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1-50 of 14,966
- Actor
- Music Department
- Soundtrack
Eliot Sumner was born on 30 July 1990 in Pisa, Tuscany, Italy. Eliot is an actor, known for Ripley (2024), The Gentlemen (2019) and No Time to Die (2021).- Director
- Producer
- Writer
Luca Guadagnino was born on 10 August 1971 in Palermo, Sicily, Italy. He is a director and producer, known for Call Me by Your Name (2017), Suspiria (2018) and Bones and All (2022).- Actress
- Producer
- Soundtrack
Monica Anna Maria Bellucci was born on September 30, 1964 in the Italian village of Città di Castello, Umbria, the only child of Brunella Briganti and Pasquale Bellucci. She originally pursued a career in the legal profession. While attending the University of Perugia, she modeled on the side to earn money for school, and this led to her modeling career. In 1988, she moved to one of Europe's fashion centers, Milan, and joined Elite Model Management. Although enjoying great success as a model, she made her acting debut on television in 1990, and her American film debut in Bram Stoker's Bram Stoker's Dracula (1992). Her role in the French thriller The Apartment (1996), shot her to stardom as she won the French equivalent of an Oscar nomination. Other credits include Malena (2000), Under Suspicion (2000) and Brotherhood of the Wolf (2001).- Actress
- Producer
- Executive
Amy Lou Adams was born in Vicenza, Veneto, Italy, to American parents, Kathryn (Hicken) and Richard Kent Adams, a U.S. serviceman who was stationed at Caserma Ederle in Italy at the time. She was raised in a Mormon family of seven children in Castle Rock, Colorado, and has English, as well as smaller amounts of Danish, Swiss-German, and Norwegian, ancestry.
Adams sang in the school choir at Douglas County High School and was an apprentice dancer at a local dance company, with the ambition of becoming a ballerina. However, she worked as a greeter at The Gap and as a Hooters hostess to support herself before finding work as a dancer at Boulder's Dinner Theatre and Country Dinner Playhouse in such productions as "Brigadoon" and "A Chorus Line". It was there that she was spotted by a Minneapolis dinner-theater director who asked her to move to Chanhassen, Minnesota for more regional dinner theatre work.
Nursing a pulled muscle that kept her from dancing, she was free to audition for a part in Drop Dead Gorgeous (1999), which was filming nearby in Minnesota. During the filming, Kirstie Alley encouraged her to move to Los Angeles, where she soon won a part in the Fox television version of the film, Cruel Intentions (1999), in the part played in the film by Sarah Michelle Gellar, "Kathryn Merteuil". Although three episodes were filmed, the troubled series never aired. Instead, parts of the episodes were cobbled together and released as the direct-to-video Cruel Intentions 2 (2000). After more failed television spots, she landed a major role in Catch Me If You Can (2002), playing opposite Leonardo DiCaprio. But this did not provide the break-through she might have hoped for, with no work being offered for about a year. She eventually returned to television, and joined the short-lived series, Dr. Vegas (2004).
Her role in the low-budget independent film Junebug (2005) (which was shot in 21 days) got her real attention, including an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actress as well as other awards. The following year, her ability to look like a wide-eyed Disney animated heroine helped her to be chosen from about 300 actresses auditioning for the role of "Giselle" in the animated/live-action feature film, Enchanted (2007), which would prove to be her major break-through role. Her vivacious yet innocent portrayal allowed her to use her singing and dancing talents. Her performance garnered a Golden Globe Award nomination for Best Actress in a Motion Picture Musical or Comedy.
Adams next appeared in the major production, Charlie Wilson's War (2007), and went on to act in the independent film, Sunshine Cleaning (2008), which premiered at the 2008 Sundance Film Festival. Her role as "Sister James" in Doubt (2008) brought her a second Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actress, as well as nominations for a Golden Globe, a Screen Actors Guild award, and a British Academy Film award. She appeared as Amelia Earhart in Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian (2009) and as a post-9/11 hot line counselor, aspiring writer, amateur cook and blogger in Julie & Julia (2009). In the early 2010s, she starred with Jason Segel in The Muppets (2011), with Philip Seymour Hoffman in Paul Thomas Anderson's The Master (2012), and alongside Clint Eastwood and Justin Timberlake in Trouble with the Curve (2012). She played reporter Lois Lane in Man of Steel (2013) and con artist Sydney Prosser in American Hustle (2013), before portraying real-life artist Margaret Keane in Tim Burton's biopic Big Eyes (2014).
In 2016, she reprised her role as Lane in Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice (2016), and headlined Denis Villeneuve's science fiction drama Arrival (2016) and Tom Ford's dark thriller Nocturnal Animals (2016). In 2018, she received another Oscar nomination, her sixth, for starring as Lynne Cheney in the biographical drama Vice (2018), opposite Christian Bale as Dick Cheney.- Actor
- Music Department
- Producer
Cole Mitchell Sprouse was born in Arezzo, Tuscany, Italy to American parents, Melanie (Wright) and Matthew Sprouse, and was raised with his older identical twin Dylan Sprouse in Long Beach, in their parents' native California. Cole began his acting career alongside Dylan at the tender age of six months. From 1993 to 1998 the twins shared the role of Patrick Kelly on ABC's hit series Grace Under Fire (1993), soon booking Julian in Adam Sandler's box office hit, Big Daddy (2000). That same month, their second feature film, The Astronaut's Wife (1999), starring Johnny Depp and Charlize Theron, was also released. Cole appeared without his brother on the NBC series Friends (1994), portraying Ross's son Ben Gellar; in the fall of 2003, the brothers again shared a lead role: Jeremiah in The Heart Is Deceitful Above All Things (2004). After that, Cole began starring alongside his twin in their own half-hour sitcom on the Disney Channel, The Suite Life of Zack & Cody (2005). After wrapping his sixth year of this program, Cole chose to attend NYU and remain absent from entertainment until he finished his college education in 2015, graduating with honors. The graduate soon booked the role of Jughead on Riverdale (2017), becoming a fan favorite, and then starred as Will Newman in the box office hit Five Feet Apart (2019), which was one of the highest-grossing non-genre teen movies of the 2010s.- Actress
- Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
- Soundtrack
Silvana Mangano was born on April 21, 1930 in Rome, Italy and was raised in poverty during World War II. She trained as a dancer for seven years and supported herself as a model. In 1946, at age 16, she won the Miss Rome beauty pageant and through this, she obtained role in a Maria Della Costa film. One year later, she was one of the girls in the Miss Italia contest. Lucia Bose became "The Queen", and nearby, on the stage of Stresa, were some other future stars of Italian cinema: Gina Lollobrigida, Eleonora Rossi Drago and Gianna Maria Canale.
Mangano's earlier connection with filmmaking occurred with her romantic relationship with actor Marcello Mastroianni. This led her to a film contract, though this would take some time for Mangano to ascend to international stardom with her role in Bitter Rice (1949). Thereatfer, she signed a contract with Lux Film, and later married Dino De Laurentiis, who was on the verge of becoming a known producer. Though she never scaled the heights of her contemporaries Sophia Loren and Gina Lollobrigida, Mangano remained a favorite star of the 1950s and 1970s, appearing in Anna (1951), The Gold of Naples (1954), Mambo (1954), Teorema (1968), Death in Venice (1971) and The Scopone Game (1972).
Married to film producer Dino De Laurentiis from 1949, the couple had four children: Veronica, Raffaella, Francesca and Federico. Veronica's daughter Giada is the host of "Everyday Italian" and "Giada at Home" on the Food Network. Raffaella co-produced with her father on Mangano's penultimate film, the science fiction epic Dune (1984). In 1983, she separated from De Laurentiis and abandoned her career to live in Paris and Madrid, where she made tapestries. Following surgery on December 4, 1989 that left her in a coma, Silvana Mangano died at age 59 of lung cancer in Madrid, Spain during the early morning hours of December 16, 1989.- Actress
- Director
- Writer
Stefania Rocca was born on 24 April 1971 in Turin, Piedmont, Italy. She is an actress and director, known for Nirvana (1997), Rosa e Cornelia (2000) and Viol@ (1998).- Actress
- Director
- Writer
Jasmine Trinca was born on 24 April 1981 in Rome, Lazio, Italy. She is an actress and director, known for The Gunman (2015), The Son's Room (2001) and Fortunata (2017).- Simona Tabasco was born on 5 April 1994 in Napoli, Campania, Italy. She is an actress, known for The White Lotus (2021), Perez. (2014) and Immaculate (2024).
