a contemporary key. A process that demonstrates how his free and universal взгляд continues to engage with new generations and the languages of the present.
Within this program, on April 14 at 10:00 AM, the presentation of the book Federico Fellini. La sicurezza del sonnambulo by Raffaele Simongini (Edizioni Mimesis) took place, as part of the dissemination activities of the PNRR project. The meeting was introduced and moderated by Alessandra Barone, journalist for Rai Tg1. Among the guests were screenwriter Marianna Cappi, film historian Gina Annunziata, cinematographer Massimo Intoppa, and director Daniele Ciprì.
Winners of RUFA ON SCREEN 2026
RUFA ON SCREEN 2026 concluded with the awarding of prizes, which once again represented concrete opportunities for distribution, production, and visibility for the winning works and the young authors involved.
Below are the awards presented:
Distribution Award – Esen Studios
to the fiction short film “Pioggia di marzo” by Giacomo Salvatelli
and to the documentary “Una nuova famiglia” by Serena Lazzaro
An award that actively supports the distribution path of the selected works.
Distribution Awards – Sayonara Film
to “Cane di mannara” by Baldassare Caradonna
An important opportunity for circulation in festival and professional circuits.
Distribution Award – Lers Film
to “Stage of Flesh” by Guibert Najarian
Concrete support for the international circulation of the short film.
Visibility Award – Rai Cinema Channel
to “La pistola di Čechov” by Eleonora Maiolino
An award dedicated to promoting the work across industry platforms and channels.
Innovation Award – SCAI Comunicazione
to “All’ultimo si contano le pecore” by Camilla Swami
An award that highlights research and experimentation in audiovisual language.
Production Award – One More Pictures
to “Piccolo mondo” by Laura Balestieri
Award assigned to Production Manager Isabel Simonetti
A concrete opportunity for the development of new projects.
Audience Award
awarded to the most voted work during the three days of the showcase:
“Pioggia di marzo” by Giacomo Salvatelli
Thanks to all the audience members for their participation and engagement.
JP Melville Award – Photography & Audiovisual
to “Nadir” by Michele Baldi
An award dedicated to works exploring contemporary languages of photography and audiovisual media.
RUFA congratulates all the winners and selected authors, protagonists of an edition that once again confirmed the vitality, quality, and innovative strength of new generations of filmmakers.
Discover all scheduled screenings
Browse the gallery – RUFA On Screen 2026
