The Wild Roses section, dedicated to Slovenian women directors, opens with MOJA VESNA by Sara Kern (SLO - AU, 2022, col., 80’), which debuted at the Berlinale in 2022. Moja is a 10-year-old girl who lives with her grieving Slovenian father and her pregnant sister Vesna (20) in an outer suburb of Melbourne. Unable to come to terms with the sudden loss of her mother, Moja focuses on the upcoming baby while Vesna is lost in problems of her own. Bright and resolute, Moja hopes that her big sister can fill the mother-shaped hole in her life.
Other films in the secretion then follow, starting with INSTALACIJA LJUBEZNI / Installation of Love by Maja Weiss (SLO, 2007, col., 102’) at 14:00, already in competition at the TSFF in 2008. A woman hungry for love becomes the unwitting centerpiece of her ex-lover’s and daughter’s art project, launching everyone into a journey where life and creation blur. At 16:00, DUHOVNICA/Woman of God by Maja Prettner (SLO, 2023, col., 98’), which was given the Audience Award and Fipresci Prize at the Festival of Slovenian Film in Portorož. Protestant pastor Jana faces her greatest challenge: stepping away from the Church, while long-buried family wounds and childhood trauma resurface.
At 18:00, NE BOM VEČ LUZERKA /My Last Year as a Loser by Urša Menart (SLO, 2018, col., 88’). Špela, 29, an unemployed art historian sleeping on her parents’ sofa, tries to get her life back on track, but her new friends keep her trapped in adolescence. Ne bom več luzerka, Menart’s debut film, is a dramatic comedy about disillusionment, shame, and the generational gap between overqualified/underemployed millennials and their parents. Finally, at 20:00 will be a film already presented at Cottbus and in competition at the last Turin Film Festival, where it won the special jury prize, IDA, KI JE PELA TAKO GRDO, DA SO ŠE MRTVI VSTALI OD MRTVIH IN ZAPELI Z NJO /Ida Who Sang So Badly Even the Dead Rose Up and Joined Her in Song (SLO - HR, 2025, col., 109’). In a small village in the remote Prekmurje region, an imaginative but tone-deaf 10-year-old Ida becomes convinced she can prevent her Grandma’s death by joining the school choir.
Among the selection in the TSFF for the little ones, at the RIDOTTINO of the Teatro Miela at 11:00, will be TICHÁ POŠTA /Secret Delivery by Ján Sebechlebský ( CZ - SK - SRB, 2025, 97’). In this adventure suitable for all ages and set towards the end of the war, a group of heroic children saves a French pilot. Through this journey, the boys discover the power of friendship and ingenuity. The same afternoon at 15.30, a screening of the candidate for the European Film Award for Best Animated Feature Film 2026 POHÁDKY PO BABIČCE /Tales from the Magic Garden by David Súkup, Jean-Claude Rozec, Leon Vidmar, Patrik Paš (F - CZ - SK - SLO, 2025, 85’). Three children spend the night at their grandfather’s house. Remembering their grandmother, the family’s storyteller, they begin to weave their own tales and discover the power of imagination. Also for children of 5 - 10yrs, the CREATIVE WORKSHOP: HAND TO HAND! by Gaia Mencagli & Roberta Colacino, where children can discover the magic behind stop motion animation. A playful and educational experience that brings together imagination, hands-on creativity, and visual storytelling.
At 22:00 the TSFF inaugurates the Queer Visions section with the Italian premiere of AKTYVISTAS/The Activist by Romas Zabarauskas (LT, 2025, col., 94’), already presented at Tallinn Black Nights FF in 2025, in the Baltic film competition. A young man infiltrates a radical neo-Nazi group to find the killer of his LGBTQ+ activist boyfriend.
