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The Return of a Historical International Studio

The mere mention of Cinecittà Studios is bound to conjure up images of historical international productions that were housed at the iconic Italian studio in the 1950s and 1960s, such as Oscar-winning Ben-Hur, Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton starrer Cleopatra and Mervyn LeRoy’s ancient Rome epic Quo Vadis. At the time, the vast studios located in south-east Rome, benefited from hefty investment from the Marshall Plan, a U.S.-sponsored program designed to rehabilitate economies of western and southern Europe post World War II. This investment saw the studio become a hugely attractive destination for Hollywood films and ultimately led to Cinecittà being nicknamed Hollywood on the Tiber.

But now, after decades of ups and downs, Cinecittà is poising itself to reclaim its top spot on the global film stage. The studio has plans for a radical upgrade and expansion and this, coupled with Italy’s generous 40% tax credit, have seen occupancy in the studios go from 30% to 100% in the last two years, according to Cinecittà CEO Nicola Maccanico, who has been leading the revamp since he joined the company in 2021.

“Big Hollywood productions are coming to shoot significant parts of their projects at Cinecittà and they are staying longer than ever.”
~ Nicola Maccanico
~ CEO of Cinecittà S.p.A.

Maccanico, who cinched a multi-million-dollar loan from the European Union’s post-pandemic recovery fund, says that a huge amount of “big Hollywood productions are coming to shoot significant parts of their projects at Cinecittà and they are staying longer than ever.” In the last year, projects such as Roland Emmerich’s gladiator series Those About to Die, Luca Guadagnino’s recently wrapped Daniel Craig starrer Queer, as well as Edward Berger’s upcoming British thriller Conclave, starring Stanley Tucci, Ralph Fiennes and Isabella Rossellini, are just some of the titles to have set up camp at Cinecittà.

British director Joe Wright’s Benito Mussolini drama series M. Son of the Century, which follows the rise of fascism led by the Italian dictator in the early 20th Century, has also based itself at the Roman studio. It stars Luca Marinelli and is being produced by Sky and Fremantle. Angelina Jolie-directed Without Blood, starring Salma Hayek, also lensed on Cinecittà stages while Book Club 2 with Jane Fonda, Mary Steenburgen, Diane Keaton and Candice Bergen booked into the studios this year as well.

Antoine Fuqua’s Equalizer 3 with Denzel Washington and Dakota Fanning and Guadagnino’s Challengers with Zendaya and Josh O’Connor are just a few more of the international productions that touched down at Cinecittà in the last year. The studio also recreated parts of the Vatican for Paolo Sorrentino’s hit HBO show The Young Pope while George Clooney shot his Hulu series Catch 22 a few years ago.

Furthermore, three films that recently shot at Cinecittà are in competition at this year’s Venice Film Festival: Edoardo De Angelis’ The Commander, which is opening the festival; Pietro Castellito’s Enea; and Saverio Costanzo’s Finalmente L’Alba.

“Three films shot in Cinecittà are in competition at the Venice Film Festival, directed by talented directors who are as different in style as they are similar in their ability to arouse emotions and it’s a reason of pride for our cinema and a satisfaction for those working on the project of creating an ever larger and more relevant Cinecittà,” says Maccanico.

“It is also the confirmation of how stronger and more competitive studios contribute to the making of movies of greater quality and ambition. This can be seen as a first fantastic creative result of an industrial plan leading Cinecittà to grow and take our cinema to the international level it deserves.”

For all national and international productions, a great contribution is given by the extraordinary and unique capacity of Cinecittà’s art department, which provides productions with an ecosystem of artisans, talents and craftsmen of the highest level and who are capable of recreating any setting and era with skill and authenticity. This is a fundamental asset for the development of the plot of each title.

In addition, Cinecittà is launching a project for the recycling and resale of whole sets or parts of them. It’s an exclusive boutique that guarantees cost and time efficiency to production, whilst also being more environmentally friendly and sustainable.

Since the former Warner Bros. and Sky Italia executive Maccanico joined two years ago, he’s led the company on a mission to reboot itself and attract international talent that will lead the studio back to its glory days. The studio is leading the charge for Italy’s wider mission and recent shakeup of its film and TV sector, which is hoping to increase

inward investment from foreign projects with its competitive 40% tax credit. Indeed, with studio space at a premium across Europe and beyond, Cinecittà is planning to rival the likes of UK’s Pinewood Studios and Germany’s Studio Babelsberg in its comprehensive offerings from sound stages, backlots and top-notch services.

As it stands, the 99-acre lot situated in the southeast of Rome currently has more than 200,000 square feet across 19 stages and more than 230,000 square feet of facilities. There are four 15,000 square foot stages, nine 8,000 square foot stages and six further 5,000 square foot stages as well as a 25-acre backlot for set construction.

To boot, Cinecittà currently boasts one of Europe’s largest LED wall inside its T18 stage for virtual production needs. It’s renowned for its skilled art departments and craftsmen with more than 3,000 props currently available and has audio and post-production departments as well as film restoration labs.

“Cinecittà’s ability to attract major film and television productions is in our DNA,” says Maccanico. “In the last few years, we’ve been able build back what once first put us on the global map by having the capacity to attract international talent and ensure a steadier level of productions as we move forward to the next chapter of our history.”

“It is also the confirmation of how stronger and more competitive studios contribute to the making of movies of greater quality and ambition. This can be seen as a first fantastic creative result of an industrial plan leading Cinecittà to grow and take our cinema to the international level it deserves.”

For all national and international productions, a great contribution is given by the extraordinary and unique capacity of Cinecittà’s art department, which provides productions with an ecosystem of artisans, talents and craftsmen of the highest level and who are capable of recreating any setting and era with skill and authenticity. This is a fundamental asset for the development of the plot of each title.

In addition, Cinecittà is launching a project for the recycling and resale of whole sets or parts of them. It’s an exclusive boutique that guarantees cost and time efficiency to production, whilst also being more environmentally friendly and sustainable.

Since the former Warner Bros. and Sky Italia executive Maccanico joined two years ago, he’s led the company on a mission to reboot itself and attract international talent that will lead the studio back to its glory days. The studio is leading the charge for Italy’s wider mission and recent shakeup of its film and TV sector, which is hoping to increaseinward investment from foreign projects with its competitive 40% tax credit. Indeed, with studio space at a premium across Europe and beyond, Cinecittà is planning to rival the likes of UK’s Pinewood Studios and Germany’s Studio Babelsberg in its comprehensive offerings from sound stages, backlots and top-notch services.
As it stands, the 99-acre lot situated in the southeast of Rome currently has more than 200,000 square feet across 19 stages and more than 230,000 square feet of facilities. There are four 15,000 square foot stages, nine 8,000 square foot stages and six further 5,000 square foot stages as well as a 25-acre backlot for set construction.

To boot, Cinecittà currently boasts one of Europe’s largest LED wall inside its T18 stage for virtual production needs. It’s renowned for its skilled art departments and craftsmen with more than 3,000 props currently available and has audio and post-production departments as well as film restoration labs.

“Cinecittà’s ability to attract major film and television productions is in our DNA,” says Maccanico. “In the last few years, we’ve been able build back what once first put us on the global map by having the capacity to attract international talent and ensure a steadier level of productions as we move forward to the next chapter of our history.”