MINERVA ACADEMY | Premieres at GIFFONI FILM FESTIVAL, only on Netflix from September 22nd

THE FIRST TWO EPISODES PREMIERE TODAY AT GIFFONI FILM FESTIVAL

21 July, 2026 - Minerva Academy , the new eight-episode teen drama series, produced by Picomedia (company of the Asacha group and part of Fremantle) and directed by Ivan Silvestrini, will be available only on Netflix on September 22 .

Today, stars Ciro Minopoli, Biagio Venditti, Margherita Buoncristiani, Giulio Brizzi and Nicole Malaj , alongside Massimiliano Gallo, Cristiana Capotondi and Irene Maiorino , joined director Ivan Silvestrini and writer Tommaso Matano to introduce a preview of the series at the 2026 Giffoni Film Festival , taking place from July 17 to 25.

As part of a guided tour through the stunning Royal Palace of Portici (Naples) - the series' main filming location, together with Villa Campolieto in Ercolano - the cast, director, writers and producers led attendees through the palace's historic rooms, blurring the lines between reality and fiction, while showcasing the settings that brought to life the fictional Minerva Military High School in the series.

PHOTOS OF THE ROYAL PALACE OF PORTICI EVENT

(Credits: Giffoni Film Festival)

The cast also features Simone Secce , Beatrice Savignani , Alicia Edogamhe , Raiz , Michele Rosiello , Antonio Adaggio , Carmen Annibale , Martina Attanasio , Fabio Bizzarro , Viola Brambilla , Luigi Bruno , Martina Pia Gambardella , Pietro Sparvoli and Luigi Zeno .

MINERVA ACADEMY

Minerva Academy is a teen drama series set in a military high school in Naples. It is a world that seems to belong to another era, where students are woken up at dawn for the flag-raising ceremony, where mobile phones and civilian clothes are not allowed, and where subjects include military tactics and fencing lessons. It is a world where love stories are forbidden and every mistake comes at a very high price. The protagonists of the series are Salvo (Ciro Minopoli), a boy from a foster home who entered the school to discover the truth about the fate of his best friend; Vincenzo (Biagio Venditti), who wants to emulate his father's military career; and Camilla (Margherita Buoncristiani), a spoilt girl from Milan who was sent there by her father to be reformed. Minerva Academy also talks about adults, the officers and civilian teachers who are there to train the young people, but who have to deal with their consciences, their fragility and their mistakes. At the Minerva Academy military high school, the students, pushed to their limits, discover unexpected things about themselves. Every young person there has ambitions and dreams. The school will not help them achieve them. The school will make them understand if they were right for them. In a word, it will make them grow up.

Directed by: Ivan Silvestrini

Written by: Ivano Fachin, Giovanni Galassi, Tommaso Matano, Michela Straniero

Produced by: Roberto Sessa for Picomedia (company of the Asacha group and part of Fremantle)

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