[Commlist] Call for Papers: ‘The Tyranny of Truth: The Cinema of Gillo Pontecorvo’

Call for Papers: Journal of Italian Cinema & Media Studies


Special Issue: ‘The Tyranny of Truth: The Cinema of Gillo Pontecorvo’

CFP for a guest-edited issue of the Journal of Italian Cinema & Media 
Studies

Guest-editor Fabio Pezzetti Tonion

Museo Nazionale del Cinema


View the full call here>>

https://www.intellectbooks.com/journal-of-italian-cinema-media-studies#call-for-papers 
<https://www.intellectbooks.com/journal-of-italian-cinema-media-studies#call-for-papers>

Gillo Pontecorvo (1919–2006) has a relatively low profile in Italian 
cinema, partly due to the small number of films he made. Indeed, setting 
aside his twelve documentaries, Pontecorvo directed only six films 
between 1956 and 1979; the projects that never materialized were far 
greater in number. His films reflect a desire to observe history as it 
unfolds, using a method that problematizes objective facts in order to 
go beyond their surface, beyond the ideological masks that conceal the 
past and allow for its possible misinterpretation. Guided by his 
cultural background, participation in the Italian Resistance and 
membership in the Italian Communist Party (PCI), Pontecorvo aimed to 
uncover the heart and truth of events. His description of social 
contexts in Giovanna(1956) and La grande strada azzurra (The Wide Blue 
Road) (1957), his engagement with defining events of the twentieth 
century – from the experience of concentration camps in Kapò(Kapo) 
(1960) to the process of decolonisation in La battaglia di Algeri(The 
Battle of Algiers) (1966) – his criticism of colonialism and imperialism 
in Queimada(Burn!) (1969) and his analysis of terrorism in Ogro(1979) 
all reveal an approach to filmmaking driven by a ‘tyranny of truth’, 
grounded in meticulous research.

The Gillo Pontecorvo Archive is housed in the Museo Nazionale del Cinema 
(National Museum of Cinema) in Turin. This collection of archival 
documents, photographs, magazines, articles, newspaper clippings and 
publicity materials spans the director’s entire career, covering every 
phase of production on his completed films, as well as many unrealized 
projects. Equally important are the materials attesting to Pontecorvo’s 
activity as a cultural organizer, director of the Venice Film Festival 
(1992–94) and head of Ente Cinema (1996–99). Lastly, the archive 
includes sections devoted to his role in the Resistance and the Italian 
Communist Party, along with his work for the militant periodical Pattuglia.

Drawing on the materials in the Pontecorvo Archive, a special issue of 
the Journal of Italian Cinema & Media Studieswill be dedicated to the 
films and career of Gillo Pontecorvo. Possible subjects for 
contributions to this issue include but are not limited to:

·  Fictional films

·  Documentary films

·  Unrealised projects for films and documentaries

·  Film projects completed by other filmmakers

·  Pontecorvo’s role as director of the Venice Film Festival

·  Pontecorvo’s role as head of Ente Cinema

·  Pontecorvo’s role in the Resistance, in France and in Italy

·  Pontecorvo’s relationship with the Italian Communist Party (PCI)

·  Pontecorvo’s activity as a journalist

· Pontecorvo and his relationship with music

Please submit a proposal (between 350 and 500 words) for an original and 
unpublished contribution based on the study of documents in the 
Pontecorvo Archive, housed at the Museo Nazionale del Cinema (National 
Museum of Cinema) in Turin, along with a brief biographical note (about 
150 words), to Fabio Pezzetti Tonion at (pezzetti /at/ museocinema.it) 
<mailto:(pezzetti /at/ museocinema.it)>by 30 June 2025.

You can find the inventory of the Pontecorvo Archive at this address: 
http://www2.museocinema.it/collezioni/fondiarchivistici.aspx 
<http://www2.museocinema.it/collezioni/fondiarchivistici.aspx>


In the ‘Search Collection’ dropdown, please select ‘Fondo Gillo Pontecorvo’.

The authors of successful submissions will be notified by 20thJuly 2025. 
The selected contributors will be asked to submit their complete 
articles by 16thJanuary 2026. The articles will undergo peer review and, 
if accepted, they will be published in a special issue of the Journal of 
Italian Cinema & Media Studies.


Fabio Pezzetti Tonionis librarian at the Museo Nazionale del Cinema 
(National Museum of Cinema) in Turin. He holds a PhD in Artistic, 
Musical and Performing Arts Disciplines.He has published essays in 
Italian and international journals such as La Valle dell'Eden, Bianco e 
Nero, Fata Morgana, North-West Passage, Arabeschi, and Acta Sapientiae.  
He is member of AISRC - Associazione Italiana per le Ricerche di Storia 
del Cinema, and a member of the Editorial Board of Immagine - Note di 
Storia del Cinema.

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