- Actor
- Music Department
- Producer
Sprouse was born August 4, 1992, in Arezzo, Tuscany, Italy, to American parents, Melanie (Wright) and Matthew Sprouse. Dylan and his younger identical twin Cole Sprouse were raised in their parents' Long Beach, California. He has acted from the age of six months, initially with Cole, and continues to do so out of his new home base of NYC after receiving his bachelors degree from NYU. Along with acting, Dylan owns a meadery and bar in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, serving as the master brewer of the business.- Actor
- Director
- Writer
Maurizio Lombardi was born in Florence, Italy in1973. He started his acting training as a teenager with Ugo Chiti. Under Gabriella Bartolomei and Franco di Francescantonio, he worked specifically on his voice and body, so as to develop his own personal study both on mimics and physicality of the body as narrative tools. Besides, he completed his education by studying dance and singing. His focus on quality took Maurizio to continuously refine his technique, also taking part into the American acting coach Ivana Chubbuck's workshops in Italy and abroad.
Maurizio is today a recognised and multifaceted international actor, starring in movies, series and live on stage.
2024 will see his appearance in: Netflix Series 'Ripley' by Academy Award winner Steve Zaillian 'Citadel: Diana' series directed by Arnaldo Catinari 'M - The Son of the Century' series directed by Joe Wright 'Romeo è Giulietta', the movie directed by Giovanni Veronesi 'Il Vangelo Secondo Maria', the movie directed by Paolo Zucca 'Sei nell'Anima', the movie / biopic of Italian rocker and singer Gianna Nannini, directed by Cinzia TH Torrini
Since 2016, Maurizio Lombardi also appeared on both HBO series 'The Young Pope' and 'The New Pope' by Academy Award winner Paolo Sorrentino, in the prominent role of Cardinal Mario Assente.
Earlier in his professional career, he acted in many other movies and TV series, including also 'Il ragazzo invisibile 2' by the Academy Award winner director Gabriele Salvatores, 'Metti una notte' with Amanda Lear; 'All the money in the world' by Ridley Scott.
Maurizio is also a very active stage actor, with numerous tournées, in Italy and internationally. In this context, in 2016 Maurizio was runner-up for the Prize 'Le Maschere del Teatro Italiano' as best supporting actor, for the play The Pride, by Alexi Kaye Campbell, directed and interpreted by Luca Zingaretti.
Maurizio Lombardi is a prolific author and has his own production company Velvet 9 Productions, whereby he produces and co-produces his works, including: 'L'uomo Rondine'; the monologue 'Fists of Sulfur', which competed in the 2013 edition of the Fringe Festival in Edinburg the musicals 'Biancaneve' and 'Peter Pan', a one-man show called 'No Party' and his most recent work 'Ho Visto Cose' where he addresses impact on artificial intelligence on the human condition, which sold-out in all 4 opening shows in March 2024.- Actress
- Director
- Producer
Valeria Golino is an Italian actress and film director. She is known to English-language audiences for her role in Rain Man, Big Top Pee-wee and the two Hot Shots! films, especially the olive-in-the-belly-button scene. The second child of an Italian germanist and a Greek painter, Valeria Golino grew up in Naples until her parents parted. After three years in Athens with her mother and another three in Naples with her father, she began to work as a model. She left high school after her first movie and didn't study performing arts at all. In 1985 she got the leading role in Little Flames (1985) by Peter Del Monte and the next year won the Best Actress Award at the Venice Film Festival for Storia d'amore (1986). After some European co-productions (Dernier été à Tanger (1987), The Gold Rimmed Glasses (1987), Three Sisters (1988)) she began to work in Hollywood (Big Top Pee-wee (1988)). She soon gained prominent roles in Rain Man (1988), Hot Shots! (1991) and Hot Shots! Part Deux (1993). Now she works in the US (Clean Slate (1994), An Occasional Hell (1996)), Europe (The King's Whore (1990), Immortal Beloved (1994)) and in Italy. too, especially with young directors (Come due coccodrilli (1994), Le acrobate (1997), L'albero delle pere (1998)). In 1994 she produced and acted in Slaughter of the Cock (1996) by Greek director Andreas Pantzis. Her voice is more appreciated in Hollywood (where she took speech therapy) than in Italy (where she is sometimes dubbed); in "The Slaughter of the Cock" she acts as a deaf and dumb woman. She speaks four languages: Italian, Greek, French and English. Her brother is a musician and their uncle Enzo Golino is a famous journalist.- Matilda Anna Ingrid Lutz was born in Milan, Italy to two former fashion models and until the age of five, grew up in the little country town of Gudo Visconti. Her American father, Elliston, became a famed fashion photographer, while her mother, Maria, went on to do PR for a fashion press office.
Blessed with movie star good looks, Matilda began working as a model at a very young age, for various fashion and beauty brands. After she graduated from high school in New York, she took an acting class in order to get over her shyness. She began attending auditions and landed a role in the Italian horror flick "Azzurrina" in 2012. She then won a role on the TV series Crossing Lines (2013), followed by a part in the Italian drama The Fifth Wheel (2013).
She also studied psychology at the Catholic University of Milan as a backup plan. "If you say you're an actor in Italy, they kind of laugh in your face - it's like it's not a job," she told Elle Canada in 2016. It wasn't until she traveled to Los Angeles in 2014 to audition for an HBO pilot that she realized she could truly make her dream come true. She dropped out of the Catholic University of Milan and was accepted into a major movie school in Los Angeles. She worked in an Italian restaurant to support herself and met Italian director Gabriele Muccino there, when he came in for dinner. Several months later, Muccino auditioned her for a movie called Summertime (2016). In the meantime, she'd also received an offer to test for the big budget horror movie Rings (2017). After two screen tests, she met the Vice President of Paramount and the executive producer before landing the lead role of Julia, a woman who finds herself the target of a terrible curse that threatens to take her life in seven days. She also got the role in Summertime (2016), which began filming right after she completed work on Rings (2017).
In 2016, Matilda starred in the pop punk band The Downtown Fiction's music video for "Hepburn Shades." She was the star of Coralie Fargeat's hit film Revenge (2017), and played in the romantic comedy The Divorce Party (2019). She is now filming the TV Mini-series Ils étaient dix (2020). In 2020, Matilda is set to play the lead role of Joanna in Martin Villeneuve's sci-fi thriller INVADERS (2021). She is represented by the Gersh Agency. - Actress
- Producer
- Director
Rose McGowan is an American actress and director, known for her contribution to independent film. Since the age of nineteen, she has appeared in acclaimed films by Gregg Araki, Wes Craven, Brian De Palma, Robert Rodriguez and Quentin Tarantino. In 2014, her directorial debut Dawn (2014) was nominated for the Short Film Grand Jury Prize at the Sundance Film Festival. Rose Arianna McGowan was born on September 5, 1973 in Florence, Tuscany, Italy, to American parents Terri and Daniel Patrick McGowan. She is the second eldest of six siblings, and has Irish, French, and English ancestry. As a young child, she was raised within the Italian chapter of the Children of God. During the early 1980s, her family severed ties with the community and migrated to Eugene, Oregon, USA. Following the divorce of her parents, Rose relocated to Gig Harbor, Washington, to live with her grandmother. At age 14, McGowan was accused of drug use by a family friend and committed to rehabilitation. She has consistently maintained the decision was unjustified. Upon release, she spent a year without a home and was emancipated from her parents by the age of 15. McGowan's career as an actor began with The Doom Generation (1995). Originally intended for Jordan Ladd, the character of Amy Blue was, coincidentally, awarded to McGowan by an associate of director Gregg Araki. For her performance, she was nominated at the 1995 Independent Spirit Awards for Best Debut Performance. Subsequently cast in Wes Craven's Scream (1996), she experienced further success when the project defied expectations to become one of the highest grossing films of the year. The innovative career of McGowan was overshadowed throughout much of the 1990s by her high-profile relationship with musician Brian Warner (aka Marilyn Manson). Strong performances in Going All the Way (1997), Lewis & Clark & George (1997), Southie (1998) and Jawbreaker (1999) were largely unseen by the general public. When the relationship ended between Rose and Manson in 2001, she remarked: "There is great love, but our lifestyle difference is, unfortunately, even greater". Rose continued to work solidly, appearing in a string of soft-sounding studio and independent films. Performances from this period included: a political activist in Showtime's The Killing Yard (2001), a grifter in Roads to Riches (2002) and a factory worker in "Stealing Bess" (aka Vacuums (2003)). She was re-introduced to the mainstream as Paige Matthews in Aaron Spelling's Charmed (1998), a popular television series for which she devoted five consecutive years. When "Charmed" finished its run in 2006, McGowan emerged in top form. Critics praised her efforts in Robert Rodriguez's Planet Terror (2007), and Quentin Tarantino's Death Proof (2007). In several interviews, McGowan has expressed a general apathy and disdain for Hollywood. Despite this, her work ethic remains strong. Following her recent marriage to LA-based artist Davey Detail, the actress has resolved to purse further projects as a director.- Actress
- Additional Crew
Benedetta's mother works as a secretary at the Quirinal Palace and her father was a lawyer and now works as an archaeologist, they separated when she was nine years old. She also has a younger brother, Guglielmo.
