Rome - Rome Film Festival organizers on Friday unveiled this year's star-studded lineup, featuring, alongside the 14 films in competition, the likes of George Clooney, Helen Mirren and Colin Farrell. Running October 15-23, the annual festival's fourth edition is set to screen a total of 137 feature films and documentaries.
Clooney stars in Up In the Air by Canadian director Jason Reitman. In 2007, Reitman won the festival's award for best film, the Golden Marc' Aurelio Jury Award, for his comedy-drama Juno.
The veteran Oscar-winning Mirren stars in German director Michael Hoffman's The Last Station, while Irish leading man Farrell appears in Bosnian director Danis Tanovic's Triage, which also features Paz Vega and Christopher Lee.
Other films in competition include Chinese director Geng Jun's Youth and Every Day is a Holiday by Lebanon's Dima El-Horr.
The awards race sees host nation Italy present three films, including Donatella Maiorca's Sea Purple, starring Maria Grazia Cucinotta.
Festivalgoers will also have the opportunity to watch the world premier of Paulo Coehlo's Experimental Witch, the first feature film by the best-selling Brazilian author of the same name. The film is being screened out of competition.
Celebrities expected to grace the red carpet at the festival's Auditorium venue include Richard Gere, Anthony Hopkins, Monica Bellucci and singer Andrea Bocelli.
Hollywood star Meryl Streep is to be bestowed the career Golden Marc' Aurelio Acting Award, which in past editions has gone to Sean Connery, Sophia Loren and Al Pacino.
