Luchino Visconti di Modrone, Count of Lonate Pozzolo was an Italian filmmaker, theatre and opera director, and screenwriter. He was one of the fathers of cinematic neorealism, but later moved towards luxurious, sweeping epics dealing with themes of beauty, decadence, death, and European history, especially the decay of the nobility and the bourgeoisie. Critic Jonathan Jones wrote that “no one did as much to shape Italian cinema as Luchino Visconti.”
Anna Maria Magnani was an Italian actress. She was known for her explosive acting and earthy, realistic portrayals of characters.
Two Women is a 1960 war drama film directed by Vittorio De Sica from a screenplay he co-wrote with Cesare Zavattini, based on the 1957 novel of the same name by Alberto Moravia. The film stars Sophia Loren, Jean-Paul Belmondo, Eleonora Brown and Raf Vallone. It tells the story of a woman trying to protect her young daughter from the horrors of war. The story is fictional, but based on actual events of 1944 in Rome and rural Lazio, during the Marocchinate.
Mario Del Monaco was an Italian operatic tenor.
Tito Gobbi was an Italian operatic baritone with an international reputation.
Anna Moffo was an American opera singer, television personality, and actress. One of the leading lyric-coloratura sopranos of her generation, she possessed a warm and radiant voice of considerable range and agility. Noted for her physical beauty, she was nicknamed "La Bellissima".
Rome, Open City, also released as Open City, is a 1945 Italian neorealist war drama film directed by Roberto Rossellini and co-written by Sergio Amidei, Celeste Negarville and Federico Fellini. Set in Rome in 1944, the film follows a diverse group of characters coping under the Nazi occupation, and centers on a Resistance fighter trying to escape the city with the help of a Catholic priest. The title refers to the status of Rome as an open city following its declaration as such on 14 August 1943. The film is the first in Rosselini's "Neorealist Trilogy", followed by Paisan (1946) and Germany, Year Zero (1948).
The Glass Mountain is a 1949 black and white British romantic film drama directed by Henry Cass. It starred Michael Denison, Dulcie Gray and Valentina Cortese. The film was a popular success of its day, and was re-released in the UK in 1950 and 1953. It features acclaimed classical vocalists Elena Rizzieri as herself and Tito Gobbi as himself, with the orchestra and chorus of the Venice Opera House. The theme music by Nino Rota is memorable, and was also a contemporary hit. It was mainly filmed on location in the Dolomites and at Venice's La Fenice Opera House. Co-producer Joseph Janni also co-produced another film shot in Italy, the comedy Honeymoon Deferred, in 1951.
Aida is a 1953 Italian musical melodrama film version of the opera Aida by Giuseppe Verdi. It was directed by Clemente Fracassi and produced by Gregor Rabinovitch and Federico Teti. The screenplay was adapted by Fracassi, Carlo Castelli, Anna Gobbi, and Giorgio Salviucci from the libretto by Antonio Ghislanzoni. The cinematography was by Piero Portalupi, the production design by Flavio Mogherini and the costume design by Maria De Matteis. The RAI National Symphony Orchestra was conducted by Giuseppe Morelli, the ballet was choreographed by Margherita Wallmann.
Gino Sinimberghi was a tenor opera singer from Rome, Italy.
Fausto Cleva was an Austro-Hungarian Empire-born American operatic conductor.
Mario Filippeschi was an Italian tenor, particularly associated with the Italian repertory, renowned for his ringing upper register.
Giulio Neri was an Italian operatic bass, particularly associated with the Italian repertory.
Life Begins Anew is a 1945 Italian melodrama film directed by Mario Mattoli and starring Alida Valli, Fosco Giachetti and Eduardo De Filippo. It was the third most popular Italian film during 1945-46 after Roberto Rossellini's Rome, Open City and Partenza ore 7, a comedy always directed by Mattoli.
A Woman Has Killed is a 1952 Italian melodrama crime film directed by Vittorio Cottafavi. While on a train journey a young woman tells another passenger how she murdered her husband, a British army officer. It is a neorealist film, based on the real story of Lidia Cirillo, who appears in the film.
The Enemy is a 1952 Italian melodrama film directed by Giorgio Bianchi and starring Elisa Cegani, Frank Latimore and Vira Silenti. It was shot at the Cinecittà Studios in Rome. The film's sets were designed by the art director Mario Chiari.
Hans Hinrich was a German film director and actor. He initially worked in Germany but later also worked in Italy where he was usually credited as Giovanni Hinrich.
Scampolo is a 1928 German silent comedy film directed by Augusto Genina and starring Carmen Boni, Livio Pavanelli and Hans Junkermann. The film featured an early appearance from the future star Anna Magnani. The story of Scampolo, a fictional street child from Rome, has been made into several films.
My Sun is a 1946 Italian war drama film directed by Giacomo Gentilomo. It is considered one of the earliest films belonging to the genre of Italian neorealism, due to its use of exterior scenes and the inclusion of non-professional actors. It was shot at the Scalera Studios in Rome and on location around Naples. The film's sets were designed by the art director Alberto Boccianti. The film is set during the Four days of Naples in September 1943. Its title refers to the Neapolitan song "’O sole mio".
Edda Albertini (1926–1988) was an Italian film, stage and television actress. In the postwar years she appeared in several films in supporting roles and played the lead in The Monastery of Santa Chiara (1949). Subsequently, her screen appearances were mainly in television. She was a graduate of the Academy of Dramatic Arts in Rome.
