Festival del film Locarno

It may seem an unlikely place for the world’s celluloid stars to descend upon each year, but Locarno’s summer Film Festival is long established and internationally respected. It may not be as glitzy as Cannes, but it holds its own with an interesting annual selection of works from emerging and well-known directors, independent and major studios from Europe and the US, with a few choice premieres to rival the larger festivals. The choice of screenings scheduled for this year is eclectic, and a celebration of the experimental. Films on the programme include 'Fight Club' (in the presence of Edward Norton, who will be presented with the Excellence Award Moët & Chandon during the festival), 'Ricki and the Flash' with Meryl Streep as a hard-rocker, 'The Painted Veil', 'The Untouchables' and 'K2 - Touching the Sky'. There will also be seven Swiss-produced films, such as 'Amnesia' and 'La vanité'. Meanwhile, this year's retrospective is dedicated to American director Sam Peckinpah, and brings films like 'Straw Dogs' back to the big screen. For punters, it’s a great time to be in the city. Join the 8,000-strong crowd who come to the Piazza Grande each night for open-air screenings, and look out for invited guests (Juliette Binoche and Jonathan Pryce attended last year) strolling the streets.