As the 83rd Venice International Film Festival brings cinema’s global elite to the lagoon, Thomas Misse, Marek Harmony and Anna Stukkert are preparing a different kind of premiere: an intimate night of international networking, recognition, philanthropy, music and jewellery inside one of Venice’s historic palazzi.
For eleven days in September, Venice becomes one of the most closely watched places in the world. The 83rd Venice International Film Festival, running from 2 to 12 September 2026, will once again transform the Lido into a meeting point for international cinema, with world premieres, major directors, actors, producers and thousands of members of the global media arriving in the city. Around 3,000 journalists, film critics, television and radio reporters are expected to cover the festival, while the official competition will present up to 21 feature films as world premieres.
This year’s festival is headed by artistic director Alberto Barbera, with actress and filmmaker Maggie Gyllenhaal presiding over the Venezia 83 international jury. The programme brings together some of contemporary cinema’s most recognised filmmakers, including Hirokazu Kore-eda, Martin McDonagh and Nanni Moretti, alongside a new generation of international talent. By the time the festival reaches its final days, Venice will have spent more than a week living between cinema, international media, private gatherings and the red carpet.
It is precisely at this moment, on 11 September 2026, that another door will open on the Grand Canal.
Thomas Misse and Marek Harmony of the Royal Gentlemen Club, together with Anna Stukkert, founder of the Congress Awards, will welcome guests to the Royal Gentlemen Gala Dinner & Congress Awards: La Dolce Vita at Ca’ Sagredo. The idea is deliberately different from the scale and speed surrounding the Film Festival: fewer distractions, a carefully selected international circle and an evening designed around the quality of encounters rather than the size of the room.
From the Red Carpet to the Grand Canal
For Thomas Misse, Venice continues a Royal Gentlemen philosophy that has increasingly connected private international gatherings with some of Europe’s most important cultural moments. Royal Gentlemen events have accompanied the social calendar around Paris Haute Couture Week and the Cannes Film Festival, creating a recognisable combination of Grand Art de Vivre, exceptional locations and international networking. Earlier this year, Royal Gentlemen brought its Grand Dinner at the Court to the Ritz Paris during Haute Couture Week, before Thomas Misse and Marek Harmony joined Anna Stukkert and the Congress Awards for the Beach Ball Gala Dinner in Cannes during the Cannes Film Festival.
Venice now provides a new setting for that concept. Guests of the Royal Gentlemen Gala Dinner & Congress Awards whose individual programme includes access to official Film Festival premieres will also have the opportunity to experience the cinematic side of Venice, including eligible red-carpet and premiere access subject to the relevant festival ticketing and accreditation arrangements. The contrast is part of the attraction: the public energy of the Lido followed by the privacy of an evening inside a Venetian palazzo.
And few locations could embody that transition better than Ca’ Sagredo. Recognised as a National Monument, the centuries-old residence rises directly from the Grand Canal and retains the atmosphere of a Venetian noble home. Its monumental staircase, frescoed rooms, historic salons and art collection make the palace feel less like a conventional hotel than a living museum. For the evening, those interiors will become part of the programme itself, with music, artistic moments, presentations and conversations unfolding throughout the palazzo.
Congress Awards: A Network Built Across 29 Countries
Alongside Royal Gentlemen, the evening brings to Venice a platform that has spent a decade developing its own international network. Anna Stukkert, entrepreneur, investor, media executive and philanthropist, has organised the International Investment Congress since 2016. Over the years its sessions have taken place in cities including Munich, Berlin, Monaco, Paris, Cannes and Davos, connecting participants from business, investment, media, culture and public life.
The Congress Awards grew from this network as a platform for recognising personalities whose work has created influence beyond a single industry. In 2026, its Cannes gathering marked the 20th edition of the International Investment Congress Awards, while the wider platform has connected representatives from 29 countries. Its format has increasingly moved beyond conventional business networking, bringing entrepreneurs and investors into the same room with diplomats, cultural figures, philanthropists and public leaders.
Among the personalities expected to be recognised in Venice is Eric Adams, the 110th Mayor of New York City, who served from 2022 to 2025 after previously serving as Brooklyn Borough President and a New York State Senator. His participation reflects the international character of the Congress Awards and the evening’s intention to create dialogue between worlds that do not necessarily meet at a traditional business conference.