She has taken modeling classes since she was a child and began modeling at age 14 for the Subdued brand, then posed for Timberland, Fendi and Gucci. She never acted in plays in high school because she liked singing, however, she got into acting when her agent, Fiamma Consorti, a friend of her mother's, wanted to open a young talent agency, so she asked her if she felt like doing some auditions. She was initially reluctant but said she might give it a try. She then auditioned for the Rai 1 series Tutto può succedere (2015) and, a month later, when she had completely forgotten she had done it, she got the call that she got a role and was given a four-year contract. After she got the role, she said that, "school was the first problem," because she attended Terenzio Mamiani, a public school, she immediately had to switch and go to a private school to coordinate her shooting hours. She earned her diploma at the Visconti Institute in 2018. She then enrolled in college.
Porcaroli is also an avid singer, and has been singing since she was a child. She sang for eight years, entered a conservatory for four years, two years as a soloist and two years is a group, but dropped out, and has stated that she regrets it. She played sports such as volleyball, swimming, tennis, skiing and artistic gymnastics.
In 2016, she acted in the comedy drama film of Paolo Genovese Perfect Strangers (2016), in 2020 she participated in the film 18 Presents (2020), this film is based on the true story.
In November 2018, she starred in the Netflix series Baby (2018) as Chiara Altieri, which is loosely based on a scandal that caused a stir in Italy in 2014 when it came to light that two Italian high school students from a high school in the residential district of Parioli were engaged in part-time prostitution.
In 2018 Benedetta starred in the thriller Tutte le mie notti (2018). In 2021 she was part of a top female cast in the crime comedy 7 Women and a Murder (2021) based in the 1930s.
In 2022 came the turn of the romantic drama The Shadow of the Day (2022), followed by the dramas Amanda (2022) directed and written by Carolina Cavalli, and The Hummingbird (2022).
Her career continues to go from strength to strength.- Actor
- Producer
- Writer
Joel Edward McHale was born in Rome, Italy, to a Canadian-born mother, Laurie (Jackson), and an American-born father, Jack McHale. His father, from Chicago, is of Irish descent, and his mother, from Vancouver, has Norwegian, Finnish, and English ancestry. Joel was raised in Seattle, Washington, and graduated from Mercer Island High School. He was a history major at the University of Washington, where he was a member of the championship football team. In addition, Joel received his master's of fine arts from UW's Actor's Training Program.
Joel was a cast member on KING-TV's Almost Live! (1984). He moved to LA after graduating college and quickly landed parts in Will & Grace (1998) and Oliver Beene (2003). 2004 was a big year for Joel, as he booked roles in Spider-Man 2 (2004), The Onion Movie (2008), and Lords of Dogtown (2005). In addition, that year he began writing, producing and starring in The Soup (2004) on E! in which he counted down the most absurd, hysterical, wacky, and surreal moments in the world of reality TV and celebrities each week. Joel's quick wit and sharp comedic timing made "The Soup" a pop-culture phenomenon.
Joel starred on the hit comedy series Community (2009). He also appeared opposite Matt Damon in Steven Soderbergh's comedic thriller The Informant! (2009). He hosted the 2011 Independent Spirit Awards, and co-starred in Robert Rodriguez's Spy Kids 4: All the Time in the World (2011), opposite Jessica Alba, in which he played a spy-hunting reporter married to Alba's character, the stepmother of his children. In 2011, he also had a role in What's Your Number? (2011) with Anna Faris and The Big Year (2011) with Steve Martin, Jack Black, and Owen Wilson.
McHale appeared in Seth MacFarlane's Ted (2012), a live-action tale of a boy and his teddy bear. Co-starring with Mark Wahlberg, Mila Kunis, and Seth MacFarlane, he played a charming but sleazy boss of Mila Kunis' character.
In 2016, Joel was cast as the main character on the sitcom The Great Indoors (2016). He lives in Los Angeles with his wife and their two sons. He performs stand-up comedy around the country to sold-out audiences.- Actress
- Additional Crew
Ornella Muti was born on 9 March 1955 in Rome, Lazio, Italy. She is an actress, known for Flash Gordon (1980), Oscar (1991) and The Most Beautiful Wife (1970). She was previously married to Federico Fachinetti and Alessio Orano.- Actress
- Director
- Writer
Isabella Rossellini, the Italian actress and model who has made her home in America since 1979 and holds dual Italian and American citizenship, was born cinema royalty when she made her debut on June 18, 1952 in Rome. She is the daughter of two legends, three-time Oscar-winning Swedish-born actress Ingrid Bergman and neo-realist master Italian director Roberto Rossellini. She was also the third wife of Oscar-winning director Martin Scorsese from 1979 to 1982 and the partner of legendary director David Lynch.
She made her movie debut in Vincente Minnelli's A Matter of Time (1976), which starred her mother. She then made a couple of Italian pictures and worked as an American correspondent for Italian television network RAI before appearing in Taylor Hackford's Cold War drama White Nights (1985) in 1985. She followed that up with her most memorable role, as the abused chanteuse in Lynch's masterpiece Blue Velvet (1986), she earned an Independent Spirit Award for Best Female Lead. She then went on to win a Saturn Award for Best Supporting Actress, for her performance as Lisle, the mysterious socialite, forever in her youth in Death Becomes Her (1992). In 1997, she was nominated for an Emmy Award as Outstanding Guest Actress in a Drama Series for a guest appearance on Chicago Hope (1994).- Actress
- Writer
- Additional Crew
Born in Rome (Italy) on March 29 1968, Sabrina Impacciatore is an Italian cinema, TV and theater actress. She went to drama school at the Actors Studio in New York and in Rome. At the age of 25 she was discovered by Gianni Boncompagni who, overwhelmed by her volcanic personality, entrusted her with a part in the iconic TV program "Non è la Rai". Chosen for her versatility and performance skills, she was the first woman to take the stage as single presenter of the yearly First May Concert. She has worked with prominent directors, switching between comedic and dramatic roles. Since 2000, she has divided her time between the small and the big screen with unforgettable performances such as "L'ultimo bacio" by Gabriele Muccino, "Concorrenza Sleale" and "Gente di Roma" by Ettore Scola, "The Passion" by Mel Gibson and many more. She also played several challenging and complex roles such as in "Venus in Fur" directed by Valter Malosti.- Actress
- Writer
- Director
Margherita Buy was born on 15 January 1962 in Rome, Lazio, Italy. She is an actress and writer, known for Mia madre (2015), The Ignorant Fairies (2001) and Days and Clouds (2007). She was previously married to Sergio Rubini.- Actress
- Director
- Writer
Asia Argento was born in Rome, Italy, into a family of actors and filmmakers, both occupations which she has herself pursued. She made her debut when she was only nine years old in Sergio Citti's Sogni e bisogni (1985). In 1988 she had the leading role in Cristina Comencini's first film, Zoo (1988), and was part of the cast of The Church (1989), directed by Michele Soavi. The following year she played Nanni Moretti's daughter in Red Wood Pigeon (1989) (also directed by Moretti).
