Vittorio De Seta: A Retrospective
June 24–30, 2006

Vittorio De Seta was born into a noble Calabrian family in Palermo, Sicily, in 1923. The director soon moved to Rome (where he continues to reside) and studied film in the 1940s, breaking away from the official cinema in the 1950s with a series of acclaimed documentaries made in Sicily, Sardinia, and Calabria. Characterized by beautiful color, keen observation, and ambient soundtracks without narration, these works depict the customs of rural Italian laborers and families. De Seta went on to make formally unconventional dramatic films that reflect a strong social commitment. Two highlights of the exhibition are Bandits of Orgosolo (1961), De Seta’s award-winning first feature-length film, and the U.S. premiere of Diary of a Schoolteacher (1973). All films directed by Vittorio De Seta and in Italian, with English subtitles.

Organized for The Museum of Modern Art by Sally Berger, Assistant Curator, Department of Film and Media, in collaboration with The Flaherty Seminars, The Italian Cultural Institute of New York, Progetto Cinema Sud di Italia Internazionale (Direzione Generale Integrazione Europea Ministero degli Affari Esteri), Cineteca di Bologna, Cinecitta Holding, and RAI – Radio Televisione Italiana.

Ten documentary shorts shot in Sicily, Sardinia, and Calabria, Italy:
Lu tempu di li pisci spata (The Swordfish Season). 1954. Italy. Swordfish fishermen from Bagnara, Sicily, and Ganzirri await their catch in the strait of Messina. 11 min.
Isole di fuoco (Islands of Fire). 1955. Italy. A violent eruption of the Stromboli volcano, shot in the Eolian islands. 11 min.
Surfarara (Sulphur Mines). 1955. Italy. The struggles of mine workers, filmed in the sulfur mines of Caltanissetta. 10 min.
Contadini del mare (Peasants of the Sea). 1955. Italy. The Granitola tonnara, an annual traditional tuna hunt off the coast of Sicily. 10 min.
Parabola d’oro (Golden Parable). 1955. Italy. Farmers mow, thresh, and harvest their corn crops in inland Sicily. 10 min.
Pescherecci (Fishing Boats). 1958. Italy. The daily cycle of fishermen in Sicily. 10 min.
Pasqua in Sicilia (Easter in Sicily). 1955. Italy. Easter processions and religious feasts in Messina, Caltanissetta, and Aidone provinces hark back to ancestral fears. 11 min.
Un giorno in Barbagia (A Day in Barbagia). 1958. Italy. The women of Orgosolo, in the Barbagia region in Sardinia, look after their homes while the men tend their faraway flocks. 10 min.
Pastori di Orgosolo (Orgosolo Shepherds). 1958. Italy. The daily life of Supramonte shepherds in Orgosolo, Sardinia. 11 min.
I Dimenticati (The Forgotten Ones). 1959. Italy. Alessandria del Carretto, an isolated mountain village, maintains the vibrant annual Festa della Primavera. 20 min.
Program 114 min.
Saturday, June 24, 5:00 (presented by De Seta). T1; Wednesday, June 28, 8:00. T2

Banditi a Orgosolo (Bandits of Orgosolo). 1961. Italy. Edited and produced by Vittorio De Seta. Screenplay by Vera Gherarducci, De Seta. With Michelle Cossu, Peppeddu Cuccu, Vittorina Pisanu. A Sardinian shepherd is unjustly accused of murder and sheep rustling. Set against the dramatic social reality of the Barbagia region in Sardinia, and based on a sociological survey by Franco Cagnetta. 90 min.
Sunday, June 25, 3:00. T1; Thursday, June 29, 6:00. T2

Un uomo a meta (Half a Man). 1966. Italy. Produced by Vittorio De Seta. Screenplay by De Seta, Fabio Carpi, Vera Gherarducci. With Jacques Perrin, Lea Padovani, Gianni Garko, Rosemarie Dexter. A journalist who has lost the ability to love returns to the Tuscan mansion where he spent his teenage years, seeking to illuminate the present. 93 min.
Sunday, June 25, 5:00 (presented by De Seta). T1; Thursday, June 29, 8:00. T2

Diario di un maestro (Diary of a Schoolteacher). 1973. Italy. Screenplay by Vittorio De Seta, based on Un anno a Pietralata by Albino Bernardini. Using improvisation and documentary techniques, De Seta depicts a teacher working on the outskirts of Rome who uses unconventional methods to inspire and transform his problem students. Originally presented as an RAI television serial. 135 min. U.S. premiere.
Monday, June 26, 6:00 (presented by De Seta). T1; Friday, June 30, 6:00. T2

In Calabria. 1993. Italy. Edited by Vittorio De Seta. This story of man before and after industrialization examines civilizations from the point of view of a third-world country. The camera captures the faces of people who live as their ancestors did thousands of years ago, and their disappointment with modernization. 83 min.
Monday, June 26, 8:30. T1; Friday, June 30, 8:30. T2

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