Mario Soffici (14 May 1900 – 10 May 1977) was an Italian-born
Argentine
Argentines, Argentinians or Argentineans are people from Argentina. This connection may be residential, legal, historical, or cultural. For most Argentines, several (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of their ...
film director
A film director or filmmaker is a person who controls a film's artistic and dramatic aspects and visualizes the screenplay (or script) while guiding the film crew and actors in the fulfillment of that Goal, vision. The director has a key role ...
,
actor
An actor (masculine/gender-neutral), or actress (feminine), is a person who portrays a character in a production. The actor performs "in the flesh" in the traditional medium of the theatre or in modern media such as film, radio, and television. ...
and
screenwriter
A screenwriter (also called scriptwriter, scribe, or scenarist) is a person who practices the craft of writing for visual mass media, known as screenwriting. These can include short films, feature-length films, television programs, television ...
notable for his work during the
Golden Age of Argentine cinema
The Golden Age of Argentine cinema (Spanish language, Spanish: ''Época de Oro del cine argentino'' or other equivalent names), sometimes known interchangeably as the broader classical or classical-industrial period (Spanish: ''perÃodo clásico- ...
.
Biography
Mario Soffici was born in
Florence, Italy
Florence ( ; ) is the capital city of the Italian region of Tuscany. It is also the most populated city in Tuscany, with 362,353 inhabitants, and 989,460 in its metropolitan province as of 2025.
Florence was a centre of medieval European t ...
and moved to Argentina at the age of nine. He began acting in 1931 and made his directorial debut in 1935 on the film ''
El Alma de Bandoneón
''The Soul of the Accordion'' () is a 1935 in film, 1935 cinema of Argentina, Argentine tango music, tango musical film from the Golden Age of Argentine cinema directed by Mario Soffici, who wrote it with José A. Bugliot. It is considered one of ...
'', working with popular actors of the period such as
Libertad Lamarque
Libertad Lamarque Bouza (; 24 November 1908 – 12 December 2000) was an Argentine and Mexican actress and singer, became one of the most iconic stars of the Golden Age of cinema in both Argentina and Mexico. She achieved fame throughout Latin A ...
in
tango
Tango is a partner dance and social dance that originated in the 1880s along the RÃo de la Plata, the natural border between Argentina and Uruguay. The tango was born in the impoverished port areas of these countries from a combination of Arge ...
-based
musical film
Musical film is a film genre in which songs by the Character (arts), characters are interwoven into the narrative, sometimes accompanied by dancing. The songs usually advance the plot or develop the film's characters, but in some cases, they serv ...
s.
He directed some 40 films between 1935 and 1962, including ''
Prisioneros de la tierra
''Prisoners of the Earth'', also known as ''Prisoners of the Land'', (Spanish: ''Prisioneros de la tierra'') is a 1939 Argentine drama film directed by Mario Soffici, one of the most celebrated films of the Golden Age of Argentine cinema. The film ...
'' (1939) (historically considered one of the
greatest in Argentine cinema), ''
El Curandero'' (1955), ''
El hombre que debÃa una muerte'' (1955) and ''
Rosaura a las 10'' (1958). He directed and co-wrote with
Eduardo Boneo and
Francisco Madrid''
La cabalgata del circo''.
He died in
Buenos Aires
Buenos Aires, controlled by the government of the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires, is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Argentina. It is located on the southwest of the RÃo de la Plata. Buenos Aires is classified as an Alpha− glob ...
in 1977.
Filmography
As director
* ''Noche federal'' (1932)
* ''
El alma del bandoneón'' (1935)
* ''
La barra mendocina'' (1935)
* ''
New Port'' (1936)
* ''
Cadetes de San MartÃn (film)
''Cadetes de San MartÃn'' is a List of Argentine films:1937, 1937 Argentina, Argentine film directed by Mario Soffici and written by José A. SaldÃas during the Golden Age of Argentine cinema.
It stars Enrique Muiño and ElÃas Alippi.
Cast
*Ã ...
'' (1937)
* ''
Viento Norte
''North Wind'' (Spanish: Viento norte) is a 1937 Argentine film of the Golden Age of Argentine cinema directed by Mario Soffici.
In a survey of the 100 greatest films of Argentine cinema carried out by the Museo del Cine Pablo Ducrós Hicken
...
'' (1937)
* ''
Kilómetro 111
''Kilómetro 111'' is a 1938 Argentine musical film drama directed by Mario Soffici. The film premiered in Buenos Aires during the Golden Age of Argentine cinema.
This is one of several films directed by Soffici which address the social evils of ...
