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Alberto Barbera reappointed as Venice Film Festival artistic director for 2027-2028
The announcement was made following approval by La Biennale di Venezia’s board of directors
Venice Film Festival Artistic Director Alberto Barbera, whose current term is set to conclude after this year’s 83rd edition, has been reappointed for 2027 and 2028.
The event revealed that La Biennale di Venezia’s board of directors, led by Pietrangelo Buttafuoco, sanctioned the renewal.
This follows an exciting 2025 event featuring selections like Luca Guadagnino’s After the Hunt, Guillermo del Toro’s Frankenstein, Kathryn Bigelow’s House of Dynamite, Mona Fastvold’s The Testament of Ann Lee, and Kaouther Ben Hania’s The Voice Of Hind Rajab, with Jim Jarmusch’s Father Mother Sister Brother claiming the Golden Lion.
The festival stated that the extension was granted “recognising the achievements he has made in the esteemed quality of selections, unearthing and introducing new talent internationally, promoting and enhancing cinema culture, and growing audiences.”
Barbera has served as the Artistic Director of La Biennale di Venezia since 2012, after initially occupying the role from 1998 to 2001.
He initially pursued studies in modern literature at Turin University, focusing on theses about film history and criticism, and later collaborated with the Italian association of friends of arthouse cinema, A.I.A.C.E., acting as chair from 1977 to 1989.
Between 1980 and 1983, he worked as a critic for the daily newspaper La Gazzetta del Popolo, and has been part of the Journalists’ Union since 1982.
He has contributed to multiple newspapers and magazines (Città, La Stampa, Essai, Altro Cinema, Bianco & Nero, Cineforum), and worked on TV and radio programs such as Cinemascoop (RAI 3), La lampada di Aladino (RAI – DSE), and Hollywood Party (Radio3 RAI).
Starting in 1982, he began collaborating with the Festival Internazionale Cinema Giovani, which later turned into the Torino Film Festival, where he served as director from 1989 to 1998. From 2002 to 2006, he co-directed the RING! Festival della Critica in Alessandria, northern Italy.
In 2002, he took on the role of consultant for the National Museum of Cinema in Turin, later serving as its director from June 2004 to December 2016.