The Cleveland Italian Film Festival returns for its 17th edition in September. “After studying and living in Italy on visits back to Cleveland I wondered why great award-winning films shot over Cleveland to other cities in the U.S.,” said festival director Joyce Mariani, who established the event in 2006. “I felt it was time Cleveland had an independent Italian film festival in area theaters.”

Held over the course of three consecutive Thursdays, the festival eschews the typical film festival format by showcasing only one film per night. “I always found it tedious to go night after night like a marathon to see one film after another like most film festivals,” Mariani explained.