Verdi cinemas celebrate their 100 years of history with an ambitious program of activities

An extensive cultural program will cover the history of the Verdi Cinemas, cultural reference of Barcelona and the Gracia neighborhood, covering screenings, exhibitions and premieres in commemoration of its centenary.

At the program presentation event, Adolfo Blanco, CEO of A Contracorriente Films, y Paz Recolons, responsible for the Verdi Cinemas, accompanied by Xavier Marcé, councilor of Culture and Creative Industries; Edgar Garcia and Casellas, director of the Catalan Institute of Cultural Companies, Department of Culture, and Ignasi Camós, general director of the ICAA, institutions that support the celebrations. During the presentation, the excellent health of the project was highlighted: in 2024, while the general exhibition market fell by 1.39%, the Verdi Cinemas in Barcelona grew by 30% compared to the previous year, reaching 500,000 viewers, a figure that consolidates the excellent evolution of the Verdi in recent years.

Las celebrations They start this month of December and will continue until end of 2026. He central act will take place on February 10, eve of the official anniversary. Among the announced activities, the Collection stands out “100 years of the Verdi” in 3Cat, a selection of titles that have marked the history of the Verdi. It will have a total of 58 works which will be progressively incorporated until the end of 2026. Among the first names are works of the stature of The ninth door, a prophet, Good night and good luck, 8½, Fanny y Alexander, the name of the rose, My beautiful laundry, The piano, Caramel o Paris, Texas.

Two cycles will also be organized in collaboration with Libraries of Barcelona, represented at the event by Albert Gelabert, Directorate of Cultural and Educational Action and Carme Galve, director of the Gràcia Jaume Fuster Library. The first thematic block planned between March and May 2026 will include titles such as The bookstore, The library of rejected books, The Literary Society and the Potato Peel Pie, The book editor, Dreams of a writer in New York, New York booksellers, The illustrious citizen o The Padilla case. The program will open on March 15 at the Jaume Fuster Library with the screening of The bookstore, which will have the presence of Isabel Coixet. Likewise, the Jaume Fuster, Montserrat Abelló, Nou Barris and Can Fabra libraries will host family sessions of the Verdi Kids program, with projections dubbed into Catalan as Belle o Central Park Heroes.

On the other hand, the publication of a commemorative book for the Verdi centenary has been confirmed, published with texts by Josep M.a Count, Enrique Perez y Paz Recolons, prologue of Xavier Marcé and epilogue Albert Serra. The work, scheduled for release in October 2026, gathers close to 300 images that allow us to explore the history of cinema and the Gràcia neighborhood. Furthermore, in 2026 it will be released Life is Verdi, a feature-length documentary directed by Berta Garcia Laughs and co-produced with Isabel Coixet which pays tribute to the seventh art and the community that surrounds the Verdi, with interviews, humor and images that vindicate the importance of keeping the big screen alive.

The tributes are completed with the initiative of BCN Film Fest to dedicate its “essential” section to the Centennial of the Verdi Cinemas; with a photo exhibition at the Jaume Fuster Library, which from April 27 to May 31 will cover the history of cinema and the neighborhood, and free screenings for educational centers.

As a symbolic closing of this Centenary, the Verdi will inaugurate two new rooms on Verdi Street. In a context in which the old cinemas have been replaced by supermarkets or multinational stores, the Verdi are the protagonists of a historical exception: They will occupy the space of a supermarket to create more cinema.