Pula Film Festival 2026 guide
The Pula Film Festival is Croatia's oldest and most prestigious film festival, held each July in the Istrian city of Pula. Its unique draw is the venue: feature films are projected onto a giant screen inside the Pula Arena, a remarkably complete Roman amphitheatre built in the 1st century, where thousands of spectators watch under the open sky where gladiators once fought.
Quick answer
The Pula Film Festival is Croatia's oldest and most prestigious film festival, held each July in the Istrian city of Pula. Its unique draw is the venue: feature films are projected onto a giant screen inside the Pula Arena, a remarkably complete Roman amphitheatre built in the 1st century, where thousands of spectators watch under the open sky where gladiators once fought.
Founded in 1954, the festival showcases Croatian and international cinema and awards the Golden Arena โ the country's most important film prizes, the rough equivalent of national academy awards. For a week in mid-July the Arena and screens around the city turn Pula into Croatia's cinema capital.
The festival at a glance
- When: a week in mid-July 2026 (exact dates confirmed by the festival)
- Where: the Pula Arena, a 1st-century Roman amphitheatre, plus other city screens
- Founded: 1954 โ Croatia's oldest film festival
- Awards: the Golden Arena, the country's leading film prizes
- Programme: Croatian national selection and international films
- Tickets: Arena screenings via the official festival; popular nights fill up
Cinema in a Roman amphitheatre
The Pula Arena is one of the best-preserved Roman amphitheatres in the world and the sixth-largest surviving, with seating that once held over 20,000. Watching a film on a vast screen inside those 2,000-year-old walls, stars overhead, is the festival's signature experience and unlike any other cinema in Europe.
Beyond the Golden Arena competition, the programme blends premieres, retrospectives and open-air screenings around the city, with red-carpet nights and a relaxed summer atmosphere. The same Arena hosts the Histria Festival's big-name concerts across the rest of the summer, so the venue is the thread running through Pula's season.
Getting to Pula and tickets
Pula sits at the southern tip of the Istrian peninsula, with its own airport (PUY) offering seasonal European flights and good road links from Rijeka, Trieste and the Slovenian and Italian borders. The Arena is right in the city centre, a short walk from the seafront and old town.
Tickets for Arena screenings are sold through the official Pula Film Festival channels once the programme is announced. The Arena is large but the marquee nights are popular, so book ahead โ and consider Istria's wider draw, from Rovinj and Brijuni National Park to the hilltop towns of the interior.
FAQ
- When is the Pula Film Festival 2026?
- The Pula Film Festival is held for about a week in mid-July 2026. The exact dates and programme are confirmed by the festival ahead of the edition, so check the official site and our event page before booking.
- Where are the films screened?
- The headline screenings take place inside the Pula Arena, a 1st-century Roman amphitheatre in the centre of Pula, with films projected onto a large screen under the open sky. Additional screenings run at other venues around the city.
- What is the Golden Arena?
- The Golden Arena is the festival's main award, Croatia's most prestigious film prize โ broadly the national equivalent of an academy award, given across categories in the Croatian programme.
- How do I get to Pula?
- Pula has its own airport (PUY) with seasonal European flights and good road connections from Rijeka, Trieste and the Italian and Slovenian borders. The Arena is in the city centre, walkable from the seafront and old town.
