One of Italy’s most distinctive filmmakers will lead the Main Competition jury as Turin prepares to welcome another celebration of contemporary cinema.
The 44th Torino Film Festival is set to have a formidable cinematic voice at the helm of its Main Competition jury: Francesca Archibugi has been appointed Jury President for the feature film section of the festival, which will take place in Turin from November 24 to December 2, 2026.
A director and screenwriter with a career spanning nearly four decades, Archibugi has established herself as one of the most respected and distinctive voices in contemporary Italian cinema. Her films have consistently explored the intimate territory of family, relationships and generational change, finding drama and humour in the contradictions, vulnerabilities and unexpected turns of everyday life.
Her appointment feels particularly fitting for a festival renowned for championing original voices and auteur cinema. Archibugi’s work has always been driven by a sharp curiosity about people and the societies they inhabit, balancing emotional depth with an unmistakable personal style.
Over the course of her career, Archibugi has received some of the most important honours in Italian cinema, including three David di Donatello awards, four Nastro d’Argento awards, a Globo d’Oro and a Premio Flaiano.
But her role in Turin will be about more than celebrating an established career. As jury president, Archibugi will be called upon to discover and assess new cinematic voices; a responsibility that resonates with her own history in an industry where, when she began directing, women behind the camera were still far too few.
“Francesca Archibugi is an author I deeply admire for the sensitivity, intelligence and independence with which she has built her career,” said Giulio Base, Artistic Director of the Torino Film Festival. “She was already a luminous presence at a time when there were still very few women behind the camera, and she continues today to generously support the talent of her female colleagues. Having her as President of the Jury of the Torino Film Festival is a great joy: I am certain that she will know how to recognise talent, embrace the unexpected and listen to the most original voices in contemporary cinema.”
Those qualities: curiosity, independence and an openness to the unexpected are particularly well suited to the spirit of the Torino Film Festival. In a landscape increasingly shaped by franchises, algorithms and familiar formulas, festivals remain places where discovery can still happen: where an unfamiliar name can suddenly become the filmmaker everyone is talking about.
With Archibugi leading the jury, the 44th edition promises to put that spirit of discovery front and centre.
The 44th Torino Film Festival is organised by the Museo Nazionale del Cinema di Torino, with the support of Italy’s Ministry of Culture, Directorate General for Cinema and Audiovisual, the Piedmont Region, the City of Turin, Fondazione Compagnia di San Paolo and Fondazione CRT.
The countdown to Turin begins.