It was with Close Friends (1992), written and directed by Michele Placido, that Asia's career really took off and she was able to move on from playing very young girls to more mature, complex roles. The movie was well-received at the Cannes International Film Festival. In Trauma (1993), she worked for the first time with her father, famed Italian horror director Dario Argento (her mother is one of Argento's favorite actresses, Daria Nicolodi, playing an anorexic girl in search of her parents' killer. The Phantom of the Opera (1998) is the third film she has made with her father, the others being Trauma (1993) (filmed in the US) and The Stendhal Syndrome (1996).
Asia's absorbed, intense style of acting was well-used in Giuseppe Piccioni's Condannato a nozze (1993). In 1993 she co-starred in Carlo Verdone's Perdiamoci di vista (1994) in which she played Arianna, a physically disabled girl--an intricate, difficult role that won her the David di Donatello for best actress (1993-1994). She also had a featured role in the international cast of Queen Margot (1994), directed by Patrice Chéreau. In 1995 she worked with Michel Piccoli in Peter Del Monte's Traveling Companion (1996), which again won her a David di Donatello and a Grolla d'oro.
In 1994 Asia turned her hand to directing and turned out two short films: "Prospettive" (an episode of the film DeGeneration (1994)) and "A ritroso". In 1996 she directed a documentary on her father and, in 1998, one on cult director Abel Ferrara, Abel/Asia (1998), which won an award at the Rome Film Festival. In 1999 Asia made her feature-directing debut with Scarlet Diva (2000), in which she was the leading actress and author of the screenplay. The film was released in May 2000 in Italy and the rest of the world. It won an award at the Williamsburg Film Festival in Brooklyn, New York. In 2001, after directing a number of music videos, she gave birth to her first daughter, Anna Lou. In 2002 she starred in The Red Siren (2002) by Olivier Megaton with Jean-Marc Barr and the action thriller xXx (2002), directed by Rob Cohen, with Vin Diesel.
Asia is also the author of a number of short stories published in many prestigious magazines such as "Dynamo," "L'Espresso," "Sette," and "Village," Her first novel, "I Love You, Kirk," was published in Italy by Frassinelli Editrice in October 1999 and in France by Florent Massot in 2001.- Actress
- Soundtrack
Sophia Loren was born as Sofia Scicolone at the Clinica Regina Margherita in Rome on September 20, 1934. Her father Riccardo was married to another woman and refused to marry her mother Romilda Villani, despite the fact that she was the mother of his two children (Sophia and her younger sister Maria Scicolone). Growing up in the slums of Pozzuoli during the second World War without any support from her father, she experienced great sadness in her childhood. Her life took an unexpected turn for the best when, at age 14, she entered into a beauty contest and placed as one of the finalists. It was here that Sophia caught the attention of film producer Carlo Ponti, some 22 years her senior, whom she later married. Perhaps he was the father figure she never experienced as a child. Under his guidance, Sophia was put under contract and appeared as an extra in ten films beginning with Le sei mogli di Barbablù (1950), before working her way up to supporting roles. In these early films, she was credited as "Sofia Lazzaro" because people joked her beauty could raise Lazzarus from the dead.
By her late teens, Sophia was playing lead roles in many Italian features such as La favorita (1952) and Aida (1953). In 1957, she embarked on a successful acting career in the United States, starring in Boy on a Dolphin (1957), Legend of the Lost (1957), and The Pride and the Passion (1957) that year. She had a short-lived but much-publicized fling with co-star Cary Grant, who was nearly 31 years her senior. She was only 22 while he was 53, and she rejected a marriage proposal from him. They were paired together a second time in the family-friendly romantic comedy Houseboat (1958). While under contract to Paramount, Sophia starred in Desire Under the Elms (1958), The Key (1958), The Black Orchid (1958), It Started in Naples (1960), Heller in Pink Tights (1960), A Breath of Scandal (1960), and The Millionairess (1960) before returning to Italy to star in Two Women (1960). The film was a period piece about a woman living in war-torn Italy who is raped while trying to protect her young daughter. Originally cast as the more glamorous child, Sophia fought against type and was re-cast as the mother, displaying a lack of vanity and proving herself as a genuine actress. This performance received international acclaim and was honored with an Academy Award for Best Actress.
Sophia remained a bona fide international movie star throughout the sixties and seventies, making films on both sides of the Atlantic, and starring opposite such leading men as Paul Newman, Marlon Brando, Gregory Peck, and Charlton Heston. Her English-language films included El Cid (1961), The Fall of the Roman Empire (1964), Arabesque (1966), Man of La Mancha (1972), and The Cassandra Crossing (1976). She gained wider respect with her Italian films, especially Marriage Italian Style (1964) and A Special Day (1977), both of which co-starred Marcello Mastroianni. During these years she received a second Oscar nomination and won five Golden Globe Awards.
From the eighties onward, Sophia's appearances on the big screen came few and far between. She preferred to spend the majority of her time raising sons Carlo Ponti Jr. (b. 1968) and Edoardo Ponti (b. 1973). Her only acting credits during the decade were five television films, beginning with Sophia Loren: Her Own Story (1980), a biopic in which she portrayed herself and her mother. She ventured into other areas of business and became the first actress to launch her own fragrance and design of eyewear. In 1982 she voluntarily spent nineteen days in jail for tax evasion.
In 1991 Sophia received an Honorary Academy Award for her body of work, and was declared "one of world cinema's greatest treasures." That same year, she experienced a terrible loss when her mother died of cancer. Her return to mainstream films in Ready to Wear (1994) was well-received, although the film as a whole was not. She followed this up with her biggest U.S. hit in years, the comedy Grumpier Old Men (1995), in which she played a sexy divorcée who seduces Walter Matthau. Over the next decade Sophia had plum roles in a few independent films like Soleil (1997), Between Strangers (2002) (directed by Edoardo), and Lives of the Saints (2004). Still beautiful at 72, she posed scantily-clad for the 2007 Pirelli Calendar. Sadly, that same year she mourned the death of her 94-year-old spouse, Carlo Ponti. In 2009, after far too much time away from film, she appeared in the musical Nine (2009) opposite Daniel Day-Lewis. These days Sophia is based in Switzerland but frequently travels to the states to spend time with her sons and their families (Eduardo is married to actress Sasha Alexander). Sophia Loren remains one of the most beloved and recognizable figures in the international film world.- Greta Scacchi was born in Milan, Italy, to Pamela Carsaniga, an English dancer and Luca Scacchi, an Italian art dealer and painter. She grew up in Milan and Sussex, England. In 1975, her mother and second husband moved to Australia, where, after she left school, Greta worked as an Italian interpreter on a ranch. At age 18, she returned to England and trained at the Bristol Old Vic, paying her way through college by working as a model for catalogues. Played small parts as a stage actress before she made her first appearance on British television, then the young film maker Dominik Graf directed her in Das zweite Gesicht (1982). She learned German for this movie. (She also speaks fluent Italian and French.) After Heat and Dust (1983), she played parts in French, Italian and English movies and Australian television, working with the Taviani Brothers, Margareta von Trotta and Diana Kurys. She turned down Hollywood for many years but after appearing in White Mischief (1987) agreed to co-star in Presumed Innocent (1990), Shattered (1991) and The Player (1992).
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Blue-eyed and well-built Italian actor in international cinema, Franco Nero, was a painting photographer when he was discovered as an actor by director John Huston. He has since appeared in more than 200 movies around the world, working with Europe's top directors, such as Luis Buñuel, Rainer Werner Fassbinder, Claude Chabrol, Sergey Bondarchuk, Michael Cacoyannis, Elio Petri, Marco Bellocchio, Enzo G. Castellari, among many others.
