History Facts
What was the name of the leader of Fascist Italy during WWII?
Benito Mussolini
In 1949, Bitter Rice was made by this film-maker.
Guiseppe De Santis
What animal woke up the housemaid in Umberto D.?
As mentioned in the first YouTube video, what two directors were working on sets before the war and continued after the war began?
Roberto Rossellini and Vittorio De Sica
What is the Italian word for open?
aperta
What two types of people would work side-by-side in films to portray live events in these films?
Movie Stars and non-actors.
Umberto D. (1952) was created by which film-maker?
Vittorio De Sica
This De Sica film in 1948 illustrated the importance of family life and poverty in Italy after the fall of Mussolini.
Bicycle Thieves
"Telephoni Bianchi" (white telephone) films tended to focus around a specific role in society. What is this role?
Upper class/having wealth in society.
Disoccupazione means what in English?
Unemployment
Filmmakers were restricted by the government until 1943. What happened in this year that made films no longer restricted?
Mussolini's reign fell with his death, allowing studios freedom to produce films without outside influence.
This director created the famous film Rome, Open City (1945).
Roberto Rossellini
Opening our eyes to the reality of losing a loved one and pulling the audience into the daily lifestyle of someone living in Italy at this time, this film was made in 1946 by Roberto Rossellini.
Rome: Open City/Roma città aperta
Using the limited resources they had, what did film-makers use for the set of the film Rome: Open City?
Buildings that were damaged or destroyed during the war.
"Lieto Fine" means what in English?
Happy Ending
Name two of the many problems occurring in the streets of Italy that were portrayed in Italian Films.
Unemployment, Poverty, War destruction, death.
Death in Venice (1971) was a film of interest and compassion by this Italian Film-maker.
Luchino Visconti
What film includes a silent scene with a woman doing chores?
Umberto D. (1952)
In the scene from Bicycle Thieves, where the son almost gets hit by a car, how would this have been portrayed differently if it were produced by Hollywood?
The father would have watched his son in this encounter and noticed his son was being put in danger, thus stopping and becoming more careful.
What does Sperimentale mean in English?
Experimental
In 1935, what was the Centro Sperimentale di Cinematografia?
A new innovative school for film development in Italy.
Which lesser-known film-maker created La Dolce Vita (1960).
Frederico Fellini
Who directed the 1966 film Blow-Up?
Michelangelo Antonioni
What did "Neorealism" mean and what did the films portray?
"New Realism" and the films addressed what was happening on the streets.
direttore della fotografia means what in English?
Cinematographer