Looking for an unusual activity while visiting Rome?
Here is a suggestion to make your Roman Holidays a unique and funny adventure!
Since 2011 the famous Cinecittà Studios in Rome, where several national and international movies have been filmed, have opened to the public with the Cinecittà Shows Off project, a cultural initiative that enhances the historical and architectural heritage of the Cinecittà Studios, allowing visitors to experience in person the exhibition halls with movie costumes, pictures and objects and the permanent sets of great movies and TV shows! This unique project provides indeed public access to the Roman Dream Factory dividing the touring experience into two distinct phases: the visit to the exhibitions in the historical buildings and the visit to the permanent sets.
THE EXHIBITION
The exhibition is divided into three different parts, offering an interactive approach to the history of the Studios, with a particular focus on the Italian and International cinema productions and trades. The tours to this part of the studios can be arranged independently. Visitors can explore the exhibitions as long as they want on their own, watching videos, reading fun facts, enjoying photographs and interacting with multimedia contents without the support of a guide!
Because Cinecittà (1937-1943) is the first exhibition path that explores the birth of Cinecittà studios from the Thirties to the Second World War: before it became the core of the Italian film industry, Cinecittà Studios was the propaganda playground of Mussolini under the not-so-subtle cinema slogan ”Il cinema è l’arma più forte” (Cinema is the most powerful weapon). After housing early classics fascist-era films, the studio suffered greatly along with the rest of Europe during WWII, survived bombing by the Allies and was used as a camp for displaced war refugees.
Shooting In Cinecittà (1943-1990) is the second route and it explores the making of the most important national and international productions that have contributed to the history of cinema and to the immortal legend of Cinecittà studios. In the post-war period the cinema flourished once more. Ben Hur, Gangs of New York, and Federico Fellini’s classics La Dolce Vita and Satyricon are some of the great movies that were shot at Cinecittà. The studios were indeed worldwide known for its elaborate sets and the ability to hold thousands of extras for those epic battle scenes moviegoers love! A set has been created to allow visitors immerse in the history of great movies and film genres, hear stories and discover fun facts through a selection of images, videos, interviews and original costumes worn by such movie stars as Liz Taylor, Totò, Claudia Cardinale, Richard Burton and many others. The exhibition itinerary ends with an area dedicated to a masterpiece from Sergio Leone with a setting inspired by Once Upon a Time in America, in which scenes from Leone’s cult movies are screened all around.
Backstage – Cinecittà’s Educational Route The third route offers a glimpse into the various cinema trades, with six rooms dedicated to film direction, screenwriting, sound editing, costumes and visual effects. The visit to this part of the exhibition ends with the entrance into the submarine from the movie U-571 directed by Jonathan Mostow, where visitors are totally immersed in a real film set.
THE PERMANENT SETS
Cinecittà studios consists indeed of 19 indoor theatres and many other outdoor sets that are temporarily set up for film and television productions. There are three large permanent sets that can be explored only with the presence of a guide from the Educational Department who will accompany the visitors through the itinerary sharing with them all the secrets and stories of the productions shot there.
- THE SET OF ANCIENT ROME, built for the HBO Rome TV series , is one of the largest sets of Cinecittà and expands over four hectares. The scenography presents the classical ensemble of the main civil and religious buildings of the Roman Forum and is a unique change for the visitors to discover how looked the original buildings of the Republican Rome.
- THE SET OF THE TEMPLE OF JERUSALEM was created by Francesco Frigeri, formerly set designer in Mel Gibson’s The Passion, for the film The young Messiah of 2016 directed by Cyrus Nowrasteh. In the realization of the Temple the scenographer mixed different styles, influences and architectures: Babylonian, Assyrian and Northern Yemen. The structure is made of fiberglass and has a very realistic effect as the set designer worked with the sculptors on the realism of the materials, on the decorative details and on the sculptural forms, creating stone casts to obtain a verisimilitude.
- THE FLORENCE SET OF THE QUATTROCENTO was initially created for the Italian television series Francesco di 2002 by Michele Soavi starring Raoul Bova. In 2012, part of the set was adapted to recreate the city of Verona for the filming of Romeo and Juliet, a film directed by Carlo Carlei and interpreted by actors such as Damian Lewis, Paul Giamatti, Hailee Steinfeld. In 2015 the set underwent a further change for the movie The young Messiah and a part of the set was transformed into a setting of the time of Jesus.
What are you waiting for? Immerse yourself in the world of Italian cinema at Cinecittà, Rome’s renowned film studio, and unveil all the secrets of set technology, craftsman, costume design and moviemaking!
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INFO
CINECITTÀ SHOWS OFF PROJECT
Via Tuscolana 1055 – 00173 Roma – Italia
Metro A – Stop name: Cinecittà
Open daily (except Tuesdays), from 9.30 to 18.30. The ticket office closes at 16.30.
For individual visitors and families, no advanced booking is necessary for the guided tours.
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