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Culture · Rio de Janeiro
The Rio de Janeiro international film festival, featuring hundreds of Brazilian and foreign films in theaters across several neighborhoods.
In the photo: Rio de Janeiro
Illustrative images. The pictures in this guide are illustrations based on the real place, not photographs, and may differ from it.
Usually in the first half of October, for about ten days.
October
Dates change every year: check this year's date before you travel.
The festival
The Rio Festival was born in 1999 from the merger of two city film events, the Rio Cine Festival and the Mostra Banco Nacional de Cinema. For about ten days it occupies movie theaters and cultural spaces in different neighborhoods, showing hundreds of films.
Première Brasil, the main competitive showcase, gathers new Brazilian film releases and includes discussions after screenings. The international program features award-winning films from other festivals and productions vying for prize nominations. There are also outdoor screenings and themed programs.
The program is released a few weeks beforehand, with the schedule for each venue. The most sought-after screenings sell out quickly: buy tickets as soon as sales open. Some screenings are free but require advance reservation.
In the city
Flavors of Brazil
October
September/OctoberOnce a year, usually in September, sometimes in October.
The Italian culture festival of Petrópolis at the Palácio de Cristal, with Italian food stalls, music, workshops and a masked ball.
OctoberOn Sundays in October, the month of the sanctuary’s patron saint.
The Feast of Our Lady of Penha, at the sanctuary atop the rock in the North Zone of Rio, with masses, processions and the 382-step staircase.
October/NovemberOnce a year, across two consecutive weekends between late October and early November.
Itaipava’s music and arts festival, held in the mountains of Petrópolis, featuring multiple stages, Brazilian and international artists, and outdoor programming.
Your questions
Usually in the first half of October, for about ten days. The dates for each edition are announced by the organizers.
It is the festival’s main showcase, devoted to new Brazilian film releases, with a competition and post-screening discussions.
Festivals and events in Brazil
JanuaryOn January 20, the day of the city’s patron saint, which is a municipal holiday in Rio de Janeiro.
The patron saint’s day in Rio de Janeiro, with masses and a procession that carries the saint’s image from Tijuca to the Metropolitan Cathedral in the city center.
February/MarchIn February or March, depending on the Carnival calendar, which changes each year with the date of Easter.
The samba school parades at the Marquês de Sapucaí Sambadrome and the street blocos scattered around the city during Carnival days.
May/JuneIn the days leading up to Pentecost Sunday, 50 days after Easter; therefore it falls in May or June.
Paraty’s most traditional religious festival, with a novena, processions through the historic center, and a solemn Mass followed by a procession on Pentecost Sunday.
June/JulyBetween late June and early July, always including June 29, German Settler Day, a municipal holiday in Petrópolis.
Petrópolis’s German Settler festival, featuring traditional German food and beer, folk dance groups, and events around the Crystal Palace.
June/SeptemberEvery two years, in odd-numbered years; generally in September, sometimes in June. · Every two years
The major book fair of Rio de Janeiro held every two years, with publisher booths, author events, and programming for children and young people.
July/AugustOnce a year, between the second half of July and the beginning of August, during winter break.
The Sesc winter festival in the Mountain Region, with concerts, theater, dance and circus at Sesc Quitandinha, in Itaipava and other venues in Petrópolis.
