Marina Cicogna has died in Rome at the age of 89.
The historic film producer was the first woman to establish herself in a predominantly male environment, producing some of the most important Italian films including Metti, una sera a cena (Love Circle) by Giuseppe Patroni Griffi and Indagine su un cittadino al di sopra di ogni sospetto (Investigation of a Citizen Above Suspicion) by Elio Petri, which won the 1971 Oscar for best foreign film.
Born in Rome on May 29, 1934, the undisputed icon of style, creativity and independence was the granddaughter of Count Giuseppe Volpi di Misurata, a Venetian who founded the Venice Film Festival in 1932.
Following graduation in Arts from Sarah Lawrence College in New York, she joined her family's Euro International Films and started selecting films to distribute in Italy before deciding to produce her own.
Her extraordinary experience and career are recounted in the 2021 documentary film Marina Cicogna. La vita e tutto il resto by Andrea Bettinetti and in the autobiography Ancora spero, published this year by Marsilio.
This year, she received the Lifetime Achievement Award during the 68th edition of the David di Donatello Italian film awards.
Her romantic partners included Alain Delon, Warren Beatty and actress Florinda Bolkan, with whom she spent over 20 years.
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