A beach festival in Italy is becoming one of the most talked-about stops in global television this July. Star Trek’s 60th anniversary is at the centre of it.
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The Italian Global Series Festival returns for its second edition this July, and ‘Star Trek’ is at the centre of it. The festival runs from July 3 to 11 along the Adriatic coast, covering Rimini and Riccione in Italy’s Riviera Romagnola.
This year marks the 60th anniversary of ‘Star Trek’, and the festival has built a significant portion of its programme around the franchise.
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The Italian Global Series Festival, known as IGS, is helmed by artistic director Marco Spagnoli. It is the second edition of the event, which builds on a legacy connected to the RomaFictionFest, which ran until 2016.
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This year, Spagnoli has streamlined the selection. The international competition features 21 series from 15 countries, down from 32 titles last year. He describes the move as a rationalisation that brings IGS more in line with other major international festivals.
“We wanted to open this festival to the world,” Spagnoli said. “It’s not just about promoting Italian creation, but also the region, the culture and the spirit of collaboration. We need people to meet.”
The programme includes a conversation between filmmaker Nicholas Meyer and producer David W. Zucker, as well as a screening of the Strange New Worlds Season 4 premiere. Stars Anson Mount, Rebecca Romijn, Celia Rose Gooding, and Voyager favourite Jeri Ryan will attend.
Meyer is one of the key creative figures behind the wider Star Trek franchise. He directed Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan, widely considered one of the strongest entries in the series. His presence at the festival ties directly to the 60th anniversary celebrations.
Spagnoli spoke about Jeri Ryan’s significance. “Through her character Seven of Nine, Jeri Ryan has explored questions about machines, artificial intelligence and what it means to be human — all very modern concerns,” he said. “Star Trek was born of the Vietnam era, but so many of its themes still resonate, especially that idea of peace, that optimistic vision of a future driven by cooperation.”
Meyer will serve as jury president for the limited series competition at the festival.
His credits go well beyond Star Trek. He wrote The Seven-Per-Cent Solution, which helped modernise Sherlock Holmes in ways that still resonate across every subsequent adaptation. He also directed the 1983 television film The Day After, which addressed nuclear proliferation and is widely regarded as one of the most impactful television films ever made.
The festival’s three jury presidents each represent a different strand of its identity. French actor Bruno Gouery, known for Emily in Paris and The White Lotus, will oversee the comedy competition. Drama jury president Marti Noxon will also be honoured for her influence on contemporary television.
Spagnoli acknowledged Noxon’s contribution to the medium directly. “What Marti did on Buffy the Vampire Slayer changed the very concept of vampires, and those vampires have been with us ever since,” he said.
Carlton Cuse, Titus Welliver, Lisa Mulcahy, and Richard Gadd will all be on-site to receive the festival’s Maximo Excellence Award.
US performers CCH Pounder and Judith Light will support the social horror series The Terror: Devil in Silver, while France’s Virginie Ledoyen and Camille Razat accompany the Stendhal adaptation Le Rouge et le Noir.
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