Rossella Falk (10 November 1926 – 5 May 2013) was an Italian actress. She had a long career and is possibly best known for appearing in ''

8½ ' (Italian title: , ) is a 1963 surrealist comedy-drama film directed and co-written (with Tullio Pinelli, Ennio Flaiano and Brunello Rondi) by Italian filmmaker Federico Fellini. The metafictional narrative centers on Guido Anselmi, played by M ...

'' by Federico Fellini in 1963.

Life and career

Born in

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus (legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

as Rosa Antonia Falzacappa, Falk graduated from the Accademia d'Arte Drammatica in May 1948, a few months after having received the best new actress award at the

World Youth Festival The World Festival of Youth and Students is an international event organized by the World Federation of Democratic Youth (WFDY) and the International Union of Students after 1947. History The festival has been held regularly since 1947 as an ev ...

Prague Prague ( ; cs, Praha ; german: Prag, ; la, Praga) is the capital and List of cities in the Czech Republic, largest city in the Czech Republic, and the historical capital of Bohemia. On the Vltava river, Prague is home to about 1.3 milli ...

. In a few years she established herself as one of the more talented and requested Italian stage actress. In 1951 she started a long collaboration with the director

Luchino Visconti Luchino Visconti di Modrone, Count of Lonate Pozzolo (; 2 November 1906 – 17 March 1976) was an Italian filmmaker, stage director, and screenwriter. A major figure of Italian art and culture in the mid-20th century, Visconti was one of the ...

with the role of Stella in an adaptation of the play ''

A Streetcar Named Desire ''A Streetcar Named Desire'' is a play written by Tennessee Williams and first performed on Broadway on December 3, 1947. The play dramatizes the experiences of Blanche DuBois, a former Southern belle who, after encountering a series of pers ...

''. In 1954, after having worked at the Piccolo Teatro in Milan, directed by

Giorgio Strehler Giorgio Strehler (; ; 14 August 1921 – 25 December 1997) was an actor, Italian opera and theatre director. Biography Strehler was born in Barcola, Trieste; His father, Bruno Strehler, was a native of Trieste with family roots in Vienna and die ...

in ''La mascherata'', Falk started, together with Giorgio De Lullo, Anna Maria Guarnieri,

Romolo Valli Romolo Valli (7 February 1925 – 1 February 1980) was an Italian actor. Valli was born in Reggio Emilia. He was one of the best known Italian actors from the 1950s to his death. He worked for both the stage and the silver screen. Among the ...

and

Umberto Orsini Umberto Orsini (born 2 April 1934, in Novara) is an Italian stage, television and film actor. Born in Novara, Orsini gave up his career as notary to attend the Accademia Nazionale di Arte Drammatica Silvio D'Amico. In the late 1950s, he emerged ...

, the stage company "La compagnia dei giovani" with whom she achieved national and international success. Leaving the company in the 1970s, she continued her stage career working among others with

Franco Zeffirelli Gian Franco Corsi Zeffirelli (12 February 1923 – 15 June 2019), was an Italian stage and film director, producer, production designer and politician. He was one of the most significant opera and theatre directors of the post-World War II era, ...

Gabriele Lavia Gabriele Lavia (born 10 October 1942) is an Italian actor, film director and theatre director. Biography Lavia was born in Milan, Lombardy. Since 1970 he has had roles in nearly thirty films and television programs. He is known for his appe ...

, Giuseppe Patroni Griffi. Less active in cinema, she is probably best known for her role in Federico Fellini's ''

'', Falk was also active in television series and radio plays. Her last work was the 2009 stage play ''Est Ovest'', in which she was directed by

Cristina Comencini Cristina Comencini (; born 8 May 1956) is an Italian film director, screenwriter and novelist. Biography She is one of four daughters of Italian film director Luigi Comencini. She attended with her sisters the Lycée français Chateaubriand (Rom ...

Filmography

* '' Guarany'' (by

Riccardo Freda Riccardo Freda (24 February 1909 – 20 December 1999) was an Italian film director. He worked in a variety of genres, including sword-and-sandal, horror, ''giallo'' and spy films. Freda began directing '' I Vampiri'' in 1956. The film became ...

) (1948) * '' Angels of Darkness'' (by

Giuseppe Amato Giuseppe Amato (born Giuseppe Vasaturo; 24 August 1899 – 3 February 1964) was an Italian film producer, screenwriter and director. He produced 58 films between 1932 and 1961, and is especially known for ''Bicycle Thieves''. He was born in ...

) (1954) - Morena * '' Vento del sud'' (by Franco Provenzale) (1960) - Deodata Macri * ''

'' (by Federico Fellini) (1964) - Rosella * ''

Made in Italy Made in Italy is a merchandise mark indicating that a product is all planned, manufactured and packed in Italy, especially concerning the design, fashion, food, manufacturing, craftsmanship, and engineering industries. History Made in Italy ...

