Cars, music, and cinema were the stars of a major event held last week at the Heritage Hub, the incredible location which holds the invaluable company collection of over 300 Fiat, Lancia, Abarth, and Alfa Romeo vehicles.
Located within the historic Mirafiori factory in Turin, the charming location hosted the first “Cinema: che impresa!” conference and was followed by an enchanting event organized in tandem with the cultural association Club Silencio.
Part of the “Turin Capital of Business Culture 2024” program organized by the Turin Industrial Union, with Fiat acting as a Premium Partner, the “Cinema: che impresa!” conference was centered on the history of industrial cinema and reflected on its evolution since the beginning of the twentieth century through images and videos. Speakers included Stefano Serra, President AMMA – Turin Industrial Union, alongside Stellantis representatives Roberto Giolito, Head of Stellantis Heritage, and Maurizio Torchio, Head of Centro Storico FIAT. The latter duo highlighted the brand’s indissoluble bond with the film industry, as both were founded in Turin and have been associated with the city ever since.
In fact, FIAT began filming its activities in 1911 and continued to showcase workshops, production methods, and the evolutions in the workplace and its legendary vehicles on the silver screen over the decades. These 16mm and 35mm films are essential documents for reconstructing the economic and social history of the 20th century. The cinema was so important to the company’s communications that it created its own studio, “Cinefiat”, in 1953. Cinefiat allowed the company to more effectively promote its image, taking advantage of the work of filmmakers and intellectuals like Alessandro Blasetti, Steno, Valentino Orsini, Nikita Michalkov and Franco Fortini.
Today, this incredible audio-visual material is preserved at the Centro Storico FIAT, the famous museum in Turin which holds an immense collection of automobiles, artifacts, miniatures, and posters, as well as the vast archive of largest Italian carmaker, including 200 hours of historic film, 7,000 running meters of paperwork, 400,000 technical drawings, 5,000 books and magazines, and more than 6 million prints, colors slides, and negatives.
A few hours after the conclusion of the “Cinema: che impresa!” conference, Heritage Hub proved the packed house with an immersive experience created in collaboration with Club Silencio, the Turin cultural association engaged in cultural promotion and youth participation. In this special “Night at the Heritage Hub”, the museum’s expert guides took guests on a tour of the vehicles which have made international automotive history, including the incredible “Engine Area”, which hosts a selection of more than 30 of the most important motors realized by the Group’s Italian brands over the last century.
The evening was enlivened by a DJ set from Sick Seek, who led the visitors on a musical journey through various genres and influences and created a unique atmosphere. Local artists contributed to the music, blending electronic and acoustics sounds to create an evocative and enveloping show. Moreover, thanks to the VR Experience curated by Club Silencio, guests could enjoy the creative genius of LABADANzky, a contemporary Italian artist specialized in giant urban installations which are made through the reuse of waste materials.
Thanks in part to the guided tours it offers on Fridays, Saturdays, and Sunday—tickets available online—Heritage Hub once again proved itself to be a location which is ready to open its arms to the public. Moreover, as proof of its multi-functional nature, Heritage Hub is becoming an increasingly more attractive location for conferences and company events—as exemplified by the growing number of planned events, including last week’s event. For further information on the availability of the location, it is possible to write to heritagehub@stellantis.com.