Nero was born in Parma (Northern Italy), in the family of a strict police sergeant. His inclination for acting had already become obvious in his teenage years, when he began organizing and participating in student plays. After a short stint at a leading theater school, he moved to Rome, where he joined a small group of friends for the purpose of making documentaries. Still unsure of his ultimate vocation, he worked various jobs on the crew. He studied economics and trade in Milan University, and appeared in popular Italian photo-novels. This gave him a chance to gain a little role in Carlo Lizzani's La Celestina P... R... (1965).
A year later, the handsome face of Nero was noticed by Huston, who chose him for the role of "Abel" in The Bible in the Beginning... (1966) (aka La Bibbia). But success came after he got the role of the lonely gunfighter, dragging a coffin, in one of the best spaghetti-westerns; Sergio Corbucci's Django (1966). Nero then filmed a few other westerns of that style as Ferdinando Baldi's Texas, Adios (1966) and Lucio Fulci's Massacre Time (1966).
In 1967, Joshua Logan cast him in the film version of the musical Camelot (1967) (Warner Bros.), opposite Vanessa Redgrave, for which he was nominated for a Golden Globe award. During filming of Camelot, he met actress Vanessa Redgrave, who become his long-time partner (they married decades later). He played with Catherine Deneuve in Luis Buñuel's Tristana (1970) and was directed by Sergey Bondarchuk in the war drama The Battle of Neretva (1969). Later, director Bondarchuk cast Nero for the role of famous American reporter "John Reed" in two-part "Krasnye kolokola II" (1982). In the late 60s and during the 70s, Nero played many different roles, but most of them connected with political and criminal genre, which criticized the Italian justice system.
In the early 80s, Nero was chosen for the role of the white ninja, "Cole", in Enter the Ninja (1981) and in 1990 as terrorist "Gen. Esperanza", opposite Bruce Willis, in Renny Harlin's Die Hard 2 (1990). He has also payed the roles of leading national heroes, such as "Garibaldi" (Italy), "Arpad" (Hungary), and "Banovic Strahinja" (Yugoslavia). In the USA, he has been in successful mini-series, such as "The Pirate" (Warner Bros), "The Last Days of Pompeii" (CBS), "Young Catherine" (TNT), "Bella Mafia" (CBS), "The Painted Lady", "Saint Augustine", and movies such as "The Legend of Valentino", "21 Hours to Munich", "Force 10 from Navarone", "Enter the Ninja", "The Versace Murder", and Letters to Juliet (2010).
He worked with the top European directors from Carlo Lizzani, Damiano Damiani, Luigi Zampa, Luis Buñuel, Elio Petri, Michael Cacoyannis, Rainer Werner Fassbinder, Claude Chabrol, 'Vatroslav Mimica', Marco Bellocchio, etc. At the beginning of the 80s, he also began producing, writing and directing. Between films, he participates in various theatrical events.
Apart from his cinematographic work, Nero also works for charitable organizations. Over the last 45 years, he has been a benefactor of the Don Bosco orphanage in Tivoli. He has received many awards and, in 1992 for his artistic merits, a knighthood of the Italian Republic was bestowed on him by the President of Italy. In 2011, he was honored by Brunel University of London with the honorary degree of doctor of Letters honoris causa and, in Toronto, with a star on the Walk of Fame.- Michela De Rossi was born on 25 January 1993 in Rome, Lazio, Italy. She is an actress, known for The Many Saints of Newark (2021), Boys Cry (2018) and While the Men Are Away (2023).
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- Camera and Electrical Department
Award-winning actor, writer and director, Danny Huston is known for his versatility and dramatic screen presence. Most recognized for his roles in films like Martin Scorsese's The Aviator, Alfonso Cuaron's Children of Men and Alejandro Inarritu's 21 Grams, Huston has worked with some of the finest film directors of his generation.
Huston got his start directing Mr. North with Robert Mitchum, Anthony Edwards and his sister Anjelica Huston. He went on to give his breakthrough acting performance in the independent film Ivansxtc for which he was nominated for Best Male Performance at the 2003 Independent Spirit Awards. Since then his film acting work has included: X-Men Origins: Wolverine, Ridley Scott's Robin Hood, Hitchcock with Anthony Hopkins, Wrath of the Titans with Liam Neeson, The Constant Gardener with Rachel Weisz and Ralph Fiennes, Sofia Coppola's Marie Antoinette, John Sayles Silver City, The Libertador with Edgar Ramirez, The Congress with Harvey Keitel, John Hillcoat's The Proposition with Guy Pearce, Birth opposite Nicole Kidman, 30 Days of Night with Josh Hartnett, Peter Berg's The Kingdom, and many more.
In 2013, his critically acclaimed role of Ben the butcher in Magic City (STARZ), earned him a Golden Globe nomination for Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role in a Series, Mini-Series or Motion Picture Made for Television. His other television acting work includes the hit television series Masters Of Sex (Showtime), a recurring role in the hugely popular American Horror Story (FX), and performances in You Don't Know Jack (HBO)with Al Pacino and John Adams (HBO/Playtone).
Additional credits include, Paranoid for Netflix and ITV Studios, Marc Forster's All I See Is You, Frankenstein directed by Bernard Rose, Pressure, directed by Ron Scalpello; and Tim Burton's Big Eyes. Huston also directed himself in The Last Photograph which screened at The Edinburgh Film Festival and the Mill Valley Film Festival.
In 2017, Huston portrayed Robert Evans in the stage adaptation of The Kid Stays in the Picture directed by Simon McBurney, for The Royal Court Theatre in London. Huston also recently appeared in the global box office hit Wonder Woman, directed by Patty Jenkins.
He could recently be seen in the Netflix feature IO opposite Anthony Mackie, as well as the feature Stan and Ollie, which was directed by Jon Baird for BBC films.
Huston will next be seen in Angel Has Fallen alongside Morgan Freeman and Gerard Butler, which will be released in theaters on August 23rd, 2019, as well as the IM Global feature Richard Says Goodbye with Johnny Depp for writer/director Wayne Roberts. Huston continues to star as "Dan Jenkins" on the Taylor Sheridan and Paramount TV series Yellowstone, which is now airing its second season. It is the number one Summer series of 2019. Huston can be see in a season long-arc on the critically acclaimed series Succession for HBO.
In addition, Huston starred in and directed the feature The Last Photograph (2017), which was on September 6, 2019.- Simonetta Stefanelli was born on 30 November 1954 in Rome, Lazio, Italy. She is an actress, known for The Godfather (1972), Young Lucrezia (1974) and The Godfather Saga (1977). She was previously married to Michele Placido.
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- Producer
Julia Fox was born on 2 February 1990 in Milan, Lombardy, Italy. She is an actress and writer, known for Uncut Gems (2019), No Sudden Move (2021) and The Trainer. She was previously married to Peter Artemiev.- Actor
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Giovanni Brass was born on 26 March 1933 into the family of a famous artist, Italico Brass, who was his grandfather. Italico gave his grandson a nickname "Tintoretto," which Giovanni later adapted into his cinematic name, Tinto Brass.
Tinto inherited his grandfather's artistic skills, but he applied them to film instead of canvas. When he joined the Italian film industry, he worked with such famous directors as Federico Fellini (his idol) and Roberto Rossellini. In 1963 he directed his first film, Chi lavora è perduto (In capo al mondo) (1963). Afterwards, he went on to make such avante garde art films as Attraction (1969) and L'urlo (1966). He was approached in 1976 to directed a sexploitation quickie, Madam Kitty (1976), but he wisely chose to have the script rewritten, turning it into a dark, political satire. The success of "Salon Kitty" lead Penthouse magazine publisher Bob Guccione to choose Brass to helm Caligula (1979), the big-budget adaption of Gore Vidal's novel "Caligula." Tinto finished shooting the film, but when he refused to convert it into the "flesh flick" that Guccione wanted it to be by including footage of Penthouse centerfolds making out and romping, he was fired and locked out of the editing room. He later disowned the film when he saw the botched editing (the film was spliced together amateurishly from outtakes and rehearsal footage) and Guccione's hardcore sex scenes spliced in with his work. Ironically, "Caligula" remains Tinto's most famous film. After it became a huge international box-office hit, Brass was hired to shoot a spy thriller Snack Bar Budapest (1988). Afterwards, he decided that he should focus on erotica, as a way to rebel against the hypocrisy of censors, explaining that sex is a normal part of life and we should just deal with it.
