Vittorio De Sica was an Italian film director and actor, a leading figure in the neorealist movement.
Cinema Paradiso is a 1988 coming-of-age dramedy film written and directed by Giuseppe Tornatore.
Michele Placido is an Italian actor, director and screenwriter. He began his career on stage, and first gained mainstream attention through a series of roles in films directed by the likes of Mario Monicelli and Marco Bellocchio, winning the Berlinale's Silver Bear for Best Actor for his performance in the 1979 film Ernesto. He is known internationally for portraying police inspector Corrado Cattani on the crime drama television series La piovra (1984–2001). Placido's directorial debut, Pummarò, was screened Un Certain Regard at the 1990 Cannes Film Festival. Three of his films have competed for the Golden Lion at the Venice Film Festival. He is a five-time Nastro d'Argento and four-time David di Donatello winner. In 2021, Placido was appointed President of the Teatro Comunale in Ferrara.
Ettore Scola was an Italian screenwriter and film director. He received a Golden Globe for Best Foreign Film in 1978 for his film A Special Day and over the course of his film career was nominated for five Academy Awards for Best Foreign Language Film.
Rocco and His Brothers is a 1960 drama film directed by Luchino Visconti and starring Alain Delon, Annie Girardot, Renato Salvatori, Katina Paxinou, Roger Hanin, Paolo Stoppa, and Claudia Cardinale in one of her early roles. Set in 1960 Milan, it tells the story of a migrant family from southern Italy and its disintegration in the society of the industrial north.
Giovanna Mezzogiorno is an Italian theatre and film actress.
Francesco Rosi was an Italian filmmaker, screenwriter and theatre director. His film The Mattei Affair won the Palme d'Or at the 1972 Cannes Film Festival. Rosi's films, especially those of the 1960s and 1970s, often appeared to have political messages. While the topics of his later films became less politically oriented and more angled toward literature, he continued to direct until 1997, his last film being the adaptation of Primo Levi's book, The Truce.
Cassano delle Murge is a town and comune in the Metropolitan City of Bari, Apulia, southern Italy.
Paolo Taviani and Vittorio Taviani, collectively referred to as the Taviani brothers, were Italian film directors and screenwriters who collaborated on numerous film productions.
The Night of the Shooting Stars is a 1982 Italian fantasy war drama film directed by Paolo Taviani and Vittorio Taviani. It was written by Giuliani G. De Negri, Paolo Taviani, Tonino Guerra, and Vittorio Taviani. It was entered into the 1982 Cannes Film Festival, where it won the Jury Special Grand Prix. The film was selected by Italy as its entry for the Best Foreign Language Film at the 55th Academy Awards, but was not accepted as a nominee.
The Nastro d'Argento for Best Director is a film award bestowed annually as part of the Nastro d'Argento awards since 1946, organized by the Italian National Association of Film Journalists, the national association of Italian film critics.
The Nastro d'Argento is a film award assigned each year, since 1946, by Sindacato Nazionale dei Giornalisti Cinematografici Italiani, the association of Italian film critics.
The Family is a 1987 Italian drama film directed by Ettore Scola and starring Vittorio Gassman, Fanny Ardant, Philippe Noiret, and Stefania Sandrelli. It was entered into the 1987 Cannes Film Festival. The film received an Academy Award nomination for Best Foreign Language Film at the 60th Academy Awards.
Charles-Marie Vanel was a French actor and director. During his 65-year film career, which began in 1923, he appeared in more than 200 films and worked with many prominent directors, including Alfred Hitchcock, Luis Buñuel, Jacques Feyder, and Henri-Georges Clouzot. He is perhaps best remembered for his role as a desperate truck driver in Clouzot's The Wages of Fear for which he received a Special Mention at the Cannes Film Festival in 1953.
Scent of a Woman is a 1974 Commedia all'italiana film directed by Dino Risi, based on Il buio e il miele, a story by Giovanni Arpino. Both Risi and the leading actor Vittorio Gassman won important Italian and French awards.
The Desert of the Tartars is a 1976 Italian film by director Valerio Zurlini with an international cast including Jacques Perrin, Vittorio Gassman, Max von Sydow, Francisco Rabal, Philippe Noiret, Fernando Rey, and Jean-Louis Trintignant. The cast also included veteran Iranian film actor Mohammad-Ali Keshavarz.
Giacomo Battiato is an Italian film director and writer.
Vittorio Mezzogiorno was an Italian actor.
A Dangerous Toy is a 1979 Italian noir film written and directed by Giuliano Montaldo. It was co-produced by Sergio Leone. The toy of the title is a gun. The film chronicles how a frustrated and shy accountant may become a cruel and ruthless executioner.
Of Lost Love is a 1998 Italian drama film directed by Michele Placido. For her performance Giovanna Mezzogiorno won the Pasinetti Award at the 55th Venice International Film Festival and the 1999 Nastro d'Argento for Best Actress, while her co-star Fabrizio Bentivoglio was awarded David di Donatello for Best Supporting Actor. The Mezzogiorno's character is inspired by teacher Liliana Rossi.
