The 14th annual Italian Film Festival USA announced that “Friends By Chance” by Francesco Bruni won the Audience Award for best full length feature film, while “The Line” by Alessandro Stevanon, won for best short film. An attendance record was set of 13,250 spectators to 101 screenings of 13 feature length films and two short film programs, in twelve US cities - Boulder, Chicago, Cleveland, Detroit, Indianapolis, Kansas City, Memphis, Milwaukee, Phoenix, Pittsburgh, Portland and St. Louis.

Highlights of the 2018 Festival included several directors in attendance to present their films: Andrea Magnani of “Easy”; Antonio Padovan and Alessia Gatti of “The Last Prosecco”;  Ciro Fabbricino and Giosuè   Silvestro of “Cucinì”; and Katia Bernardi and Davide Valentini of “Funne, Sea Dreaming Girls”. 

During this year’s edition, the Festival celebrated 2018, the "Year of Italian Food" as declared by the Italian Ministries of Culture and Agriculture, with the North American premiere of the documentary “Cucinì”, a trip inside the flavors, smells and colors of the Neapolitan gastronomic tradition. The Day of “Italian Research in the World” was recalled with the screening of  the documentary “The Sense of Beatuy” by Valerio Jalongo

The Festival celebrates the best of contemporary films from Italian filmmakers and promotes Italian cinema.  It is the largest festival dedicated solely to Italian cinema in the United States. The 14th edition was sponsored nationally by Volpi Food Products and the Italian Cultural Institute.

Submissions for the 2019 Italian Film Festival USA will be open in October 2018.