[ecrea] David di Donatello 1956-2016: Sixty Years of Awards

David di Donatello 1956-2016: Sixty Years of Awards

Journal of Italian Cinema and Media Studies


Call for Papers 25 February 2015


The David di Donatello Award, named after Donatello’s bronze statue of 
David (1440s), is a prestigious Italian film prize awarded each year for 
cinematic performances and productions by the Accademia del Cinema 
Italiano (The Academy of Italian Cinema). The trophy is in the form of a 
golden David on a square malachite base with a golden plaque recording 
the award category, year and winner.

The Accademia del Cinema Italiano Premi David di Donatello is supported 
by two Italian major institutions: Associazione Generale Italiana dello 
Spettacolo (AGIS) (Italian General Show-Business Association) and 
Associazione Nazionale Industrie Cinematografiche Audiovisive (ANICA) 
(Italian National Cinema and Audiovisual Association). The Accademia del 
Cinema Italiano operates in collaboration with and thanks to the 
contribution of the Ministry of the Performing Arts and the Ministry for 
Cultural Properties and Activities. Gian Luigi Rondi, the current 
president, has worked with the organization since its inception.

In the 1950s, during Italian cinema’s period of heightened success, the 
Open Gate Club was founded in Rome. Its logo was an open door 
symbolizing the positive post- World War II cultural climate and the 
beginning of a new international artistic exchange. Respectively in 1953 
and 1954, within the Open Gate Club, the Comitato per l’Arte e la 
Cultura (Art and Culture Committee) and the Circolo Internazionale del 
Cinema (International Cinema Association) were created.

In 1955 the Circolo Internazionale del Cinema became the Club 
Internazionale del Cinema (International Cinema Club). In the same year, 
under the leadership of Italo Gemini (1901-1984), film operator and 
president of AGIS, the two cine-file associations, presided respectively 
by Gino Sotis (1902-1960) and Lidio Bozzini (1924-2006), established the 
David di Donatello with the aim to honor the best Italian and foreign 
motion picture production, following the example of the American Academy 
of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.

The David di Donatello Awards were first awarded in Rome on 5 July 1956 
at the movie theater Fiamma. From 1957 to 1980, the ceremonies were held 
at the Greek theatre in Taormina, during the Taormina Film Fest, with a 
few exceptions: in Rome at the Terme di Caracalla (1971), in Florence at 
Piazzale Michelangelo (1978), and in Rome at Teatro dell’Opera (1979). 
In 1981 the award ceremony was held in two different sites: in Rome at 
Teatro dell’Opera and in Florence at Palazzo Vecchio. In 1982 the David 
di Donatello returned to Rome, with the support of the President of the 
Republic and with the collaboration of the Rome City Council Cultural 
Policies Department.

Since 1956, the David di Donatello has been the main national film prize 
in Italy and has been awarded by the people in the industry: filmmakers, 
screenwriters, performers, technicians, and producers. For six decades, 
the award ceremony has celebrated international directors, producers, 
actors and actresses alongside the best Italian productions. Movie stars 
from all over the world have attended the ceremony held in Taormina, 
Florence and Rome. Vittorio De Sica, Federico Fellini, Mario Monicelli, 
Francesco Rosi and Ettore Scola have been awarded this prize several 
times. In addition to these masters of Italian cinema, the David di 
Donatello has been awarded to young directors for their first feature films.

During the 1980s, a nomination ballot was introduced and the Awards 
widened the categories of professionals included in this annual 
celebration of Italian cinematic excellence. Consequently, categories 
dedicated to international productions were reduced and today the 
Accademia del Cinema Italiano recognizes two separate awards for feature 
films produced abroad and distributed in Italy: Best Film from the 
European Union and Best Foreign Film. There are 24 categories as of 2014.

In 2006, a documentary celebrating the 50th anniversary of the David di 
Donatello, produced by Accademia del Cinema Italiano, RaiCinema and 
Istituto Luce, and directed by Massimo Mascolo, who worked with 
authentic audiovisual material and newsreels footage from the Archivio 
LUCE and the Archivi RAI, was released on DVD and attached to the book 
David di Donatello 1956-2006 50 Anni di Premi (Rondi et al. 2006). The 
book features a year-by-year history through a collection of images and 
the lists of all the nominees and winners from 1956 to 2006.

In 2016, the Journal of Italian Cinema and Media Studies will celebrate 
the 60th anniversary of the David di Donatello prize with a themed 
issue. The purpose of this issue is to pay homage to this award for its 
cultural influence on Italian and world cinema, to review its history 
and endorse its international role. The Editor intends to publish a 
collection of articles that would document and historicize the value of 
the David di Donatello as the utmost expression of Italian and 
international film heritage and symbol of collective cinematic memory.

This CFP invites scholars, award ceremony organizers, archivists, 
film-makers, actors, journalists, producers and other professionals in 
the film industry to contribute with critical and historical articles, 
reports, interviews and biographies.

Send proposals in British English to the Editor, Flavia Laviosa, at 
(flaviosa /at/ wellesley.edu), by 25 February, 2015 and provide the following 
information:

1) a 500-word abstract outlining:



a) the topic

b) critical approach

The abstract should clearly state the goals of the article and provide a 
cohesive description of the objective of the argument.

In addition to the abstract, please submit the following:

a) relevant bibliography and filmography



b) 200 word biographical notes followed by a detailed list of academic 
publications or professional accomplishments.
Flavia Laviosa
Senior Lecturer
Department of Italian Studies & Cinema and Media Studies Program
Director, Winter Session Study Abroad in Rome
Faculty Fellow, Madeleine Albright Institute for Global Affairs
Founder & Principal Editor, Journal of Italian Cinema and Media Studies
Certified Trainer and Tester ACTFL Italian OPI
Wellesley College, 106 Central Street
Wellesley, MA 02481-USA

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