Arata, Ubaldo

(1895-1947)

   Cinematographer. Arata began his career in films as a cameraman on Augusto Genina's Ilprincipe dell'impossibile (The Prince of the Impossible, 1918) and subsequently struck up a 10-year partnership with Mario Almirante, with whom he collaborated on a dozen films beginning with Zingari (Gypsies, 1920) and ending with Napoli che canta (Naples Sings, 1930). At the same time he also worked with Baldassare Negroni on Gli ultimi zar (The Last Tsars, 1926) and Giuditta e Oleferne (Judith and Holofernes, 1928), and with Guido Brignone on Maciste all'Inferno (Maciste in Hell, 1926), and he helped to create the strikingly expressionist atmosphere of Mario Camerini's Rotaie (Rails, 1929). After serving as director of photography on what is generally regarded as the first Italian sound film, La canzone dell'amore (The Song of Love, 1930), directed by Gennaro Righelli, he collaborated with Max Ophiils on La signora di tutti (Everybody's Woman, 1936), after which he teamed up with fellow cinematographer Anchise Brizzi to photograph Carmine Gallone's ill-fated Roman epic, Scipione l'Africano (Scipio the African, 1937).

   In the postwar period Arata achieved what was perhaps the highest point in his career, working as the cinematographer of Roberto Rossellini's legendary Roma citta aperta (Rome Open City, 1945, also known as Open City). He subsequently worked on a number of minor films before teaming up again with Anchise Brizzi on what would be his last film, Gregory Ratoff's Black Magic (1949).

   Historical Dictionary of Italian Cinema by Alberto Mira