Sala Grande

The historic Sala Grande – where the main screenings and awards ceremonies of the Festival take place – underwent a series of transformations first in the 1950s, then in 1995, and the final phase in 2011, which entailed a radical restoration of the interiors which were equipped with the latest technology required to support the visual and sound standards of the screenings at the Venice Film Festival. The restyling of the Sala Grande was inspired by the formal elements of the 1937 building, reinterpreted in a contemporary key, including wood paneling along the walls and new seats, increased in number from 1019 to 1032, with the seating inspired by Luigi Quagliata's original design, upholstered in a custom-designed fabric. Great attention was paid to the lighting and especially to improving the acoustics of the Sala, the trapezoid form of which was designed to optimize the acoustics of the sound systems in use at that time, but was inadequate to meet the needs of today's sound systems.