TSFF37 WALKS
But the festival doesn’t stop at just the big screen: starting at 11, there will be two guided tours. The walk ‘TRIESTE, ALSO A SLOVENE CITY: MYTH AND REALITY’ by Marzia Arzon, will begin at the ex-Narodni dom (Slovene Cultural Centre). The itinerary then will continue on through the Public Garden, where the literary and artistic side of Trieste will be explored, then make a stop at the Slovene Theatre, a fascinating example of modern architecture. This will be followed by two more stops: the local newspaper’s headquarters, and finally Piazza della Borsa. (Price 15€ | compulsory booking: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.).
The walk ‘NOVA GORICA, THE LAST FRONTIER’ by Gianluca Guerra starts at the Piazza Transalpina in Gorizia and explores Nova Gorica, a unique city, born of a complex and deeply meaningful history that unfolds along the border between Italy and Slovenia. Rising from the ruins of the Second World War and designed from 1948 onward by architect Edvard Ravnikar, according to the principles of Le Corbusier’s modernist urbanism and Soviet constructivism, Nova Gorica stands as one of the most emblematic examples of a city rebuilt as a political and social manifesto in the postwar era.
In this walk, written and conceived for the Set Discover app by Gianluca Guerra, participants cross the border between Gorizia and Nova Gorica, immersing themselves in an urban and historical context that tells the story of the division imposed by the 1947 Paris Peace Treaty and the era of the Iron Curtain, but also of the city’s present-day power of transformation and reconciliation. (price 15€ | compulsory booking: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.).
TSFF37 MEETINGS & BOOKS
Another part of the TSFF: Talks & Books. Att 11:30 The Lovat Bookshop will host the talk IL The Heart Uncovered - to re-make love’ / Il cuore scoperto. Per ri-fare l’amore (add editor), a political and cultural reflection on the new forms of modern relationships, starting from the Italian edition of Victoire Tuaillon’s book. The talk, moderated by Marta Improta, is with Marta Pacor and Rosa Monicelli, and is in association with Associazione Vanvera with the participation of Euphoria Trans-FVG. “Is love something we can learn?And if so, how? What concrete practices can we put in place—individually and collectively—to create, nurture, and sustain, despite everything, deep and egalitarian relationships? Love is one of the central topics of our time, and it is a deeply political one. It is a force shaped by norms and imaginaries rooted in our cultural heritage—elements we rarely question in order to imagine new models. So the real question becomes: how do we invent new relational forms? Revolutionizing love does not simply mean rethinking our relationships, nor does it mean sweeping away all existing models in pursuit of absolute freedom. For example, what would be the point of a romantic revolution in a world marked by inequalities? And above all: what can truly revolutionize love?”
After joining us at last year’s edition of the festival—where they also gave us a valuable interview with producer Dardan Hoti, available at the link provided (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KBZ_UMCMRcQ&t=1s)—the friends of Cuore(scoperto) return this year. Starting from the presentation of the Italian edition of Victoire Tuaillon’s book, enriched with interviews with Italian activists and researchers (such as Leo Acquistapace, Marie Moïse, Giusi Palomba, Valentina Amenta, Sessfem, Giorgia Serughetti, Antonia Caruso, Giulia Siviero, Carlotta Cossutta), the talk will open up into a broader discussion: not only about the themes explored in the book and the podcast, but also about the practices and challenges involved in translating a cultural work of this kind.
At 17.30 at Knulp Bar, CONVERSATIONS ON YUGO LOGO with Ognjen Ranković, Antonio Karača and Nuša Hauser. The conversation will focus on the evolution of the Yugo Logo project starting from the history of design in Yugoslavia. Project creators Ognjen Ranković and Antonio Karača will be joined by Nuša Hauser—researcher and curator of projects on intangible cultures—and Massimiliano Schiozzi, president of Cizerouno, to discuss curiosities, challenges, and discoveries from recent years of research.
FOOD & MUSIC
For TSFF FOOD, at 18:00 at the Caffè San Marco, a meeting dedicated to wine as a cultural and territorial expression, featuring Slovenian winemaker Uroš Rojac, who works just a few kilometers from Trieste, on the hills of northern Istria overlooking the same gulf that connects the two shores.
