THE FIRST ROME FILM FIESTA, OCT. 13 – 21, 2OO6 The whole report day by day from day one. In less than a week, on the fateful FridayThe Thirteenth of the current month (October 13, 2OO6), the First International Film Festival ever held in Rome will open the gates of the Eternal City to a floodtide of media representatives, journalists, film professionals, actors, directors, film fans, and just plain curious stargazers of all stripes and colours. Whether this new festival turns out to be a blas...

Looking back at the just completed first Rome Film Festival and Fiesta combined one thing that can be said is that not only was it not a "flop", but it probably exceeded most people's wildest expectations. There was no lack of nay-sayers around the edges trying to disparage the event by accusing it of catering to the lowest common denominator, or slavishly bowing to Hollywood --(one paper called it "Romangeles") -- but the bottom line is that everybody had a good time, interest in cinema was gi...