Lina Wertmüller

Lina Wertmüller is an Italian film director, screenwriter, and actress. She is the first woman to be nominated for an Academy Award for Best Director, for her 1975 film Seven Beauties.

Born in Rome in 1928, Wertmüller studied painting and sculpture at the Academy of Fine Arts in Rome. After graduating, she began working in theatre, writing and directing plays. She also wrote and directed television programs, including the popular sketch comedy show Stasera Pago Io.

Wertmüller's first feature film, Love and Anarchy, was released in 1973. The film tells the story of a young anarchist who falls in love with an aristocrat. The film was a critical success and established Wertmüller as an important voice in Italian cinema.

Her next film, Seven Beauties, was released in 1975 and earned her an Academy Award nomination for Best Director. The film tells the story of a petty criminal who is conscripted into the Italian army during World War II and must survive a series of comic and tragic encounters. The film was a critical and commercial success and cemented Wertmüller's status as a major world filmmaker.

In the 1980s, Wertmüller began to explore more political themes, including the struggles of the working class and the immigrant experience. Her films such as The End of the World in Our Usual Bed in a Night Full of Rain (1978) and Swept Away (1975) explored these issues with a unique blend of comedy and drama.

Wertmüller has continued to make films throughout her career, including the comedy What Time Is It? (1989), the drama Ferdinando and Carolina (1999), and the romantic comedy The Night of the Shooting Stars (1982). She has also continued to write and direct plays, and has acted in films such as Marriage Italian Style (1964).

Lina Wertmüller has been honoured for her contribution to Italian cinema, receiving a Golden Lion lifetime achievement award at the Venice Film Festival in 2000. She is an important figure in the history of world cinema and her films have been praised for their unique blend of comedy and drama.