The Sanremo Music Festival 2012 was the 62nd annual Sanremo Music Festival. It was held at the Teatro Ariston in Sanremo, province of Imperia, during the five nights between 14 February 2012 and 18 February 2012, and it was broadcast by Rai 1. At the end of the competition, Nina Zilli was chosen by a specific jury among the participants in the Sanremo Music Festival as the Italian entry for the Eurovision Song Contest 2012. Alessandro Casillo was excluded from the selection, since he will be under the age of 16 during the Eurovision Song Contest.