Italian director. He made his debut as an actor in small roles in 1960 in the film Rocco and His Brothers by Luchino Visconti, and in Risate di gioia by Mario Monicelli; in this film he met Anna Magnani who advised him to dedicate himself to directing. In the sixties he worked as a production assistant with Riccardo Freda, Roberto Rossellini, Alessandro Blasetti, Joseph Losey and was assistant director to