Tinto Brass | |
|---|---|
 Brass in 1990 | |
| Born | Giovanni Brass (1933-03-26)26 March 1933 (age 92) |
| Occupations | Film director and screenwriter |
| Years active | 1963–present |
| Height | 1.73 m (5 ft 8 in) |
| Political party | Italian Radicals |
| Spouses | |
| Awards | Venice Film Festival: Best Italian Film 1971. ForLa Vacanza. HRIFF: Award of Excellence 2012. For Brass' early works. |
| Website | www |
Giovanni "Tinto"Brass (born 26 March 1933) is an Italian film director and screenwriter. In the 1960s and 1970s, he directed many critically acclaimedavant-garde films of various genres. Today, he is mainly known for his later work in theerotic genre, with films such asCaligula,Così fan tutte (released under the English titleAll Ladies Do It),Paprika,Monella (Frivolous Lola) andTrasgredire.
In the 1960s and 1970s, Brass was considered a promising experimental andavant-garde director, and his debut filmWho Works Is Lost got very favorable reviews after screening atVenice Film Festival 1963.[1] In 1964, he was commissioned byUmberto Eco to create two short films experimenting with visual language for the 13thTriennale di Milano –Tempo Libero andTempo Lavorativo.[2] Throughout the 1960s and early 1970s, Brass directed films in many genres, including western (Yankee) and crime (Col cuore in gola), all using a very experimental editing- and camera-style.[3] In 1968, Warner Bros.[4][unreliable source?] offered Brass the job of directingA Clockwork Orange, which did not happen due to scheduling conflicts, and eventuallyStanley Kubrick was given the job.[5] In an article about the filming ofDropout from 1970, he was called the "Antonioni of the 70s".[6] His early period has been referred to as "rebellios [sic], anarchistic and experimental".[7]
L'urlo was shown in competition atBerlin Film Festival 1970.[8]La Vacanza, starringVanessa Redgrave andFranco Nero won the prize of the film critics for the best Italian film at 1971Venice Film Festival.[9][unreliable source?] In 1972, Brass was a member of the jury at the22nd Berlin International Film Festival.[10]
AfterSalon Kitty (1976) andCaligula (1979), the style of his films gradually changed towards erotic films.Caligula was originally supposed to be a satire on power instead of an erotic film, but the producers changed and re-edited the film entirely without Brass's consent, removing many political and comical scenes, and shooting sexually explicit sequences, to make the film a pornographic drama. The director demanded that his name be stricken from the credits, and he is only credited for "Principal Photography".[11] Despite this, the film remains his most widely viewed work (and the highest-grossing Italian film released in the United States). Other notable works of Brass's later period includeThe Key (1983) andSenso '45 (2002). He was making films into his seventies.[12]
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Brass' nicknameTintoretto (later shortened to Tinto) was given by his grandfather Italico Brass, a renownedGorizian painter.[13]
He was married to Carla Cipriani (b. 1930, nicknamed "Tinta"), from 1957 until her death in 2006. Carla was the daughter ofHarry's Bar founder Giuseppe Cipriani, who managed the restaurant Locanda Cipriani on the Venetian island ofTorcello and also collaborated as a screenwriter in Brass's films. The couple had a daughter, Beatrice, and a son, Bonifacio.[14]
After his wife's death, Brass began a relationship with lawyer Caterina Varzi (b. 1961) who starred in his 2009 short filmHotel Courbet. They married in 2017.[15]
As of 2010, Brass is politically affiliated with theItalian Radicals.[16]
On 18 April 2010, he suffered anintracranial hemorrhage.[17]
In 2012, Hollywood Reel Independent Film Festival did a retrospective on Brass' early 1960s and 1970s films, screening newly restored versions.[18]
| Year | Original title | International title | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1963 | Chi lavora è perduto | In capo al mondo | |
| 1964 | Ça ira - Il fiume della rivolta | Thermidor | Documentary |
| La mia signora | My Wife | Segments: "L'uccellino", "L'automobile" | |
| Il disco volante | The Flying Saucer | ||
| 1966 | Yankee | — | |
| 1967 | Col cuore in gola | I Am What I Am | |
| 1968 | L'urlo | The Howl | |
| 1969 | Nerosubianco | Attraction | |
| 1970 | Dropout | — | |
| 1971 | La vacanza | The Vacation | Also producer |
| 1972 | I Miss Sonia Henie | — | Short film |
| 1976 | Salon Kitty | — | |
| 1979 | Caligula | — | |
| 1980 | Action | — | |
| 1983 | La Chiave | The Key | |
| 1985 | Miranda | The Mistress of the Inn | |
| 1987 | Capriccio | Love & Passion,Capri Remembered | |
| 1988 | Snack Bar Budapest | — | |
| 1991 | Paprika | — | |
| 1992 | Così fan tutte | All Ladies Do It | |
| 1994 | L'uomo che guarda | The Voyeur | |
| 1995 | Fermo posta Tinto Brass | P.O. Box Tinto Brass | Also actor |
| 1998 | Monella | Frivolous Lola | |
| 2000 | Trasgredire | Cheeky | |
| 2001 | SCTMV (Sono come tu mi vuoi) | Know what this is about? | Short film; producer only |
| 2002 | Senso '45 | Black Angel | |
| 2003 | Fallo! | Do It!,Private | |
| 2006 | Monamour | — | |
| 2008 | Kick the Cock | — | Short film |
| 2009 | Hotel Courbet | — | Short film; also producer |
| 2022 | Chi ha ucciso Caligola | Who Killed Caligula? | Pre-production |
