“The screen is one of the most important ‘showcases’ of the museum because it is the arrival point of the many documents on display.” According to the project of Maria Adriana Prolo – the first founder of the Museum – projections were always a fundamental part of the museum’s mission and setup. Thus, already at the former location in Palazzo Chiablese, one of the rooms was dedicated to viewing films.
Today, The NationalCinema Museum of Torino has at its disposal an avant-garde multiplex: the Cinema Massimo, in Via Verdi 18, just a few steps away from the Mole Antonelliana.
The Multisala Cinema Massimo, which has been managed by the National Cinema Museum since 1989, was completely restructured and renovated from a technological point of view: all the auditoriums are also equipped with 2K digital projectors. The multiplex was inaugurated on January 24, 2001 and since then it has welcomed over one million spectators.
Sala Uno and Sala Due, with 453 and 147 seats, respectively, are dedicated to first run arthouse films. They are programmed by Circuito Cinema and are destined primarily to the projection of European, Italian and independent American films, as well as films by emerging filmmakers.
Sala Tre (147 seats), instead, is a film archive auditorium and organizes activities dedicated to researching and informing about films from the past and the present from all over the world, from silent films to contemporary productions. This auditorium’s programming includes the organization of retrospectives, special events, previews, encounters with leading figures from the world of film and culture, debates, conferences and book presentations. Most of the time, the films are projected in their original version with Italian subtitles. The Multisala Cinema Massimo, also hosts the city’s major film festivals: Torino Film Festival, CinemAmbiente, Sottodiciotto.
