The individual editions of the Venice International Film Festival of La Biennale di Venezia that took place in succession in the ninety years since its foundation, are brought back to life, highlighting their variety and innovation, in an accurate and fascinating chronological history. Gian Piero Brunetta, the doyen of film history and criticism, and the essential reference for studies on the history of Italian cinema, tells the story of the parade of «warlords and captains courageous, of warriors, explorers, discoverers, ferrymen, negotiators, conscientious functionaries, grands commis de l'État, pontiff directors, shadow and short-lived directors, as well as competent, balanced, bold, incompetent, unpredictable, distracted, conformist, coached and compliant juries». Intertwining and tying together many strands, so as to include the role of presidents, the work and the strategies of the directors and the salient characteristics of each edition, the author weaves a colourful tapestry and uses the «lofty tones of the epic» to describe the alternation of tastes, fashions, polemics and ideologies that constitute the moral and aesthetic mirror of a century of Italian life. Constantly highlighting the interaction between critics, audiences and politics - with special attention to the directors and films who have brought the event its greatest prestige - the Venice International Film Festival becomes an opportunity to narrate a century of cinema history and the civilisation of the visual. From the preface by Roberto Cicutto and Alberto Barbera.