Aquileia Film Festival 2026 – 17th edition

The international archaeological film festival is organized by the Aquileia Foundation with Archeologia Viva and Firenze Archeofilm.

The full program is available at www.fondazioneaquileia.it

Thursday, July 30, 2026 - Aquileia Film Festival

Projection
The Mystery of the Desert Kites
In northern Saudi Arabia and southern Jordan lie thousands of mysterious geometric structures, whose shape, when seen from the air, resembles that of enormous kites. The oldest of these gigantic stone alignments was created around 7000 BC. This makes them over 4000 years older than the pyramids of Egypt and the alignments of Stonehenge. Who built them? And why? An international team of archaeologists is attempting to solve the mystery...

Country: France, Director: Nathalie Laville
Duration: 54', Year: 2025
Production: MDAM – Ma drogue a moi, Marie Drogue, Romain Pieri
Scientific advice: Rémy Crassard, Wael Abu-Azizeh, Language: Italian

Conversation
edited by Piero Pruneti, director of Archeologia Viva
with Evelina Christillin
President of the Egyptian Antiquities Museum Foundation. With a degree in History and Historical Demography, she has held important positions in various fields related to sport and culture. A former president of leading organizations such as ENIT (Italian National Tourist Board), the Teatro Stabile di Torino (Turin Theatre), and the Torino 2006 Promotion Committee, she served on the National Committee of CONI (Italian National Olympic Committee) and in 2023 received the honor of Knight Grand Cross of Merit of the Italian Republic.

Projection
Vitrum - the glass of the Romans
In the heart of the Mediterranean Sea, in the deep waters off the coast of Corsica, a mysterious Roman shipwreck resurfaces from oblivion after two thousand years. On board is an extraordinary cargo: blocks of raw glass and finely crafted glass objects. The film follows an unprecedented archaeological investigation conducted by an international team of researchers aboard the Alfred Merlin, a premier oceanographic vessel, to shed light on a rare and precious discovery.
Country: Italy, Director: Marcello Adamo

Duration: 52', Year: 2025
Production: Filmare Entertainment with GA&A Productions, in collaboration. with the National Superintendency for Underwater Cultural Heritage and the Département des recherches archéologiques subaquatiques et sousmarine
Scientific advisors: Barbara Davidde, Franca Cibecchini, Ian Freestone, Roberto Petriaggi, Language: Italian