Lina Wertmüller facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Lina Wertmüller
Wertmüller in 2000
Born	Arcangela Felice Assunta Wertmüller von Elgg Spanol von Braueich (1928-08-14)14 August 1928 Rome, Italy
Died	9 December 2021(2021-12-09) (aged 93) Rome, Italy
Occupation	Film director, screenwriter
Years active	1963–2021
Spouse(s)	Enrico Job ​ ​ (m. 1965; died 2008)​
Children	1

Lina Wertmüller (born Arcangela Felice Assunta Wertmüller von Elgg Spanol von Braueich; August 14, 1928 – December 9, 2021) was a famous Italian film director and writer. She was known for her unique movies from the 1970s, like Seven Beauties, Love and Anarchy, and Swept Away.

Lina Wertmüller made history as the first woman director ever nominated for an Academy Award for Best Director (an Oscar!). She won many awards, including an Academy Honorary Award (a special Oscar for her whole career) and a David di Donatello Career Achievement Award. She was also nominated for other big awards, like the Golden Globe and the Palme d'Or.

Early Life and Creative Beginnings

Lina Wertmüller was born in Rome, Italy, in 1928. Her dad, Federico, was a lawyer from a family with Swiss roots. Lina described her childhood as a big adventure. She was even expelled from 15 different Catholic high schools!

When she was young, Lina loved comic books, especially Flash Gordon. She thought the way the pictures were set up in the comics was "cinematic," almost like a movie. This showed her early interest in filmmaking. She also loved plays by Russian writers like Konstantin Stanislavsky, which drew her into the world of performing arts.

After finishing school in 1951, Lina started creating special plays. She traveled around Europe, working as a puppeteer (someone who performs with puppets), a stage manager, and even designing sets for plays. She also wrote scripts for radio and TV.

Lina was interested in two main types of stories: funny musical comedies and serious Italian dramas that talked about important issues. She felt these two styles were at the heart of her creative work.

Film Career Highlights

Starting in the 1960s

After her time with a puppet group, Lina decided to focus on movies. In the early 1960s, a school friend introduced her to the famous actor Marcello Mastroianni. He then introduced Lina to the well-known film director Federico Fellini, who became her mentor and helped her learn about filmmaking.

Lina's first movie, The Basilisks (1963), was praised by critics, but it didn't become super famous like her later films. Throughout the 1960s, she made several other movies that were liked but didn't get much international attention. One of these was the musical comedy Rita the Mosquito (1966), which was her first time working with the actor Giancarlo Giannini.

Success in the 1970s

The 1970s were Lina Wertmüller's "golden age." During this time, she released most of her most famous and important films. Many of these movies starred Giancarlo Giannini. Between 1972 and 1978, she made seven films that are now seen as masterpieces of Italian comedy.

It was during this period that she became famous outside of Italy, especially in the United States. In 1975, her movie Swept Away was named the Top Foreign Film by the National Board of Review in the U.S.

In 1976, Lina made history! She became the first woman director to be nominated for an Oscar for her film Seven Beauties. This movie, which again starred Giannini, was a mix of funny and sad moments. It followed a man from a small Italian town who ends up in a German concentration camp. Many people consider Seven Beauties to be her best work.

After this success, Lina signed a deal with Warner Bros. to make four films. Her first English-language movie, A Night Full of Rain (1978), was not very successful, and Warner Bros. ended the contract.

Later Films in the 1980s and Beyond

Lina Wertmüller continued to make films in the 1980s and 1990s. Her movies A Joke of Destiny (1983) and Camorra (A Story of Streets, Women and Crime) (1986) were shown at big film festivals.

In 1985, she received the Crystal Award from Women in Film. This award honors women who have done amazing work and helped expand the role of women in the entertainment industry.

Even though she wasn't as famous internationally after the 1970s, Lina kept making movies. Some of her later films, like Summer Night (1986), Ferdinando & Carolina (1999), and Ciao, Professore! (1992), have become more appreciated over time.

Lina Wertmüller was also famous for her very long and funny movie titles. For example, the full title of Swept Away is Swept away by an unusual destiny in the blue sea of August. These long titles were usually shortened for audiences outside of Italy. She even holds a record in the Guinness Book of Records for the longest film title ever!

Later Life and Legacy

Wertmüller in 2011

Lina Wertmüller was married to Enrico Job, an art designer who worked on many of her films. He passed away in 2008.

In 2015, a movie about her life called Behind the White Glasses was released. In this film, Lina looked back at all the amazing work she had done.

Lina Wertmüller continued to direct plays until she passed away at her home on December 9, 2021, at the age of 93.

Filming Style and Themes

Lina Wertmüller's movies often showed the lives of everyday Italian people, especially those who were struggling. She had a special way of showing the beauty of Italy and its different places, using bright colors and exciting camera work.

Her background in theater influenced her films a lot. She often used the camera to highlight the actors' performances and the big, dramatic emotions of her characters. Many of her films also used humor to make fun of political ideas and how they can affect people. She liked to show how silly or illogical things could be in society and in movies.

Film expert Peter Bondanella said that Lina Wertmüller's work combined important political topics with funny, over-the-top Italian comedy.

Selected Filmography

Awards and Nominations

See also

In Spanish: Lina Wertmüller para niños