With his latest films Black Angel (2002) (an update of the classic novella "Senso") and the erotic comedy Fallo (1988), Brass cemented his reputation of an undisputed master of erotica and avante-garde art films.- Actor
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Giacomo Gianniotti was born in Rome, Italy. He immigrated with his family at a young age and grew up in Toronto Canada. Giacomo splits his time in the year between Toronto, Rome, and LA, working in stage, film, and television. He is a bilingual actor working both in English and Italian. He graduated from Humber College's Theatre Program and has also completed an actor's residency at Norman Jewison's Canadian Film Centre, in Toronto. He is an actor, producer and director, looking for noteworthy stories about the curiosities of our existence.
His first experience in film was a small role in a Giulio Base's feature film featuring Shelley Winters and Vittorio Gassman, shot in "Cinecitta" in Rome.- Actress
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Matilda De Angelis is an Italian actress and singer. Her credits include the films Italian Race and Rose Island, and the television miniseries "The Undoing" and "The Law According to Lidia Poet." She started playing guitar and violin at the age of thirteen. She attended the Liceo Scientifico (science high school) "Enrico Fermi" in Bologna. In 2011, De Angelis began singing in the band Rumba De Bodas. The band also recorded an album, Karnaval Fou, which was released in 2014.- Actor
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Terence Hill was born as Mario Girotti on March 29, 1939 in Venice, Italy to a chemist. His mother was German, and as a child the family lived near Dresden, Saxony, Germany where they survived the Allied bombings of World War II. Italian film-maker Dino Risi discovered him at a swimming meet and he made his first film at the age of 12, Vacanze col gangster (1952) (Holiday for Gangsters). He continued acting to finance his studies and motorcycle hobby. After studying classical literature at the University of Rome for three years, he decided to devote full time to acting. In 1962 he appeared in Luchino Visconti's The Leopard (1963), He then signed a contract for a series of adventure and western films in Germany. In 1967 he returned to Italy to play the lead in God Forgives... I Don't! (1967). While on location in Almeria, Spain, he married an American girl of Bavarian descent, Lori Zwicklbauer, who was the dialogue coach for the picture. The producers of this movie wanted him to change his name. He then got a list with 20 names on it and 24 hours time to choose one of these names. He decided to take Terence Hill cause he liked it the most and it has the same initials as his mother's name (Hildegard Thieme). They only told the public that "Hill" was his wife's name out of publicity reasons. At this time of upcoming feminism a man who took his wife's name was something special. In 1976 Hollywood called and he appeared in March or Die (1977) with Gene Hackman and starred in Mr. Billion (1977) with Valerie Perrine. Since then he has concentrated on action/adventure films starring himself and often working with long time partner Bud Spencer. Terence lives in Massachusetts and is a film producer, as well as talented and respected actor.- Actress
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Maria Grazia Cucinotta (born 27 July 1968) is an Italian actress who has featured in many films and television series since 1990. She has also worked as a producer, screenwriter and model. Cucinotta was born in Messina, Province of Messina, Sicily, Italy. She is well known in Italy as a movie and television actress, but internationally she is best known for her roles in Il Postino and as the Bond girl, credited as the Cigar Girl, in the James Bond film The World Is Not Enough.- Director
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Alice Rohrwacher was born on 29 December 1981 in Fiesole, Tuscany, Italy. She is a director and writer, known for Happy as Lazzaro (2018), La Chimera (2023) and The Wonders (2014).- Actor
- Soundtrack
Michele Morrone was born on 3 October 1990 in Melegnano, Milan, Lombardy, Italy. He is an actor, known for 365 Days (2020), Home sweet home Rebirth and Subservience. He was previously married to Rouba Saadeh.- Beatrice Grannò was born on 6 May 1993 in Rome, Lazio, Italy. She is an actress, known for The White Lotus (2021), The Time of Indifference (2020) and Daniela Forever.
- Actress
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Stefania Spampinato was born in Catania, Sicily, Italy and grew up in a small town at the base of the Etna Volcano called Belpasso. She started dancing at 6 years old. Her passion for the arts at a young age was undeniable so her mother started making her dance costumes so she could afford her daughter's tuition. After graduating high school with honors, she moved to Milan where she got a BA in performing arts. This lead to a very successful career in dance & theatre that lasted over 10 years traveling all over to locations like Paris, Tokyo, Shanghai, Mumbai, Berlin and included collaborations with Joaquin Cortez, Kylie Minogue, Leona Lewis, The Voice UK and X Factor US & UK. In 2011 she bought a one way ticket to Los Angeles. Since 2017 she is a recurring cast member of the record breaking ABC medical drama Grey's Anatomy and one of the leads of it's spin off show Station19 where she also portraits Dr. Carina Deluca. Among other projects she's been cast in the Oscar winning James Mangold movie "Ford vs Ferrari" starring Matt Damon & Christian Bale, in October 2019 she appeared as the leading female in the Italian comedy "Il Giorno più bello del mondo" written, directed and starring Italian comedy master Alessandro Siani. Her directorial debut, the short film titled "Zita Sempri" will premier worldwide at the Taormina film Festival on July 1st 2022- Giusi Merli was born on 26 March 1943 in Pisa, Italy. She is an actress, known for The Great Beauty (2013), Dune: Part Two (2024) and Dreams Live in Trees (2022).
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Sergio Leone was virtually born into the cinema - he was the son of Roberto Roberti (A.K.A. Vincenzo Leone), one of Italy's cinema pioneers, and actress Bice Valerian. Leone entered films in his late teens, working as an assistant director to both Italian directors and U.S. directors working in Italy (usually making Biblical and Roman epics, much in vogue at the time). Towards the end of the 1950s he started writing screenplays, and began directing after taking over The Last Days of Pompeii (1959) in mid-shoot after its original director fell ill. His first solo feature, The Colossus of Rhodes (1961), was a routine Roman epic, but his second feature, A Fistful of Dollars (1964), a shameless remake of Akira Kurosawa's Yojimbo (1961), caused a revolution. It was the first Spaghetti Western, and shot T.V. cowboy Clint Eastwood to stardom (Leone wanted Henry Fonda or Charles Bronson but couldn't afford them). The two sequels, For a Few Dollars More (1965) and The Good, the Bad and the Ugly (1966), were shot on much higher budgets and were even more successful, though his masterpiece, Once Upon a Time in the West (1968), in which Leone finally worked with Fonda and Bronson, was mutilated by Paramount Pictures and flopped at the U.S. box office. He directed Duck, You Sucker! (1971) reluctantly (as producer he hired Peter Bogdanovich to direct but he left before shooting began), and turned down offers to direct The Godfather (1972) in favor of his dream project, which became Once Upon a Time in America (1984). He died in 1989 after preparing an even more expensive Soviet co-production on the World War II siege of Leningrad.- Actor
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As a teenager, Coiro, a talented visual artist, spent summers building sets and operating lights at the New Jersey Shakespeare Festival. Inspired by numerous productions, including Julie Taymor's "Titus Andronicus" at Theater For A New Audience, Coiro decided to study theater at Carnegie Mellon University, where he eventually graduated with a BFA. He also spent time studying at The Moscow Art Theater in Russia. Coiro got his first professional gig as an understudy to three roles in the American premiere of Conor McPherson's off-Broadway play "This Lime Tree Bower" directed by Harris Yulin at Primary Stages. Within a month of graduating from CMU, Coiro landed the role of Eddie the Bellhop in the Lincoln Center revival of George S. Kauffman's "Dinner at Eight", directed by the late Gerald Gutierrez. Coiro then moved to Los Angeles and began working in construction, including a stint building a house with Nick Offerman. As recounted on Jerry Ferrara's podcast "Bad 4 Business", Coiro received the call that he'd landed his first on-screen acting gig, as Billy Walsh on "Entourage", while digging a hole for a deck in Echo Park. The role of Walsh was originally meant to be a guest star but soon evolved into an iconic character that has defined Coiro's career.- Actress
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Elsa Martinelli was born in the central Tuscan city of Grosseto into a struggling family, one of eight siblings. She had to earn her keep from the age of twelve, delivering groceries in Rome. Looking older than her years suggested, she then did some part-time work as a barmaid. Aged sixteen and ambitious, she moved on to modeling and was soon promoted by well known designers, and, in particular, by a New York magazine editor who suggested a move to the Big Apple. While employed with the Eileen Ford Agency, she was spotted on a Life magazine cover by none other than Kirk Douglas (or by Douglas' wife, according to another version of the story) who, incidentally, happened to own a fashion company. In any case, Elsa soon found herself in Hollywood to co-star opposite Douglas in The Indian Fighter (1955) (despite some as yet unresolved problems with her command of English). Her sojourn in tinseltown was short-lived, however, and the contract she had signed with Douglas was quietly annulled -- and thus she famously spurned an opportunity to appear in the lucrative blockbuster Spartacus (1960). There were to be no further American pictures at this time. Instead, she returned to Italy, married Count Franco Mancinelli Scotti di San Vito, joined the glitterati, attended lavish parties and created an image for herself which rivaled those of Sophia Loren and Gina Lollobrigida. She counted Aristotle Onassis and Maria Callas among her close friends.
