New Waves: Rome, Open City

The production of Roberto Rossellinis Rome,Open City (Roma citt aperta, 1945) began only months after the end of the Nazi occupation of Rome and the arrival of Allied forces during the Italian campaign of World War II. The film triangulates the tension of the German occupation through a rich cast of characters: children, landlords, clergy, military men, unwed mothers, cabaret girls, collaborators, resistance fighters, and subversives of all kinds, and of course the city itself. Filmed with both professional and non-professional actors and based at least partially on actual people and events, Rome, Open City continues to garner scholarly attention today for its influential style and historical immediacy, as well as its difficult and storied production in the harrowing aftermath of the war it so effectively evokes. Anna Brusutti (Film and Media Studies, UCSB) will join Cristina Venegas (Film and Media Studies, UCSB) for a post-screening discussion. This event is sponsored by the Carsey-Wolf Center and the Department of Film and Media Studies. This event is free but a reservation is recommended in order to guarantee a seat.