WHAT IS IFA?
The International Filmmaking Academy is a center of excellence based in Bologna, Italy, where celebrated auteurs, emerging filmmakers, Film Commissions, Festivals and Film Institutes meet through the act of making cinema.
Every year, IFA invites some of the most distinctive voices in world cinema to Bologna to lead a group of emerging talents – directors, directors of photography and assistant directors/producers – selected by Film Institutes, Film Commissions and Film Schools from around the world, as well as independent professionals.
IFA Bologna is a place where talent from all over the world works together, learns from great masters, creates and premieres short films, and builds meaningful and lasting creative connections.
Previous editions have been led by Master Teachers such as Bernardo Bertolucci, Abbas Kiarostami, Béla Tarr, Danis Tanović, Cristian Mungiu, Jane Campion, John Landis, Asghar Farhadi and Lav Diaz. Palme d’Or winning director Ruben Östlund joined the IFA Board of Directors as Honorary President after his experience as Master Teacher in 2023.
The IFA Masterclass in Filmmaking helps filmmakers from around the world recognize and establish their authorial identity, in order to shape the next generation of film authors.
Learn from the Masters of Contemporary Cinema
The selected group of talented filmmakers has the unique opportunity to make their own short film in Italy, in some of the most significant locations in Bologna, under the guidance of one of the most influential film authors on the world scene.
IFA nurtures the talent of each filmmaker in a safe space of freedom and respect for individual cultures. The experience is almost maieutic: the Academy doesn’t simply share knowledge, it creates the conditions for what already lives within each participant to emerge. Participants let go of the fear of making mistakes and respond fully to what is in front of them. And they discover something powerful: they are capable of more than they thought.
We proudly support the opportunity to create a lifelong network with fellow filmmakers around the globe.
How would you do that?
The Master Teacher shares their experience and personal approach to cinema, acting as a mentor and supporting the personal and artistic growth of the next generation of national and international film authors, through the maturation of their own authorial vision.
IFA Master Teachers are free to shape the experience around their own vision of cinema, creating an informal and deeply human atmosphere where the intimate exchange between generations is at the heart of everything.
IFA combines international educational seminars with local production. Participants shoot a short film in Bologna and enjoy daily one-to-one relationship with the Master Teacher and with fellow filmmakers from all around the world.
The Master Teacher accompanies filmmakers through the entire process, from script to final editing, in a relaxed and intimate atmosphere. On the last day of the Masterclass, the short films are screened in a theater, followed by feedback from the Master Teacher.
WHERE IS THE ACADEMY?
The IFA Masterclass in Filmmaking takes place in the breathtaking setting of Bologna, a vibrant city of art and wonderful cuisine. Home to the oldest university in the Western world, founded in 1088, Bologna is a city of ancient knowledge, artistic ferment and rebellious spirit. It is also a UNESCO City of Music and a city of cinema.
The Masterclass runs during Il Cinema Ritrovato, the festival by Cineteca di Bologna and a true paradise for cinephiles, one of the world’s most important events for restored and classic cinema. The selected filmmakers take part in the festival screenings, held open air in the beautiful Piazza Maggiore on summer nights.
IFA is a rare space where cinema’s past, present and future meet in real life. Emerging filmmakers experience two worlds at once: the extraordinary heritage of cinema and the possibility of creating its future.
