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The second edition of the Italian Global Series Festival is ready to open on July 3 in Rimini, bringing nine days of international premieres, conversations, awards, exhibitions and free public events dedicated to the world of TV series.
Ahead of the opening, Formatbiz met Marco Spagnoli, director of the festival, who shared the main highlights of this year’s edition and the vision behind an event that aims to position Italy at the centre of the global conversation on serial storytelling.

Running from July 3 to 11 between Rimini and Riccione, the Italian Global Series Festival celebrates international television fiction in all its creative dimensions: production, directing, writing, acting and IP development. Launched in 2025 as a contemporary evolution of the historic Roma Fiction Fest, the event returns this year with a stronger international profile and an even broader programme designed to connect audiences, professionals and major talents from the global audiovisual industry.

Directed by Marco Spagnoli and promoted by Undersecretary for Culture Lucia Borgonzoni, the festival is conceived and organised by APA – Associazione Produttori Audiovisivi, in collaboration with Cinecittà, with the support of the Italian Ministry of Culture, the Emilia-Romagna Region, APT Servizi Emilia-Romagna, the Municipalities of Riccione and Rimini, and AGIS, with the contribution of SIAE, Enel and Gruppo FS.

The programme will unfold across several venues. From July 3 to 6, and again on the closing day of July 11, events will take place in Rimini at Cinema Fulgor, Teatro Galli, Teatro degli Atti and Corte degli Agostiniani. From July 7 to 11, the festival will move to Riccione, involving PalaRiccione and the arena in Piazzale Ceccarini.

The official opening ceremony will take place on Friday, July 3 at 7:30 p.m. at Teatro Galli in Rimini. The festival’s godmother, Italian actress Matilde Gioli, will lead the red carpet alongside the recipients of this year’s Maximo Excellence Awards.

Among the honourees are Carlton Cuse, the showrunner behind iconic series such as Lost, Jack Ryan and Five Days at Memorial; Robert Powell, unforgettable protagonist of Franco Zeffirelli’s Jesus of Nazareth; Sabrina Ferilli, one of Italy’s most beloved actresses; Francesco Piccolo, writer and screenwriter of acclaimed series including My Brilliant Friend and The Lying Life of Adults; producer Roberto Sessa; international music icon Rita Pavone; and Titus Welliver, widely known to audiences for his role as detective Hieronymus “Harry” Bosch in Bosch.

One of the most anticipated guests of this year’s festival will be Richard Gadd, three-time Emmy Award winner and creator of the global hit Baby Reindeer. Gadd will present his new acclaimed HBO and BBC series Half Man during a special conversation on Friday, July 10 at 7:30 p.m. at PalaRiccione, followed by the screening of the first episode of the miniseries, which explores the theme of toxic masculinity. On Saturday, July 11, during the closing ceremony at Teatro Galli, Gadd will receive the Maximo Breakthrough Storyteller Award.

Another major guest will be Bertie Carvel, one of the most versatile British actors of his generation. Known for his work in The Crown and the upcoming Game of Thrones spin-off A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms, Carvel will take part in a special conversation retracing the key moments of his career across theatre, film and television. He is also expected to offer some insight into his forthcoming role as Cornelius Fudge in the new television adaptation of Harry Potter.

Among the headline events, the festival will celebrate the 60th anniversary of Star Trek with a major special screening of the first episode of the fourth season of Star Trek: Strange New Worlds. The event will welcome three stars of the cast — Anson Mount, Rebecca Romijn and Celia Rose Gooding — together with two legendary figures from the franchise: Jeri Ryan, best known as Seven of Nine in Star Trek: Voyager and Star Trek: Picard, and Nicholas Meyer, director and screenwriter of the second and sixth films in the saga.

The festival will also host the exhibition “Swords and Bullets: Identity Conflicts in the Comics of John Ridley and Stefano Raffaele”, organised by Italian Global Series, Cartoon Club and RiminiComix. The exhibition will be open to the public from July 4 to 19 at Palazzo del Fulgor, inside Rimini’s Fellini Museum.

The guest list confirms the festival’s growing international ambition. Among the talents expected in Rimini and Riccione are David Boreanaz, Raoul Bova, Assaad Bouab, Tamsin Greig, John Hannah, Virginie Ledoyen, Judith Light, Marti Noxon, CCH Pounder, Camille Razat, Sally Wainwright, Tom Wlaschiha, David W. Zucker, Özge Gürel, Serkan Çayoğlu, Elena Sofia Ricci, Massimiliano Gallo, Luigi Lo Cascio, Marco Giallini, Francesca Chillemi, Pilar Fogliati, Stefania Spampinato and many others.

Alongside the international guests, the festival will celebrate key milestones in television history, including the 30th anniversary of Un posto al sole and the 50th anniversary of Jesus of Nazareth. Another special screening will be dedicated to Netflix’s new adaptation of Little House on the Prairie.

The competitive section will once again be one of the core elements of the event. The official competition will be divided into three categories — Drama, Comedy and Limited Series — with international productions competing for the Maximo Awards, among the most significant recognitions in the Italian audiovisual landscape.

The professional and cultural programme will also include the IGS Summer School, the Crime Series Pitch Award for screenwriters, and the presentation of the Maximino Award, further strengthening the festival’s role as a meeting point for established talents, emerging voices and industry professionals.

With free admission and mandatory registration through the official website, the Italian Global Series Festival confirms its ambition to bring major international serial storytelling closer to the public, while offering the industry a strategic platform for dialogue, discovery and celebration.

As Marco Spagnoli told Formatbiz, this second edition aims to look beyond the simple presentation of new titles, focusing instead on the creative, industrial and cultural power of series today — a language that continues to shape the way stories travel, connect audiences and define the global audiovisual market.