'' (by

Nanni Loy Nanni Loy (born Giovanni Loi; 23 October 1925 – 21 August 1995) was an Italian film, theatre and TV director. Specifically, Nanni Loy was Sardinian, and one of several notable Sardinian film makers, including Franco Solinas. Biography Lo ...

) (1965) - Erminia, His Wife (segment "5 'La Famiglia', episode 2") * ''

Modesty Blaise ''Modesty Blaise'' is a British comic strip featuring a fictional character of the same name, created by author Peter O'Donnell and illustrator Jim Holdaway in 1963. The strip follows Modesty Blaise, an exceptional young woman with many talents ...

'' (by Joseph Losey) (1966) - Mrs. Fothergill * ''

The Legend of Lylah Clare ''The Legend of Lylah Clare'' is a 1968 American drama film released by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer and directed by Robert Aldrich. The film stars Peter Finch, Kim Novak (in multiple roles), Ernest Borgnine, Michael Murphy, and Valentina Cortese. The fi ...

'' (by Robert Aldrich) (1968) - Rossella * '' Run, Psycho, Run'' (by

Brunello Rondi Brunello Rondi (26 November 1924 – 7 November 1989) was a prolific Italian screen writer and film director best known for his frequent script collaborations with Federico Fellini. His brother, Gian Luigi Rondi, was an Italian film critic. Bi ...

) (1968) * '' May Morning'' (by Ugo Liberatore) (1970) - Mrs. Finley * '' The Fifth Cord'' (by Luigi Bazzoni) (1971) - Sophia Bini * ''

Black Belly of the Tarantula Black is a color which results from the absence or complete absorption of visible light. It is an achromatic color, without hue, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or figuratively to represent darkness. Black and white have ...

'' (by

Paolo Cavara Paolo Cavara (4 July 1926 – 7 August 1982) was an Italian screenwriter and film director. He is best known for collaborating with Gualtiero Jacopetti and Franco E. Prosperi on the 1962 mondo film '' Mondo Cane'', and for directing the fict ...

) (1971) - Franca Valentino * ''

Seven Blood-Stained Orchids ''Seven Blood-Stained Orchids'' ( it, Sette orchidee macchiate di rosso) is a 1972 ''giallo'' film directed by Umberto Lenzi, who also co-wrote the screenplay. Plot A killer is driving around the streets of Italy looking for a specific victim w ...

'' (by

Umberto Lenzi Umberto Lenzi (6 August 1931 – 19 October 2017) was an Italian film director, screenwriter, and novelist. A fan of film since young age, Lenzi studied at the Centro Sperimentale di Cinematografia and made his first film in 1958 which went unr ...

) (1972) - Elena Marchi * ''

The Killer Is on the Phone ''The Killer Is on the Phone'' ( it, L'assassino... è al telefono) is a 1972 ''giallo'' film directed by Alberto De Martino. It was released in the U.S. in July, 1975. The film is set in Bruges, Belgium, and stars Telly Savalas and Anne Heywo ...

'' (by

Alberto De Martino Alberto De Martino (12 June 1929 – 2 June 2015) was an Italian film director and screenwriter. Born in Rome, De Martino started as a child actor and later returned to the cinema where worked as a screenwriter, director and dubbing supervis ...

) (1972) - Margaret Vervoort * '' Days of Inspector Ambrosio'' (by

Sergio Corbucci Sergio Corbucci (; 6 December 1926 – 1 December 1990) was an Italian film director, screenwriter and producer. He directed both very violent Spaghetti Westerns and bloodless Bud Spencer and Terence Hill action comedies. He is the older bro ...

) (1988) - Moglie di Vittorio Borghi * ''

Love Story with Cramps ''Love Story with Cramps'' ( it, Storie d'amore con i crampi) is a 1995 Italian romantic comedy film written and directed by Pino Quartullo. Plot Cast * Pino Quartullo as Francesco * Chiara Caselli as Marcella/Amanda * Sergio Rubini as Rob ...

'' (by Pino Quartullo) (1995) - Directrice agenzia * '' Sleepless'' (by Dario Argento) (2001) - Laura de Fabritiis

References

External links

* 1926 births Italian film actresses 2013 deaths Italian stage actresses Italian television actresses Italian radio personalities Actresses from Rome 20th-century Italian actresses 21st-century Italian actresses Accademia Nazionale di Arte Drammatica Silvio D'Amico alumni Burials at the Cimitero Flaminio {{Italy-actor-stub

Life and career

Filmography

References

Further reading

External links