Roberto Leoni | |
Birth Date: | 1940 11, df=y |
Birth Place: | Rome, Italy |
Death Place: | Rome, Italy |
Occupation: | Screenwriter, film director |
Roberto Leoni (16 November 1940 – 5 March 2024) was an Italian screenwriter and film director best known for such films as Santa Sangre (on Empire magazine's 2008 list of the 500 Greatest Movies Of All Time[1]); The Master Touch; Street People; Casablanca Express; California; and My Dear Killer.
Roberto Leoni was born in Rome and studied classics. While still a student at Sapienza University in Rome, he was awarded a grant by the C.U.T. (University Theatrical Center) and his collections of poems and short stories were published. An important producer made one of his short stories into a film, Eat It. His collection of poems won the Culture Award from the Italian Presidency of Ministries.
After serving as first AD for directors like Tonino Valerii and Luciano Salce, Leoni wrote and directed a number of feature and short films including: The Guardians, Es Knallt - und die Engel singen, Film Monaco, Dark Tale, On the Right Side, and The Great Artists (18X35') series. From August 2017, he reviewed new and classic movies in his talk show, Roberto Leoni Movie Reviews. His last feature film was De Serpentis Munere - The Serpent's Gift.
Leoni died on 5 March 2024, in Rome, at the age of 83.[2]