Today, Saturday 14 March 2026, the first edition of the Massa Martana Soulplace Film Festival will take place at the Teatro Comunale Consortium in Viale Roma 4, Massa Martana (Perugia), an event dedicated to promoting independent cinema and the cultural value of the territory.
More than 100 filmmakers from around the world took part in this first edition of the festival, representing 21 different countries and bringing to Massa Martana a rich diversity of stories, perspectives, and cinematic styles. The strong international participation highlights the festival’s ambition to become a meeting point for independent cinema, connecting global filmmakers with the cultural and artistic heritage of the Umbrian territory.
The festival will open in the afternoon with film screenings starting at 15:00, followed by the official award ceremony at 17:00, celebrating filmmakers and artists from around the world.
Festival Winners
Among the international winners of this first edition are:
- Best Narrative Short (ex aequo) – Te L(e)o Comando (int. title TV Man), directed by Leonardo Valenti
- Best Narrative Short (ex aequo) – Delete after screening, directed by Dominick Ross
- Best Narrative Feature (ex aequo) – Shard, directed by Pablo Cabel
- Best Narrative Feature (ex aequo) – Una questione di cuore, directed by Cristian Frigo
- Best Cinematography – Fragments Of A Journey, Melih Bahaddin Küçük
- Best Director (ex aequo) – BETTER TOMORROW, SHARVI
- Best Director (ex aequo) – Rincontro, Baltazar Zúñiga
- Best Documentary (ex aequo) – Becoming aNader, Hanita Atoun
- Best Documentary (ex aequo) – Prustis Istoria kai Niwidan, Tomasz Potejko
- Best Screenplay – THE STRATUM OF ERRORS, Nilson Bernardi Ferreira
- Best Music Video – MIQAT, Hassanein
- Best Editing – The List, Nicola Bedont
- Special Jury Prize – Som e Prosa Where Music Lives, Rene Lopez
Participation Awards
Participation prizes will be awarded to the following works and filmmakers:
Shadow-like – Movie Broadcast
The Heart Smiles – Aftab Abbasi
WALOU – Kheireddine Malti
Vasomotor Rhinitis – Mikheil Gabaidze
Home – Sattar Chamanigol
The Guest – Chapour Haghighat
Mother Country – Moges Ababu Belachew
God As My Witness – John Alexander
The Liars of Black Mountain Road – Angela Gould
Las Fieras – Juan Agustin Flores
Pandora’s Butterfly – Shady George (Michael Nasr)
Cordão de Prata / Silver String – Getulio Ribeiro
Woman Unchained – Guadalupe Yepes
HOME – Mela Hilleard
The Ditch – Mahmood Arib
Two Thousand II World Cup – Eren Ugur
Awards to Local Defenders
During the ceremony, special recognition will also be given to several professionals connected to the local creative community:
- Carlo Floris – actor
- Marco Matteucci – director
- Gabriele Bassone – executive producer
- Jarell Guidi – film editor
- Jennifer De Gioia – actress
- Isabella Durante – photographer
- Eleonora Giorgioni – content creator
- Giulia Bulletta – actress and voice actress
- Devid Biscontini – artist
- Francesco Sciurpa – videomaker
Food and Wine Experience
The festival will also feature tastings of local products, including:
- Olive oil tasting by Fattoria Didattica La Pace
- Wine tasting from Cantina Leonucci
Presentation and Partners
The event will be presented by Danilo Celli.
Special thanks go to the festival partners, including Jessica Mammoli of Parto dall’Umbria and Associazione Culturale PianoforteVoce, whose support contributed to the realization of this first edition.
The Massa Martana Soulplace Film Festival aims to create a meeting point between international cinema and the Umbrian territory, celebrating storytelling, creativity, and artistic exchange.
The event is organized with the patronage of the Comune di Massa Martana (www.comune.massamartana.pg.it) and in partnership with Parto dall’Umbria (www.partodallumbria.it).
Funded by the European Union – NextGenerationEU / Finanziato dall’Unione Europea NextGenerationEU
For more informations:
https://www.soulplacefestival.com/festival/massa-martana/
