Stockholm International Film Festival is celebrating its 20th anniversary by filling the city with films. On four different occasions in November, classics from previous film festivals will be shown, and superstar Susan Sarandon will attend the weekend's grand finale in Kungsträdgården, to introduce her film, which is to be projected on to a giant screen – made of ice.

The Swedish EU Presidency supports the Stockholm Film Festival which is to take place for the 20th time this year. The festival, which has grown considerably since its conception, now presents its most extensive programme ever, with 180 films being screened over the 12 days of the festival (18–29 November).

As if that was not enough, organisers wanted to celebrate the anniversary in style. The result was five spectacular outdoor screenings, which form part of the Swedish EU Presidency's culture programme.

Celebrations got off to an early start on the second weekend of November, with a screening of "The Science of Sleep" on Stureplan in central Stockholm, where Stockholm residents out shopping on Saturday braved the November cold and sat down by the square's famous 'mushroom'.

On the following weekend, "The Man Who Wasn't There" was shown on Normalmstorg for hundreds of passers-by to watch. For the two-day finale on 21–22 November there will be three films and a giant screen made of ice, built by the famous Ice Hotel in Jukkasjärvi.

"We wanted to make something beautiful and solid that would be a great experience to celebrate our anniversary. The solution was a film screen made out of 10 tonnes of ice in the middle of Kungsträdgården, and the fact that Susan Sarandon absolutely wanted to open the showing with her film will please many Stockholm residents", says Festival Director Git Scheynius.

Hollywood actress Susan Sarandon will arrive in Sweden on Saturday to receive the Stockholm Film Festival Lifetime Achievement Award, which each year is awarded to a person the festival particularly wishes to honour. During her career, she has appeared in over 60 films, but may be best known for her roles in Ridley Scott's "Thelma and Louise" and in Tim Robbin's "Dead Man Walking", for which she won an Oscar.

After the award ceremony, Ms Sarandon will introduce the cult film "The Rocky Horror Picture Show" in Kungsträdgården at 17.00 and later in the evening, "Morvern Callar" will be screened. On Sunday, 22 November the anniversary show will be concluded with a screening of "Raise the Red Lantern".

Stockholm Film Festival has long experience of outdoor screenings and the open-air Summer Cinema usually attracts a huge audience. Outdoor cinema in November has never been done before, but the cold did not put a stop to the idea. Those who feel the cold can warm up with a cup of hot chocolate or defrost in the inflatable igloo which will be in the park for the duration of the finale weekend.