The tasting is led by Eugenia Fenzi, sommelier and curator of the event, and unfolds as a narrative that weaves together history, landscape, and contemporary sensibility through three labels representative of the winery’s work: Bianchera 2021 (the wild rose of our event, in dialogue with the festival section of the same name), Malvasia Macerata Borac 2022, and ReNero 2018.
A journey into the deep character of a borderland territory, where sea, land, and cultures meet, shaping wines that are distinctive, intense, and profoundly connected to their place of origin.
Cantina Rojac exclusively produces wines from the organic farming of indigenous plants, especially Refoška and Malvasia. Istria has always been an area which traditionally produces wine, and for almost 400 years, the Rojac family has dedicated itself to viticulture in the village of Gažon, on the beautiful hills which surround Koper in northern Istria. The terroir is characterised by the presence of the sea and the cold Balkan currents, with rocky terrain and a subsoil made of limestone. Their work is characterised by great attention to detail in the vineyard, where grapes of very high quality are born. In the wine cellar, the must is accompanied towards its transformation into wine, constantly monitoring its evolution, reducing to a minimum any interventions in the most natural way possible. The result is a production of very interesting local wines, characterised by excellent quality, which tell a story of a magical place.
Price 12€ |Bookings 040/2035357 OR This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Finally, there is great anticipation for DOPPELGÄNGER in concert, curated by TSFF and Hangar Teatri. Tonight at 21:00, Hangar Teatri welcomes rapper Doppelgänger: born in Rome in 2000 to Bosnian parents, he is among the loudest voices representing young people of Balkan origin. He entered into the rap scene in 2021, when he won over TikTok audiences with his songs and content. His collaboration with legendary Bosnian rapper Frenkie on the track “Mic Check” marked an important step in his career, helping him gain recognition not only in Italy, but also internationally.
The evening will be opened and closed by a DJ set by Let’s Get in Touch, a collective born in 2023 from the union of three DJs and producers, long iconic in the Trieste music scene and beyond. Three artistic identities and three different ways of making music: Lumby, BTaste and Gillberto. They believe in music as a way of making people truly interconnected, in contrast to a present which often separates them and traps them in digital spaces.
Tickets 15€ (with TSFF badge 12€) vivaticket.com|This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. |+393883980768
EVENTI EXTRA
EXHIBITIONS & MUSEUMS
UNTIL JANUARY 26th, SALA VERUDA, Passo Costanzi, Piazza Piccola 2
ON THE CURRENTS OF ART by Živorad “Zico” Mišić curated by the Associazione Culturale Giovanile Serba
SALA VERUDA, Passo Costanzi
The multidisciplinary exhibition by Živorad “Zico” Mišić, titled ‘On the Currents of Art’ is organised with the support of the Trieste Council - Department of Culture of Tourism (primary sponsor: ZKB Banca, with the contribution of Fondazione Polojaz). Featured in the exhibition are 100 works, from original drawings to illustrated stories; characters, both real and imagined, that meander through time and space, but always with particular care to spotlight the city of Trieste and its symbols. Mišić, the Serbian artist and honorary Triestine, puts Nikola Tesla in centre stage. Throughout the panels of the graphic novel Tesla: The Lord of Lightning – Origins, he explores the scientist’s childhood. However Tesla’s presence is not only narrative, but conceptual: a guiding thread that connects the various artistic and cultural ‘currents’ explored by Mišić.
The exhibition is rounded out by the Superhero Science Week (January 12th - 18th), an educational program by the Associazione Culturale Giovanile Serba, in which the language of superheroes is used to explain science to schools and families. Thanks to the involvement of experts and representatives of important science institutions, both international and local, it demonstrates how drawings can make even the most complex topics accessible.
