Director Roberto Rossellini (1906-1977) was responsible for revitalizing Italian cinema after World War II with his neo-realist films, especially Roma, Citta Aperta (Rome, Open City; 1945). After a long, somewhat uneven career in cinema, Rossellini spent his last creative years working in television, one of the first important film directors to do so.

Rossellini was born on May 8, 1906, in Rome, Italy, into a wealthy family. His father was an architect. Rossellini and his siblings, including brother Renzo who later became a composer and scored many of his brother's films, were raised by nannies. Rossellini was primarily educated by tutors and did not attend university. As a young man, he became interested in film and contributed pieces to Cinema, a film magazine.

Rossellini began working in the film industry in 1934, learning every aspect from screenwriting to editing and dubbing. He soon began making his own films, spending a year, 1937-...