Cecchi, Emilio

(1884-1966)

   Literary critic, translator, poet, novelist, film producer, artistic director, screenwriter. Already a towering figure in Italian 20th-century literary history and widely respected as a fine translator, prose writer, critic, university professor, and art historian, Cecchi also came to make a significant contribution to the history of Italian cinema.

   In the wake of the death of Stefano Pittaluga, producer and head of the newly reconstituted Cines studios in 1931, Cecchi was offered the post of artistic director. Having recently spent a period teaching at the University of California, Berkeley, Cecchi had become very enthusiastic about cinema after a number of visits he had made to Hollywood, and so he readily accepted. He quickly set about improving not only the quantity but also the quality of films at Cines. As a writer himself, he sought to attract more writers and intellectuals into the industry, leading to films such as Acciaio (Steel, 1933), which saw the collaboration of Luigi Pirandello, author of the short story from which it was adapted, and a musical score especially written by composer Gian Francesco Malipiero. Cecchi also strongly encouraged the making of quality documentaries, which until then had been the exclusive province of the Istituto LUCE. Raffaelo Matarazzo and Umberto Barbara were among the budding screen-writers and directors who produced some fine documentaries with Cecchi's encouragement. Cecchi also helped to realize such adventurous film projects as Alessandro Blasetti's historical epic, 1860 (also known as Gesuzza, the Garibaldian Wife, 1934). Cecchi's influence thus served to generate some real energy and momentum in an industry that had practically ground to a halt in the preceding decade.

   Nevertheless, Cecchi's stay at the Cines was relatively brief. He left the studio in September 1933 after having spent only 16 months in the position. However, his enthusiasm and leadership during his period there had been a real boon for the industry. Furthermore, although Cecchi returned to his former literary and art-history studies, he remained sporadically involved with cinema to the end of his life. Among his last contributions were his collaborations on the screen-plays of Renato Castellani's Sotto il sole di Roma (Under the Roman Sun, 1948) and Blasetti's Roman epic Fabiola (1949).

   Historical Dictionary of Italian Cinema by Alberto Mira