The
Far East Film Festival is more than just cinema. It's also a space for discussion, storytelling and for interpreting a changing continent. That's why
Spazio Bambù is back in 2026: from
the 25th of April to the 1st of May, audiences in the Sala Fantoni of the Teatro Nuovo Giovanni da Udine theatre will have the chance
every afternoon to listen to journalists, analysts, academics and observers discussing the major issues in Asian current affairs. The events will be presented by journalists
Giulia Pompili (from daily newspaper Il Foglio) and
Francesco Radicioni (from radio station Radio Radicale): two experts on Asia ready to open it up to everyone at the FEFF.
The world is changing rapidly and Asia is changing with it—often even before it. Tensions between major powers are reshaping seemingly solid equilibriums while new questions of identity are emerging from transforming societies:
Taiwan is rediscovering its history,while
Japan and
Southeast Asia are seeking their place in a global order that is no longer what it used to be. And then there's
China: a superpower that competes not only through silicon chips and infrastructure but also through its image, culture and ability to make the new generations listen—and believe.
Every morning, from
the 26th of April to the 1st of May, Pompili and Radicioni will also bring to the Sala Fantoni a press review with all the latest news from Asia: the most important things to know and the things that affect us directly. Along with the afternoon Talks (also in the Sala Fantoni), the Bambù events have a specific goal: to use cinema as a mirror of the political tensions, social transformations, fears and aspirations of entire societies.
And
Spazio Bambù doesn't stop at the festival. In collaboration with the
Far East Film Festival, the Bambù Instagram page is active year-round as a hub for those who want to see what's happening in Asia beyond the cinema screen: analysis, updates, insights and a constant eye on a continent that never ceases to amaze. Follow us on Instagram:
@bambutalks.
Saturday 25 April
South Korea, Memory and Repression: Speaking about Martial Law
Antonio Fiori – University of Bologna
Sunday 26 April
Beyond the Dragon: Chinese Soft Power—Culture, Propaganda and Imagination
Lucrezia Goldin – journalist
Giulia Interesse – Chinaly
Priscilla Ruggiero – journalist
Monday 27 April
Japan and Changing Security: pacifism and new global challenges.
Giulio Pugliese – European University Institute and Institute of International Affairs
Paola Scrolavezza – Università di Bologna
Gabriele Ninivaggi – journalist in Tokyo (participating remotely)
Tuesday 28 April
Indonesia and Vietnam: Balance, Development and New Ambitions in Southeast Asia
Guido Creta – L’Orientale University, Naples
Claudio Dordi – Bocconi University (participating remotely)
Wednesday 29 April
Taiwan Rewrites its Identity: the Past Is a Battleground.
Francesca Baronio – RAI journalist
Lorenzo Lamperti – giornalista (collegato)
Thursday 30 April
Reporting on Asia: How the Perspective Is Changing, from Reportage to the Present Day
Siegmund Ginzberg – journalist
Ilaria Maria Sala – journalist and writer (participating remotely)
Friday 1 May
Trump, Xi and the New World Disorder
Greta Cristini – analyst
Stefano Pelaggi – Università La Sapienza di Roma, Geopolitica.info