Philanthropy will be represented by Alisa Roever, founder of Angels Helpers NYC, a 501(c)(3) organisation focused on expanding access to education, arts and talent development for children from underserved communities. Roever’s connection to New York philanthropy extends beyond her own foundation: she was among the co-chairs of Gabrielle’s Angel Foundation’s Angel Ball 2024. Her work with Angels Helpers is centred on a simple principle particularly relevant to an evening celebrating achievement: talent may be universal, but access to opportunity is not.
That philosophy gives the Venice gathering a broader definition of success. Recognition is not limited to professional titles, financial results or public visibility. Social responsibility, education and the ability to create opportunities for others become part of the same conversation.
An Austrian Jewellery Story Meets La Dolce Vita
Fashion and jewellery have always belonged naturally to the visual language of Venice, and this year Oliver Weber Collection will join the evening as Official Jewellery Partner with a presentation of its new Dolce Vita Collection.
The Austrian jewellery house has a story closely connected to the world of crystal. Established in Mils, Austria, the company was founded by Oliver Weber and Alexander Stabinger, both of whom previously held management positions at Swarovski. Over three decades, the brand has developed its idea of accessible luxury around precision-cut Swarovski® crystals, craftsmanship and contemporary European design, building an international presence in more than 50 countries.
The human face of that evolution includes Lidia Weber, Head of Special Projects at Oliver Weber Collection, whose work has extended the brand into collaborations and special jewellery concepts beyond its traditional collections. In Venice, that international perspective will meet one of the most visually distinctive cities in Europe.
The new Dolce Vita Collection takes its inspiration directly from its surroundings: reflections across the lagoon, Venetian architecture, Carnival, shifting light and the theatrical quality of a city where water can change the appearance of a building from one hour to the next. Inside Ca’ Sagredo, contemporary jewellery will be presented against frescoes and centuries-old interiors, creating a deliberate conversation between Austrian craftsmanship and Venetian history.
The Sound of the Evening
Music will provide another layer to the atmosphere through Rezeda Kalimullina, appearing as Special Guest Singer. With 25 years of stage experience, Kalimullina works across soul, jazz and pop, combining a powerful vocal presence with an international musical background.
Her artistic development has included mentorship from multiple Grammy-nominated American vocalist, pianist and composer Karen Edwards, whose career has included performances with Stevie Wonder, Prince and Tony Bennett. Rather than treating the performance as a conventional break between courses or awards, the organisers intend music to become part of the progression of the evening, accompanying guests through the changing spaces and atmosphere of Ca’ Sagredo.
Venice Beyond the Flashbulbs
Perhaps this is where the Royal Gentlemen concept and Venice understand each other best.
The Venice Film Festival is about visibility: premieres, cameras, extraordinary concentration of international media and the ritual of the red carpet. Royal Gentlemen begins with a different proposition. What happens once the cameras are no longer the centre of attention?
Thomas Misse and Marek Harmony have built their gatherings around the idea that a beautiful room matters, but the people placed inside that room matter more. Anna Stukkert’s Congress Awards adds recognition and an international business and philanthropic network to that formula. Oliver Weber Collection brings design. Alisa Roever brings philanthropy. Rezeda Kalimullina brings music. And Ca’ Sagredo provides several centuries of Venetian history around all of it.
For one night, those worlds will meet on the Grand Canal while the Venice International Film Festival is still unfolding only a short distance away.
It is a particular interpretation of La Dolce Vita: not simply being photographed in the right place, but having access to the right conversation after the photograph has been taken.
Event Details
Royal Gentlemen Gala Dinner & Congress Awards: La Dolce Vita
Date: Friday, 11 September 2026
Time: 6:30 pm
Venue: Ca’ Sagredo Hotel, Venice
Dress Code: Black Tie
Host: Royal Gentlemen Club
Royal Gentlemen Club: Thomas Misse & Marek Harmony
Congress Awards: Founded by Anna Stukkert
Official Jewellery Partner: Oliver Weber Collection
Special Jewellery Presentation: Dolce Vita Collection
Special Guest Singer: Rezeda Kalimullina
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Press Contact: info@royalgentlemen.fr
Campo Santa Sofia, 4198/99 – Ca’ D’Oro
30121 Venezia VE, Italy
