PRODUCERS AND PRODUCTION PRACTICES IN THE HISTORY OF ITALIAN CINEMA 1949-75

Between 1949 and 1975 Italian cinema became one of the world's major suppliers of films. It was second only to Hollywood in the share it took of most European and several extra-European markets. With its numerous prizes at major festivals, it commanded artistic credibility. It also furnished numerous genre films. The reasons for its success are normally given as follows: the creative genius of a number of directors, the inter-relationship established between Italian cinema and American cinema in the postwar years, the pattern of European co-productions, the existence of quality middle-level productions, as well as low-budget genre ones, and the formation of a distinctive star system. However, the amount of detailed work on the industry is small and not systematic. The role of producers is rarely mentioned in histories of Italian film, which focus on directors, currents and tendencies, film texts and, more rarely, actors.

This project will explore the history of Italian cinema from the point of view of production. It will examine the role played by producers in the film industry, study their function as mediators and facilitators in a complex situation of international collaborations, evaluate their relations with governments, their business strategies, their visions of cinema and the turning of these into practices, as well as their collaboration with directors, writers and actors.

The intention is to provide a completely new interpretation of postwar Italian cinema by: exploring the real premises, parameters and conditions of creativity, challenging established distinctions between cinema as art and as industry, exploring individual profiles and modes of conduct, inquiring into the links between different levels of production, exploring the distribution and exhibition of cinema in a number of markets, and re-thinking the 'Italian-ness' of 'Italian' cinema. In many cases, producers provided greater continuity over time than directors or other professionals. They were crucial in establishing infrastructures and inter-personal patterns of collaboration, as well as facilitating multi-national collaborations and distribution. Due to their role, the Italian industry became a laboratory of innovative forms and flexible patterns of production that drew in investors, directors, technical personnel and actors from many countries. It set a benchmark for emergence of other national industries and determined patterns of multinational and supranational film production.

This project is timely now for six main reasons. First, the personal papers of a number of producers, industry organisms and others have in recent years been deposited in public archives, where they have not yet in most cases been catalogued or studied. Second, there is the possibility, within the framework of the project, of securing the transfer of further papers into the public realm and of making these available for consultation. Third, the surviving producers of the period in question - which may be considered the golden age of Italian cinema - are now elderly and thus there is a limited time-frame in which their oral testimonies can be collected. Fourth, the climate of scholarship is such that questions concerning the role of industry and finance can be considered in ways that were difficult in a period when they were regarded ideologically (i.e. considered as capitalist deformations detrimental to the development of cinematic art); there is now a movement of interest around issues of production and co-production which is conducive to new research. Fifth, it is possible to assemble a group of scholars with the necessary skills to be able to conduct the research. Sixth, there is an opportunity for institutional collaboration between Italy and the UK which can bring about great advances in scholarship, in facilitating the greater availability of resources for future scholars, and in ensuring public engagement with the materials and results of the project.

The research will benefit the following groups and organisations:

1. The community of experts and professionals (not limited to academics) concerned with the history of cinema and especially its industrial aspects. The project will produce findings that will allow for a significant reconceptualisation of international cinema and the unique place within it of the Italian film industry. Additionally, the project will produce research resources that will enable present and future researchers to find their way through the labyrinth of Italian archives. The partial digitisation of the Cristaldi archive will create opportunities for new lines of investigation for researchers interested in production and distribution, genres, stars and other aspects of the film business. The project blogs and website will create a movement of interest around the project and its progress, facilitating the wider impact of the completed work.

2. Cultural institutions and festivals. The project partner, the Cineteca di Bologna, is a highly-respected institution which functions as a library, archive, publisher, events and festival organiser, and exhibition space. The partnership will allow the project to benefit from several of the Cineteca's resources including its expert staff, its spaces, its international festival 'Il cinema ritrovato', and its publishing branch. During the 'Il cinema ritrovato' festival 2018 an exhibition will be held on Italian film production, for which a catalogue will be produced, a programme of films will be shown with accompanying talks by members of the project team. The Cineteca for its part will draw benefit from the international expertise the project will bring and the cataloguing and digitisation of part of its collections which otherwise would not be possible. The project will also bring new attention to the relatively little-known resources of the Cineteca Lucana.

3. Teachers and GCSE/A level students of film and media. By connecting with the Media Education Association and other relevant bodies, the materials of the project will be made accessible to teachers and their students via dedicated resources, the project website, documentary, organised events, talks and other activities. The aim will be to assist teaching and learning by highlighting the industrial aspects of cinema in an international context, using case studies drawn from the project to show how films can be studied in new ways, and how primary materials can be used to complement and inform aesthetic approaches.

4. The film industry. By making use of the historical archive of the Italian film industry's trade association ANICA and other resources, it will be able to produce the first map of the production formulae which contributed to the international success of Italian cinema in the postwar decades. The international dimension of Italian film production has weakened in recent years and ANICA has welcomed the project as an important contribution to its efforts to identify ways forward.

5. The wider public. The project will seek to be as outward-facing as possible and to engage with the public in the UK and in Italy. Several of the activities are specifically designed for this purpose: the exhibition, the documentary film, public talks and presentations. In both countries there is a substantial film-literate public with the knowledge and interest to engage with the themes of the project and to appreciate its purposes. However, the aim will also be to provide those who do not have a high degree of knowledge to access the project findings. Thus the exhibition will feature not only original documents and explanations but also film posters, photographs, artefacts and the project documentary (including interviews, clips and explanations). Public events will be staged in the UK at a number of venues including the Warwick University Arts Centre, Leicester Phoenix Arts, and the Italian Cultural Institutes of London and Edinburgh.