With the arrival of autumn, Lugano prepares to rekindle the magic of the big screen. Cinema in Tasca returns , the historic festival organized by the Events and Conferences Division of the City of Lugano and curated by Agorateca , which for nearly thirty years has taken Ticino audiences on a journey through the finest international film productions.
The 2025–2026 edition will be held at the Cinema Iride between October and January, with four events that promise to combine quality, emotion, and accessibility. The format remains faithful to its original spirit: offering arthouse films at affordable prices (just 5 francs for a full ticket, 4 francs for a reduced ticket) and making cinema a form of social gathering accessible to everyone.
Four films, four worlds
The festival opens on Wednesday, October 22nd with Black Bag , Steven Soderbergh 's new thriller that brings the intensity of his most acclaimed films to the screen. Starring Michael Fassbender and Cate Blanchett , the film is a spy thriller set in London where state secrets and personal feelings intertwine in a climate of growing tension.
The second appointment, Wednesday, November 12 , is with Maria by Pablo Larraín , starring Angelina Jolie . The film, presented at the Venice Film Festival and already nominated for several international awards, recounts the last days of the divine Maria Callas , in an intimate and poignant portrait that confirms the Chilean director's mastery in constructing poetic and human biographies.
On Wednesday the 17th of December , it will be the turn of James Mangold 's A Complete Unknown , starring Timothée Chalamet as a young Bob Dylan . From the nights of Greenwich Village to the electric revolution of 1965, the film reconstructs the journey of an artist destined to change music forever.
Closing out the season on Wednesday, January 14, 2026 , is Jeunes Mères by the Dardenne brothers , a social drama presented at Cannes and awarded for Best Screenplay. The film chronicles the daily lives of five young mothers in a Belgian shelter, in a simple and profound tale of female courage. The screening will be in the original French version with Italian subtitles.
Cinema in Lugano in synergy with music
Among this year's new features is a collaboration with LAC Lugano Arte e Cultura, enriching the film program with a dialogue between cinema and music. Those presenting their Cinema in Tasca ticket for screenings on October 22nd or November 12th will receive a 20% discount on a special screening of Psycho (December 10–11th, Sala Teatro LAC), featuring the Orchestra della Svizzera Italiana (OSI) performing Bernard Herrmann's legendary score live.
This initiative underscores the city's desire to build bridges between the arts and promote culture as a shared experience, including through accessible formats.
Opening times, tickets and information
Each film will be screened three times on the same day —at 15:30 PM, 18:00 PM, and 20:30 PM—to allow a wide audience to participate. Tickets can be purchased online at biglietteria.ch or directly at the cinema box office.
The complete schedule and updates are available on the websites foce.ch and agorateca.ch.
With a carefully curated selection and an intimate atmosphere in the heart of the city, Cinema in Tasca confirms Lugano as one of Ticino's cultural capitals , combining great cinema with the convivial atmosphere of the theater. Four evenings to rediscover the pleasure of a dark theater and the timeless allure of cinema.