Taken under the wing of Carlo Ponti, Elsa was able to eventually make a success of her screen career not merely because of her exotic good looks, but by deliberately varying the type of parts she took on and thereby avoid typecasting. Those included the titular Stowaway Girl (1957) who bewitches an embittered steamboat captain played by Trevor Howard. In stark contrast, she was also Carmilla, possessed by her vampiric ancestor Millarca in the unsatisfactorily filmed Blood and Roses (1960), an 'arthouse' horror movie, though artlessly directed by Roger Vadim, based on Sheridan Le Fanu's Gothic novella. Encumbered by excessive bathos, neither scary nor original, the only saving grace of the picture was derived from Claude Renoir's evocative camera work.
In Hatari! (1962) -- which might aptly be described as a good-looking travelogue -- Elsa co-starred as a freelance wildlife photographer on a Tanganyika game farm, torn between affections for baby elephants and 'bring-'em-back-alive' trapper John Wayne. With character development sorely lacking, the animals, the scenery (and two exquisitely ornamental ladies -- the other being Michèle Girardon) pretty much stole the show. Likewise, in her next outing, the wartime comedy The Pigeon That Took Rome (1962), Elsa was the romantic (mostly decorative) interest of Charlton Heston's army guy smuggled into Nazi-occupied Rome in 1944 to extract and send back secret military information via carrier pigeon. For the remainder of the '60s, Elsa appeared in a number of international co-productions which included a segment in The Oldest Profession (1967) as a Roman Emperor's wife discovered in a brothel; and as a gangster's daughter helping a bumbling American treasury agent in Rome (played by Dustin Hoffman in his first starring role) to recover Madigan's Millions (1968).
In 1968, Elsa married Paris Match photographer and furniture designer Willy Rizzo. Having already invested some of her earnings from film work into Roman and Parisian real estate, Elsa began to diversify into designing avant garde furniture with apparently mixed success. By the 1980s, she was active as an interior designer in Rome while still making sporadic screen appearances, primarily in TV series. Described by the newspaper La Repubblica as "an icon of style and elegance", Elsa Martinelli died on July 8, 2017 in Rome at the age of 82.- Actor
- Stunts
Alessandro Borghi was born on 19 September 1986 in Rome, Lazio, Italy. He is an actor, known for Suburra (2015), The Eight Mountains (2022) and The First King (2019).- Actress
- Composer
Italian actress/singer/songwriter Violante Placido was born in Rome. She made her on-screen debut in Quattro bravi ragazzi (1993) alongside her father Michele Placido. In 1996 she starred in Jack Frusciante Has Left the Band (1996) which became quite successful in Italy. Her first major role was in Sergio Rubini's L'anima gemella (2002) (Soul Mate). In 2006 she released her debut album Don't Be Shy... under the pseudonym Viola. In 2009 she appeared in the Hindi movie Barah Aana (2009). In 2010 she made her Hollywood debut starring alongside George Clooney in Anton Corbijn's thriller The American (2010).- Caterina Ferioli was born on 21 December 2003 in Bologna, Italy. She is an actress, known for The Tearsmith (2024) and Belcanto.
- Caterina Murino was born on September 15, 1977, in Cagliari, Sardinia, Italy. In 1996 she took fourth place in the Miss Italy contest. Then she moved to Milan, where she began working as a model in commercials for MasterCard, Swatch, Mercedes-Benz and Nescafe, among other gigs. From 1999-2000 she studied acting at the Scuola di Cinema e Teatro di Francesca de Sapio in Italy.
In 1999 she made her acting debut in a stage production of "Richard III" and appeared in several Italian-language plays. In 2002 she began her film and television career with bit parts in Italian, German and French productions. Her breakthrough came in 2004, when she co-starred opposite Jean Reno in the French comedy The Corsican File (2004).
She is trilingual, speaking French, English and Italian. She is a versatile actress and a good athlete. Her talents include singing, dancing tango, flamenco and oriental dances, as well as horseback riding. She co-starred as Solange, one of three Bond girls, opposite Daniel Craig in Casino Royale (2006). - Actress
- Additional Crew
- Soundtrack
Alba Rohrwacher was born on 27 February 1979 in Florence, Tuscany, Italy. She is an actress, known for Hungry Hearts (2014), The Wonders (2014) and I Am Love (2009).- Writer
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Dario Argento was born on September 7, 1940, in Rome, Italy, the first-born son of famed Italian producer Salvatore Argento and Brazilian fashion model Elda Luxardo. Argento recalls getting his ideas for filmmaking from his close-knit family from Italian folk tales told by his parents and other family members, including an aunt who told him frighting bedtime stories. Argento based most of his thriller movies on childhood trauma, yet his own--according to him--was a normal one. Along with tales spun by his aunt, Argento was impressed by stories from The Grimm Brothers, Hans Christian Andersen and Edgar Allan Poe. Argento started his career writing for various film journal magazines while still in his teens attending a Catholic high school. After graduation, instead of going to college, Argento took a job as a columnist for the Rome daily newspaper "Paese Sera". Inspired by the movies, he later found work as a screenwriter and wrote several screenplays for a number of films, but the most important were his western collaborations, which included Cemetery Without Crosses (1969) and the Sergio Leone masterpiece Once Upon a Time in the West (1968). After its release Argento wrote and directed his first movie, The Bird with the Crystal Plumage (1970), which starred Tony Musante and and British actress Suzy Kendall. It's a loose adoption on Fredric Brown's novel "The Screaming Mimi", which was made for his father's film company. Argento wanted to direct the movie himself because he did not want any other director messing up the production and his screenplay.
After "The Bird With the Crystal Plumage" became an international hit, Argento followed up with two more thrillers, The Cat o' Nine Tails (1971), starring 'Karl Madlen' (qv" and 'James Fransiscus', and Four Flies on Grey Velvet (1971) ("Four Flies On Black Velvet"), both backed by his father Salvatore. Argento then directed the TV drama Testimone oculare (1973) and the historical TV drama The Five Days (1973). He then went back to directing so-called "giallo" thrillers, starting with Deep Red (1975), a violent mystery-thriller starring David Hemmings that inspired a number of international directors in the thriller-horror genre. His next work was Suspiria (1977), a surreal horror film about a witch's coven that was inspired by the Gothic fairy tales of the Grimm Brothers and Hans Christian Anderson, which he also wrote in collaboration with his girlfriend, screenwriter/actress Daria Nicolodi, who acted in "Profondo Rosso" ("Deep Red") and most of Argento's films from then to the late 1980s. Argento advanced the unfinished trilogy with Inferno (1980), before returning to the "giallo" genre with the gory Tenebrae (1982), and then with the haunting Phenomena (1985).
