Immersive museum in Rome honours 120 years of Italian film.

Rome is opening a new audiovisual museum dedicated to the world of Italian cinema, at the capital's historic Cinecittà film studios.

The Italian Audiovisual and Cinema Museum (MIAC), an immersive and interactive experience, will open at Cinecittà on 18 December.The museum is described by Italy's culture ministry as a "plunge into the Italian imagination, a journey through the history of the country through the images, sounds and music that have made our cinema great."

On display will be a rich audiovisual archive documenting 120 years of Italian film and Italian life, thanks to a collaboration between Istituto Luce, the Centro Sperimentale di Cinematografia, and Teche Rai.

The museum, which cost €2.5 million, will open in a 1,650-sqm site that once housed the Cinecittà printing and development laboratory.

Cinecittà is best known internationally for the 1959 epic historical drama Ben Hur, which starred Charlton Heston, won 11 Oscars and became one of the most successful films of all time.

The museum will be open daily except Tuesday, from 09.30-18.30, with the ticket office closing at 16.30.