Why go
Start at the National Museum of Cinema to connect the films and filmmaking tools with the city around you. Turin hosted pioneering screenings and production companies, including Ambrosio Film and Itala Film. The museum's move into the Mole Antonelliana also gives a former architectural landmark a distinctly cinematic role.
What to look for
- The National Museum of Cinema occupies the Mole Antonelliana, a landmark with its own architectural story.
- Ambrosio Film and Itala Film link Turin to the early years of Italian film production.
- The Torino Film Festival grew from a festival founded in the city in 1982.
The full story
Turin's cinema history began close to the birth of the medium. Screenings took place in the city in 1896, and local companies soon turned it into a centre of Italian film production. Ambrosio Film, founded by Arturo Ambrosio in 1906, became known for historical epics. Itala Film was another prominent name; Giovanni Pastrone's Cabiria, released in 1914, shows the scale that early productions could reach. Production later became more concentrated elsewhere, but Turin kept a cultural connection to film. The National Museum of Cinema opened in 1956, first in Palazzo Chiablese, and moved to the Mole Antonelliana in 2000. That change joined two different stories: the museum's collections and one of Turin's most recognisable buildings. The festival founded in 1982 as Festival Internazionale Cinema Giovani later became the Torino Film Festival, adding a continuing public forum for cinema to the city's earlier studio history.
Useful to know
- Pair the Mole Antonelliana with the museum inside if you want both the building and Turin's film history.
- Check the museum's official visitor information before planning an interior visit.