'' (1938)
* ''
El viejo doctor'' (1939)
* ''
Prisioneros de la tierra
''Prisoners of the Earth'', also known as ''Prisoners of the Land'', (Spanish: ''Prisioneros de la tierra'') is a 1939 Argentine drama film directed by Mario Soffici, one of the most celebrated films of the Golden Age of Argentine cinema. The film ...
'' (1939)
* ''Héroes sin fama'' (1940)
* ''
Cita en la frontera'' 1940)
* ''Yo quiero morir contigo'' (1941)
* ''El camino de las llamas'' (1942)
* ''Vacaciones en el otro mundo'' (1942)
* ''Cuando la primavera se equivoca'' (1942)
* ''
Tres hombres del rÃo
''Three Men of the River'' () is a Argentine films of 1943, 1943 Argentine crime drama film of the Argentine classical cinema, classical era of Argentine cinema, directed by Mario Soffici and starring Elisa Galvé and José Olarra. The film is bas ...
'' (1943)
* ''
Wake Up to Life'' (1945)
* ''
The Circus Cavalcade'' (1945)
* ''Besos perdidos'' (1945)
* ''
La pródiga The Prodigal Woman may refer to:
* ''The Prodigal Woman'' (1984 film), an Argentine drama film
* ''The Prodigal Woman'' (1946 film), a Spanish drama film
See also
* Prodigal Daughter (disambiguation)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Prodigal Woman, The ...
'' (1945)
* ''Celos'' (1946)
* ''
The Sin of Julia
''The Sin of Julia'' (Spanish: ''El pecado de Julia'') is a 1946 Argentine melodrama film of the Argentine classical cinema, classical era of Argentine cinema, directed by Mario Soffici and starring Amelia Bence, AÃda Luz and Alberto Closas.Oliver ...
'' (1946)
* ''
La gata'' (1947)
* ''La Secta del trébol'' (1948)
* ''Tierra del Fuego'' (1948)
* ''La barca sin pescador'' (1950)
* ''
El extraño caso del hombre y la bestia
EL, El or el may refer to:
Arts and entertainment Fictional entities
* El, a character from the manga series ''Shugo Chara!'' by Peach-Pit
* Eleven (''Stranger Things'') (El), a fictional character in the TV series ''Stranger Things''
* El, fami ...
'' (1951)
* ''
The Unwanted
''The Unwanted'' is a 2014 American Gothic horror film written and directed by Bret Wood. It is based on the novel ''Carmilla'' by Sheridan Le Fanu but was transposed from a Gothic tale set in Austria to a Southern Gothic setting. It stars Ch ...
'' (1951)
* ''
Pasó en mi barrio
''Pasó en mi barrio'' is a 1951 Argentine film directed by Mario Soffici during the classical era of Argentine cinema. It was entered into the 1952 Cannes Film Festival, where it was one of the nominees for the Grand Prize of the Festival.
Cast ...
'' (1951)
* ''Ellos nos hicieron asÃ'' (1953)
* ''Una ventana a la vida'' (1953)
* ''
La Dama del mar'' (1954)
* ''Mujeres casadas'' (1954)
* ''Barrio gris'' (1954)
* ''
El hombre que debÃa una muerte'' (1955)
* ''
El Curandero'' (1955)
* ''Oro bajo'' (1956)
* ''
Rosaura a las 10'' (1958)
* ''Isla brava'' (1958)
* ''ChafalonÃas'' (1960)
* ''Propiedad'' (1962)
As screenwriter
* ''El alma del bandoneón'' (1935)
* ''La barra mendocina'' (1935)
* ''Viento Norte'' (1937)
* ''Con las alas rotas'' (1938)
* ''
The Circus Cavalcade'' (1945)
* ''Una ventana a la vida'' (1953)
* ''La dama del mar'' (1954)
* ''Barrio gris'' (1954)
* ''Oro bajo'' (1956)
* ''
Rosaura a las 10'' (1958)
* ''Isla brava'' (1958)
* ''Los acusados'' (1960)
* ''Propiedad'' (1962)
Actor
* ''
Streets of Buenos Aires'' (1934)
* ''
Yesterday's Guys Used No Arsenic
''Yesterday's Guys Used No Arsenic'' () is a 1976 Argentine black comedy crime film directed by José A. MartÃnez Suárez. The film was selected as the Argentine entry for the Best Foreign Language Film at the 49th Academy Awards, but was not a ...
'' (1976)
References
Bibliography
Tomas Abraham article about Soffici
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Soffici, Mario
1900 births
1977 deaths
Argentine people of Italian descent
Italian emigrants to Argentina
Argentine film directors
Argentine male film actors
Argentine male screenwriters
20th-century Argentine male actors
20th-century Argentine screenwriters
20th-century Argentine male writers