On Tuesday, October 20th, the 27th annual Newport Beach Film Festival will present its Italian Spotlight, an evening celebration of Italian cinema and culture. The event will feature the premiere of the film The Greater Good.
The Italian Spotlight film will screen at Starlight Triangle Cinemas (1870 Harbor Blvd, Costa Mesa, CA) on October 20th at 7:00 p.m.
The Newport Beach Film Festival is proud to screen The Greater Good, directed by Rocco Papaleo and starring Rocco Papaleo, Claudia Pandolfi, and Teresa Saponangelo. This film follows a tour guide and a failed actress who lead four female inmates across the beautiful, harsh Pollino massif to find a resilient centuries-old tree. As they trek, unexpected solidarity sparks. Open wounds surface, and music gradually unites their diverse stories. This transformative journey of healing is thrown into question when a sudden event disrupts everything.
“The Newport Beach Film Festival is proud to celebrate the richness and diversity of Italian cinema and culture through our Italian Spotlight. From powerful stories of resilience and transformation to explorations of art, fashion, history, and identity, this year’s selection showcases the incredible range of voices and perspectives coming from Italy. We are honored to bring these compelling films and filmmakers to our Festival audience and to celebrate the enduring cultural connection between Italy and Southern California.”
– Gregg Schwenk, CEO of the Newport Beach Film Festival.
In addition to the Italian Spotlight selection, the Newport Beach Film Festival will screen feature documentaries and short films representing the best in contemporary Italian cinema. The following Italian films will be making their premieres with the Newport Beach Film Festival:
ARMANI AND THE BIRTH OF ITALIAN FASHION is a documentary film directed by John Maggio. This documentary explores the rise of Italian fashion that is traced through the stories of the families that have been ruling it for decades. Set against Milan's lavish and exclusive fashion sanctuaries and featuring legendary insiders, including Giorgio Armani's first and last interview on screen, each episode delves into rivalries, personal stories and the enduring love affair between Hollywood and Italian designers.
Armani and the Birth of Italian Fashion will screen on October 18th at 6:00 p.m. at THE LOT in Fashion Island.
THE BLOOD MIRACLE, directed by Giovanni Troilo, explores Naples’ centuries-old blood pact with its patron saint, San Gennaro. Three times a year, the city waits: will his dried blood liquefy? If not, disaster looms. Through a monsignor, a duke, a taxi driver, and ordinary citizens, this documentary explores three worlds bound to the cult: the Church, the guarding nobility, and the praying people. It reveals a city that constantly transforms.
The Blood Miracle will screen on October 16th at 5:30 p.m. at Regal Edwards Big Newport.
THE LAST SUPPER. THE PASSION BY LEONARDO DA VINCI is directed by Luca Lucini and pays homage to the genius of Leonardo da Vinci, and to a masterpiece that has miraculously survived the centuries, including the bombings of World War II. We get to see this enduring symbol of Christianity and the cornerstone of the collective imagination through the eyes of leading experts and the precision of high-definition cinema.
The Last Supper. The Passion by Leonardo Da Vinci will screen on October 18th at 2:00 p.m. at Regal Edwards Big Newport.
THE FEMALE is a short narrative directed by Nuanda Sheridan. Set in Southern Italy, an elderly farmer relives a forbidden homosexual love from his youth that ended in tragedy. Memory and reality overlap, allowing that love to live on in the present.
The Female will screen as a part of the Short, Sweet & Queer program on October 17th at 4:00 p.m. at THE LOT in Fashion Island.
I EXIST BUT I DON’T LIVE, directed by Marco Martire, explores sexuality from the perspective of a young man with a disability. Often treated as a taboo subject, sexuality in this context becomes a powerful means of challenging assumptions, confronting social attitudes, and rejecting the pity and infantilization that too often shape the way people with disabilities are perceived and treated.
I Exist But I Don’t Live will screen as a part of The Short End of the Stick program on October 19th at 8:30 p.m. at THE LOT in Fashion Island.
About the Newport Beach Film Festival
Celebrating its 27th anniversary, the Newport Beach Film Festival is one of the largest luxury lifestyle film festivals in the United States. The event brings an internationally curated collection of films and vibrant cultural gatherings to the beautiful Southern California coast.
Committed to championing the work of original storytellers from around the globe, the Festival celebrates contemporary screen culture and cinematic excellence, engaging the community in compelling conversations with filmmakers and artists.
The Newport Beach Film Festival founding sponsors are the City of Newport Beach and Visit Newport Beach along with premiere sponsors Cadillac, Citizens Private Bank, UCI Health and Fashion Island.
The Festival takes place October 15–22, 2026.
For passes and tickets, visit www.NewportBeachFilmFest.com
