Roberto Rossellini (born in Rome in 1906, died in Rome, in 1977) was one of the most widely known post-World War II motion-pictures directors in Italy and the world. His films Roma città aperta (1945) and Paisà (1946) focussed international attention on the Italian Neorealist movement in films. During World War II he directed government propaganda short subjects but was also affiliated with the underground cinema movement that secretly recorded the activities of the anti-Fascist Resistance. Rossellini’s realistic style strongly influenced the development of important cinema talents, such as the director Federico Fellini, who came into prominence in the 1950s.
