A floating screen resting on the lagoon waters and a natural amphitheatre shaped by traditional boats and floating platforms: from 26 August to 13 September, Cinema Galleggiante – Acque Sconosciute returns to Venice for its seventh edition, conceived and curated by Microclima.
Conceived to rethink the city and its spaces starting from the aquatic element, the festival turns the stretch of water behind the island of Giudecca, near Sacca Fisola, into an open-air visual laboratory. The programme creates a dialogue between auteur cinema, experimentation, early cinema techniques, and visual arts, involving local and international directors, artists, musicians, and performers in collaboration with prominent cultural institutions, foundations, and collections from Venice and abroad.
Each evening opens and closes with two recurring works that frame the entire festival: the short film The Kiss (1999) by John Smith and Ian Bourn (presented by Rete Cinema in Laguna) as the opening piece, and FLYING GLOVE (2023) by Giulia Guidi (presented by Microclima) as the closing work.
The opening night on 26 August (taking place on land, with free admission upon booking) is entirely dedicated to the 16mm format, featuring a selection curated by Marco Bene ranging from João Maria Gusmão and Alexandre Estrela to Peter Kubelka (Arnulf Rainer), Guy Sherwin, and David Wharry, culminating in a ballroom dance night with L’Orchestrina di Molto Agevole. Throughout the festival, 35mm screenings will also return, showcasing works by Viktoria Schmid, Malena Szlam, Tomonari Nishikawa, and Vittorio De Seta’s masterpiece Surfarara (29 August).
The dialogue between moving images and acoustic scores is one of the pillars of this edition: from Buster Keaton’s comedic classics (Neighbors and One Week, scored live on piano by Gabriele Dal Santo on 2 September in collaboration with Palazzetto Bru Zane) to early scientific cinema with Roberto Omegna’s La vita delle farfalle (1911) live-scored by Nina Baietta (9 September), through to Benjamin Christensen’s hypnotic classic Häxan (1922), featuring a live sound activation by Elvin Brandhi and Sara Persico presented by Peggy Guggenheim Collection (12 September). Ample space is also devoted to Stan Brakhage’s trilogy (Mothlight, The Dante Quartet, Yggdrasill), performed live with percussion by Francesco Cigana (31 August).
Visual arts, artist videos, and major performances: the lineup welcomes leading figures from the international art and audiovisual research scene, including visual works by Nan Goldin (You never did anything wrong, Part 1, 5 September), Harun Farocki’s visual essays from the Bedtime Stories series, and works by Julian Charrière, Amar Kanwar (Pinault Collection), and Mohamed Bourouissa. On Friday, 11 September, a major highlight will be Gavin Bryars’ monumental composition The Sinking of the Titanic, performed live by the composer alongside an ensemble and Quartetto Obliquo, accompanied by the film by Bill Morrison and Laurie Olinder.
For the closing event on Sunday, 13 September, from 5:00 PM to 8:00 PM, the floating platform will host an afternoon of concerts, live sets, and musical performances curated by the Cosmogram label, featuring contributions by Elvin Brandhi, Yasmine Hugonnet, Enrico Malatesta, Sara Persico, and Quartetto Obliquo.
Evenings are accessible both to audiences arriving on their own boats (subject to registration and allocated mooring) and on foot, with boarding onto the floating platform via a dedicated pier in Sacca Fisola. Seats on the platform are limited; the detailed day-by-day programme, access details, and booking information are available on the official website.