Opening times: Monday to Sunday 10:00-13:00/17:00-20:00
Bookings for the exhibition and guided tour|This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. | info: www.acgstrieste.org
UNTIL FEBURARY 21st 2026, CIZERUNO CAVÒ
YUGO LOGO
by Ognjen Ranković and Antonio Karača
in collaboration with Associazione Cizerouno
Inauguration Januray 14th 2026 at 18:30, CIZERUNO CAVÒ
The cultural organisation Cizerouno welcomes to Cavò the visual research project Yugo Logo. For its stopover in Trieste (the first outside the former territories of the Federal Republic), the curators Ognjen Ranković and Antonio Karača are bringing over 600 historical logos. It’s a journey in the visual memory of a country that no longer exists, but which has left a legacy of innovative and modern design. The exhibition will feature three focus categories: tourism; cinema and theatre, and, finally, a tribute to Yugoslav women designers, who were instrumental in creating the visual signature of the period. It is an occasion to rediscover how logos and brands were fundamental pillars of a collective culture. In addition to the exhibition, there will also be the meeting on Saturday 17th January at 17:30 at Bar Knulp ‘ Conversations on Yugo Logo’ with Ognjen Ranković and Antonio Karača, moderated by Nuša Hauser.
Opening times: Monday to Saturday 17:30-19:30
Bookings | This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
UNTIL JANUARY 24th, GALLERIA ECONTEMPORARY
Beyond Human Skin by Martina Martonsky
curated by di Elena Cantori, EContemporary in collaboration with Alpe Adria Cinema - Trieste Film Festival
The exhibition curated by Elena Cantori targets the depths of human nature. The artist Martina Martonsky, Italian artist with a background in Gender Studies, invites us to see ourselves, not as isolated individuals, but as a ‘holobiont’: a complex organism which sustains life thanks to the collaboration of bacteria and invisible microorganisms. Through photography, illustration, video and animation, the work explores the ‘porous skin’ which connects us to the other and to nature. Inspired by contemporary environmentalist theory, Martonsky’s work pushes us to reflect on our responsibilities towards the planet, beginning from the recognition of the infinite forms of life which we host inside and outside our bodies. The exhibition is inaugurated on January 25th at 18:00 and will be visitable until January 24th (opening times: Mon - Sun, 17:00 - 20:00). The artist will also be running the workshop ‘Cut, Paste, Animate!’ with Susan Petri on Sunday 18th January from 15:00 - 18:30 (bookings only) at the Galleria EContemporary. The participants will transform static images into brief animated narratives through the techniques of collage and stop motion. By cutting out, composing and taking sequential pictures of their work, the participants will give life to characters, landscapes and stories created entirely from recycled materials.
Opening times: Monday to Sunday 17:00-20:00
Bookings| This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
TSFF37 FOR THE LITTLE ONES
SATURDAY 17th JANUARY at 17:30 and SUNDAY 18th JANUARY at 11.00, AAC LAB
CREATIVE WORKSHOP: HAND TO HAND! for children, by Gaia Mencagli & Roberta Colacino, suggested age: 5-10 yrs.
A creative workshop where children can discover the magic behind stop motion animation. A playful and educational experience that brings together imagination, hands-on creativity, and visual storytelling.
Price 10€ | Compulsory booking: 040 3476076 o This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
SUNDAY 18th JANUARY AT 11:30, CASA DEL CINEMA
DISCOVERING TRIESTE: A SPECIAL CITY by Marzia Arzon
A treasure hunt and itinerary tour through which to discover the city – stretching from the sea to the hills, the tour ends with a sugary conclusion in the Empress’s district. During this walk, the spotlight will be on the children, which, with maps, questions and advice, will guide us through Trieste. Duration: about two hours, awards ceremony included.
No mobile phones allowed, only curiosity and imagination.
Suggested age: 5-10 yrs|Bookings| This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
SUNDAY 18th JANUARY at 16:00, TEATRO MIELA (RIDOTTINO)
THE MAGIC OF HUNGARIAN ANIMATION
H, 1975-2000, 50’
A programme of animated short films exploring diverse styles and techniques, full of imagination and magic. Each story is a small universe waiting to be discovered on screen!
