NEOREALISM

Roots in Post-War Italy

Rome, Open City (Rossellini, 1944)

The Bicycle Thief (DeSica, 1948)

Popular Around the World, influential in Europe and even in the U.S.

Its Primary Influence has been in the developing countries of the "Third World"

COMMON ELEMENTS:

• Inexpensive
• Location Shooting
• Natural Lighting
• Sound post-synchronized
• “Native” Languages/Dialects
• Not much interest in "production values"
• Not "action-oriented"
• Many Non-Professional Actors
• Even when professional, actors don’t look like "stars"
• Protagonists are ordinary people
• Few Subplots
• Children often important
• "Humanistic"--emphasis on the importance of community and family solidarity
• Characters are not simply "good" or "bad"
• A spirit of compassion

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