Franco Cristaldi
Franco Cristaldi (Turin, October 3, 1924 - Montecarlo, July 1, 1992) was an Italian film producer, credited with producing (or co-producing) more than 60 feature films from the 1950s to the 1990s.[1]
Career
In 1946 Cristaldi founded Vides Cinematografica in Turin. This production company initially produced short and documentary films,[2] and would later be renamed to Cristaldifilm in the 1980s.[3]
In the 1950s, Cristaldi changed his attention to feature films and moved to Rome. During his long career, he worked with directors and screenwriters such as Francesco Rosi, Pietro Germi, Mario Monicelli, Federico Fellini, Luchino Visconti, and Giuseppe Tornatore. A noted film producer from some years in his native Italy, some of Cristaldi's most successful films internationally included The Name of the Rose and Nuovo cinema Paradiso. (The former winning a César and two BAFTAs, and the latter winning several BAFTAs, the Grand Prix at Cannes, and Best Foreign Language Film at the 62nd Academy Awards).[4][5]
In 1977 Cristaldi was elected president of the International Federation of Film Producers Associations,[2] and was a member of the jury at the 1984 Cannes Film Festival.[6]
Personal life
Cristaldi was born in Turin in 1924, and studied at university for a time before taking up his interest in film.[2]
He married Carla Simonetti[6] with whom he had a son - Massimo.[7] Cristaldi applied to have this marriage annulled, and in 1966 he married Claudia Cardinale.[7] He mentored Claudia Cardinale through her own film career, until their divorce in 1975.[6] In 1983, he married Eritrean actress Zeudi Araya, who starred in several films produced by him.
Cristaldi died in Montecarlo in 1992 and was survived by his wife Araya, son Massimo, and adopted son Patrick.[8]
Selected filmography
- A Hero of Our Times (1955)
- Mio figlio Nerone, 1956;
- Le notti bianche, 1957;
- A Man of Straw, 1958;
- Big Deal on Madonna Street, 1958;
- Kapò, 1959;
- Piece of the Sky, 1959;
- Ghosts of Rome, 1961;
- The Assassin, 1961;
- Divorce, Italian Style, 1961;
- Seduced and Abandoned, 1964;
- Vaghe stelle dell'Orsa, 1965
- Alibi 1969
- The Red Tent, 1969
- Oh, Grandmother's Dead (1969)
- L'udienza, 1971
- Amarcord, 1973
- Christ Stopped at Eboli, 1979
- Café Express, 1980
- E la nave va, 1983;
- The Name of the Rose, 1986;
- Nuovo cinema Paradiso, 1988[1]
References
- ^ a b IMDB - Franco Cristaldi Filmography
- ^ a b c Hollywood.com - Franco Cristaldi
- ^ CristaldiFilm.com - Who we are
- ^ IMDB - Name of the Rose - Awards
- ^ IMDB - Cinema Paradiso - Awards
- ^ a b c Franco Cristaldi at IMDb
- ^ a b "The Courage of Claudia Cardinale". Parade Magazine. 25 June 1967.
- ^ "Film Star Reveals Secret of Baby Son". The Sun Herald. 16 April 1967.
