Carlo Lizzani Revived Venice Film Festival After 1968 Protests

(MENAFN- USA Art News) Following a decade of aimlessness triggered by the 1968 student protests, director and writer Carlo Lizzani revitalized the Venice Film Festival when he assumed leadership in 1979. His efforts pulled the world's oldest film festival back from the brink of irrelevance.

The festival's initial years were closely linked to the Fascist government, co-founded by Giuseppe Volpi, Mussolini's minister of finance. In 1930, the entire Venice Biennale, which had run since 1895, became autonomous from the municipality, bringing it under direct fascist cultural control. The first competitive year, 1934, saw films vie for the Coppa Mussolini, or Mussolini Cup.

By the 1950s, the festival flourished, showcasing international cinema and introducing Indian and Japanese films to Western audiences. Akira Kurosawa won the Golden Lion in 1951 for Rashomon, and Satyajit Ray received the same award in 1957 for Aparajito. Under director Luigi Chiarini, the festival continued strongly into the 1960s, with Chiarini known for resisting political pressure and enforcing strict aesthetic criteria.

However, the 1968 protests, spurred by counterculture movements and the Soviet invasion of Czechoslovakia just days before the festival's opening on August 25, 1968, dramatically impacted the event. Students and other demonstrators, with a strong police presence, criticized the festival as“Mostra fascista?” (“A fascist festival?”) and“bourgeois,” demanding Chiarini's resignation and self-management by filmmakers. Chiarini resigned by the end of that year's festival. The subsequent decade saw no Golden Lions awarded, and the festival was canceled entirely in 1973 and 1978, overshadowed by Cannes.

When Lizzani took over in 1979, he had only three months to prepare for a festival with a smaller budget and a tarnished reputation. Instead of reverting to old formats or imitating Cannes' commercial approach, Lizzani forged a new path. He expanded programming with new sections to embrace both experimental and commercial cinema. The Officina section featured experimental works, while Mezzogiorno–Mezzanotte (“Midday–Midnight”) incorporated popular blockbusters like Raiders of the Lost Ark.

The Golden Lion award was reinstated in 1980 after a 12-year hiatus. The Washington Post reported that year that Lizzani was largely responsible for the festival's turnaround, also crediting American graphic designer Milton Glaser for designing a new winged lion trophy. Lizzani's vision was significantly shaped by critic Enzo Ungari, who advocated for programming that blended diverse cinematic styles. Last year, the festival received 4,580 film submissions, with 21 entering the main competition.

Source: Observer Arts

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