After years of living and studying in Italy, Joyce Mariani was surprised to discover that the award-winning Italian films she had grown to love had almost no presence in her hometown. When she learned that almost all other major cities in the United States hosted Italian film festivals, she made it her mission to bring one to Cleveland. Joyce had no experience running a film festival, so she reached out to John Ewing, director of Cleveland’s Cinematheque, for some pointers. Her first Cleveland Italian Film Festival sold out in 2006, turning a creative endeavor into a premier foreign film festival.
A Lifelong Love for Italy
Embracing her Florentine and Roman familial roots, Joyce chose Florence, Italy, to pursue her musical studies degree, followed by setting up a home base in Rome for eight years. After returning home to Cleveland and starting the Cleveland Italian Film Festival, Joyce was committed to sharing her love for Italian culture. She went on to spearhead the $1.5 million “Renaissance Restoration Project” to fund a public Cultural Monument to Italy honoring Italian cultural greats in the Italian Cultural Garden in Rockefeller Park. In 2023, Joyce was inducted into the Cleveland International Hall of Fame, having previously been presented the Italian Heritage Award for Culture at Cleveland City Hall by former Mayor Frank Jackson.
Breaking Film Festival Boundaries
The Cleveland Italian Film Festival sells out every year, breaking the usual film festival mold by choosing to show one high-quality film per week. “I always found it tedious to go night after night like a marathon, with one film after another as most festivals do,” Joyce said. “We show fewer films but the best high-quality films, and we never have half-empty theaters. We sell out each film every year and have waiting lists for tickets. We encourage ticket buyers to let us know if they cannot attend so others have a chance to see the films.” Selecting just the right films can be challenging, but Joyce credits the festival’s continued success to listening to her audience and choosing films that allow viewers an escape from reality.
The history of Italian cinema in the U.S. and high-profile Italian actors such as Sophia Loren, Marcello Mastroianni and Roberto Benigni are a big reason for the 90 percent non-Italian spectators her film festival brought in during its first few years. Oscar-winning directors such as Roberto Rossellini, Luchino Visconti and Lina Wertmuller have also helped push Italian films to the main stage. Italy has won more Oscars for Best Foreign Film than any other country in the world, along with 30 nominations in that category. These accolades, along with Joyce’s keen eye for great films, allowed the Cleveland Italian Film Festival to be the first professional independent film festival showcasing award-winning films from Italy to expand into three Cleveland-area theaters.
Joyce described her goal for the Cleveland Italian Film Festival as wanting to “present the best films possible; films that touch the human spirit and hopefully give the gift of laughter and poignant moments to remember.” You can catch the festival in 2025 at the Cedar Lee Theatre on September 18 or at the Atlas Great Lakes Theater on September 25 and October 2.
Cleveland Italian Film Festival
September 18 / September 25 / October 2, 2025
Cedar Lee Theatre / Great Lakes Atlas Theatre, Cleveland Heights and Mentor