Telefoni Bianchi films, also called deco films, were made by the Italian film industry in the 1930s and the 1940s in imitation of American comedies of the time in a sharp contrast to the other important style of the era, calligrafismo, which was highly artistic. The cinema of Telefoni Bianchi was born from the success of the Italian film comedy of the early 1930s; it was a lighter version, cleansed of any intellectualism or veiled social criticism.
Il signor Max by Mario Camerini (1937)
Schoolgirl Diary by Mario Mattoli (1941)
Alessandro Blasetti
Mario Bonnard
The cinema of Italy comprises the films made within Italy or by Italian directors. Italy is one of the birthplaces of art cinema and the stylistic aspect of film has been one of the most important factors in the history of Italian film. As of 2018, Italian films have won 14 Academy Awards for Best Foreign Language Film as well as 12 Palmes d'Or, one Academy Award for Best Picture and many Golden Lions and Golden Bears.
The logo of Cines, with the Capitoline Wolf in the centre
Lost in the Dark by Nino Martoglio (1914), considered a precursor to the Italian neorealism movement of the 1940s and 1950s.
Quo Vadis (1913), regarded as one of the first blockbusters in the history of cinema
Cabiria (1914), the first epic film ever made