The lukewarm reviews for his films, however, caused Argento to slip away from directing to producing and co-writing two Lamberto Bava horror flicks, Demons (1985) and Demons 2 (1986). Argento returned to directing with the "giallo" thriller Opera (1987), which according to him was "a very unpleasant experience", and no wonder: a rash of technical problems delayed production, the lead actress Vanessa Redgrave dropped out before filming was to begin, Argento's father Salvatore died during filming and his long-term girlfriend Daria broke off their relationship. After the commercial box-office failure of "Opera", Argento temporarily settled in the US, where he collaborated with director George A. Romero on the two-part horror-thriller Two Evil Eyes (1990) (he had previously collaborated with Romero on the horror action thriller Dawn of the Dead (1978)). While still living in America, Argento appeared in small roles in several films and directed another violent mystery thriller, Trauma (1993), which starred his youngest daughter Asia Argento from his long-term relationship with Nicolodi.
Argento returned to Italy in 1995, where he made a comeback in the horror genre with The Stendhal Syndrome (1996) and then with another version of "The Phantom of the Opera", The Phantom of the Opera (1998), both of which starred Asia. Most recently, Argento directed a number of "giallo" mystery thrillers such as Sleepless (2001), The Card Player (2003) and Do You Like Hitchcock? (2005), as well as two gory, supernatural-themed episodes of the USA TV cable anthology series Masters of Horror (2005).
Having always wanted to make a third chapter to his "Three Mothers" horror films, Argento finally completed the trilogy in 2007 with the release of Mother of Tears (2007), which starred Asia Argento as a young woman trying to identify and stop the last surviving evil witch from taking over the world. In addition to his Gothic and violent style of storytelling, "La terza madre" has many references to two of his previous films, "Suspiria" (1997) and "Inferno" (1980), which is a must for fans of the trilogy.
His movies may be regarded by some critics and opponents as cheap and overly violent, but second or third viewings show him to be a talented writer/director with a penchant for original ideas and creative directing.- Actor
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- Producer
Jason Connery has appeared in over 30 films, television movies and series, combined, since his breakthrough role as "Robin Hood" in the UK television series Robin Hood (1984) in 1985.
The son of Sean Connery and Diane Cilento, Connery grew up in London and Scotland. He attended boarding school at Somerset, where he received a half-scholarship for swimming and held the under-16 freestyle record for the south of England. Connery's interest in acting developed while studying at the Gordonstoun School for Boys in the north of Scotland. He started the Inter-House Players Group - wherein two houses combine to put on one play each term. Connery also took on directing duties and directed fellow classmate Prince Edward (aka Prince Edward) in "Hotel Paradiso". Connery was accepted to The Bristol Old Vic Drama School and, one year later, to Perth Repertory Company in Scotland. For six months, he did weekly repertory work, acted, and worked as the assistant stage manager in an effort to earn his Equity card. He worked hard, rehearsing one play by day and performing another by night, learning as much as he could along the way.
His big break came in 1985 when he took over the role of "Robin Hood" in the popular UK television series "Robin of Sherwood" (1984). The role launched him to stardom in England and he remains a cult favorite with the show's passionate fans. He has since had starring roles in feature films including Return of the Thief of Baghdad (1999), Private Moments (2005), Wishmaster 3: Beyond the Gates of Hell (2001), Requiem (2001), Shanghai Noon (2000), Bullet to Beijing (1995), Urban Ghost Story (1998) and Macbeth (1997). He has also starred in television movies (Merlin (1998) and Spymaker: The Secret Life of Ian Fleming (1990)) and series (Smallville (2001), Liberty's Kids (2002) and Shoebox Zoo (2004)).
In 1996, he married actress Mia Sara and they have one son, Dashiell Connery. The couple divorced in 2002. He is most proud of his role as father to Dashiell Quinn Connery, whom he refers to as "the most wonderful person I know". Connery now resides in Los Angeles and spends every bit of free time with his son. Connery feels that, as an actor, he continues to grow because every job is a new and exciting challenge. He credits his mother and father, who inspire him in many ways, for his drive and his ability to survive and persevere in an unpredictable business. He is also inspired by live theatre - an inspirational journey unique to performance, in one moment, with one audience - that will never be duplicated. Most importantly, it is his son who inspires him to be a loving, nurturing human being and to hold close what is dear in life. Through affiliations with Coventry University's new filmmaking facility and the "Independent Filmmakers Group", he is working to educate and support the next generation of filmmakers. He recently wrapped Shoebox Zoo (2004) in the UK after two seasons and has completed three films in America - Hoboken Hollow (2006), The Far Side of Jericho (2006) and Night Skies (2007). After achieving success as an actor for two decades, Connery is working behind the cameras with his recently formed production company, "Unconditional Entertainment". The company, headed by Connery and Ricki Maslar, currently has several projects in development for film and television. "Unconditional" has announced Connery's directorial debut with the film Pandemic (2009).- Writer
- Director
- Actor
The women who both attracted and frightened him and an Italy dominated in his youth by Mussolini and Pope Pius XII - inspired the dreams that Fellini started recording in notebooks in the 1960s. Life and dreams were raw material for his films. His native Rimini and characters like Saraghina (the devil herself said the priests who ran his school) - and the Gambettola farmhouse of his paternal grandmother would be remembered in several films. His traveling salesman father Urbano Fellini showed up in La Dolce Vita (1960) and 8½ (1963). His mother Ida Barbiani was from Rome and accompanied him there in 1939. He enrolled in the University of Rome. Intrigued by the image of reporters in American films, he tried out the real life role of journalist and caught the attention of several editors with his caricatures and cartoons and then started submitting articles. Several articles were recycled into a radio series about newlyweds "Cico and Pallina". Pallina was played by acting student Giulietta Masina, who became his real life wife from October 30, 1943, until his death half a century later. The young Fellini loved vaudeville and was befriended in 1940 by leading comedian Aldo Fabrizi. Roberto Rossellini wanted Fabrizi to play Don Pietro in Rome, Open City (1945) and made the contact through Fellini. Fellini worked on that film's script and is on the credits for Rosselini's Paisan (1946). On that film he wandered into the editing room, started observing how Italian films were made (a lot like the old silent films with an emphasis on visual effects, dialogue dubbed in later). Fellini in his mid-20s had found his life's work.- Actress
- Writer
- Additional Crew
Cortellesi debuted in the show business at the age of 13, as a singer for "Cacao meravigliao", the jingle of the popular RAI TV show "Indietro tutta!" by Renzo Arbore. At 19 she began studying as an actress at the Teatro Blu in Rome (the same theatre school that Kim Rossi Stuart, Gianmarco Tognazzi, Claudia Gerini, Stefania Rocca, and Claudio Santamaria, among others, have attended). She began her career in television with the show "Macao", presented by Alba Parietti, but eventually reached nationwide popularity as a comic actress in the TV show "Mai dire Gol" by the Gialappa's Band (2000), which, in particular, showcased her skills at parodying famous people, a genre where she collected some of her most appreciated performances (the latest one being her parody of Milan's mayor Letizia Moratti in the 2010-2011 edition of the popular TV show "Zelig"). After "Mai dire Gol", Cortellesi has collaborated in several other TV Show of the "Mai dire..." franchise by Gialappa's Band. Other major performances of Cortellesi on television include the 2004 edition of the San Remo Music Festival and the leading role in the TV movie "Maria Montessori: Una vita per i bambini", a biography of Maria Montessori, for which Cortellesi received the "Maximo Award" at the Roma Fiction Fest. Her career in cinema includes several appreciates performances in comedies and comic movies, including a leading role in "Tu la conosci Claudia?", a very popular production starring the comic trio Aldo, Giovanni e Giacomo. In 2008, she was nominated for the David di Donatello award for Best Supporting Actress for her role in the movie "Piano, solo" by Riccardo Milani. In 2011 she won the David di Donatello for Best Actress for her leading role in "Escort in Love". One of her most appreciated theatrical performances was "Gli ultimi saranno gli ultimi" ("Last will be last") by Massimiliano Bruno, which has been staged 189 times from 2005 to 2007 in over 50 theatres, and for which Cortellesi has collected a number of awards. As a singer, Cortellesi has been described by Mina as "one of the best Italian voices" and has cooperated with several notable Italian musicians, including Elio e le Storie Tese, Renato Zero, Claudio Baglioni, Frankie hi-nrg mc, and Neri per Caso. Cortellesi married director Riccardo Milani on October 1, 2011. The couple have a daughter, Laura, born January 24, 2013.