Riccardo Freda

Riccardo Freda (24 February 1909 – 20 December 1999) was an Italian film director. He worked in a variety of genres, including sword-and-sandal, horror, giallo and spy films.^[2][3]

Riccardo Freda
Riccardo Freda on the set of I Vampiri[1]
Born	(1909-02-24)24 February 1909 Alexandria, Egypt
Died	20 December 1999(1999-12-20) (aged 90) Rome, Italy
Spouse	Gianna Maria Canale

Freda began directing I Vampiri in 1956.^[4] The film became the first Italian sound horror film production.

Biography

Riccardo Freda was born in 1909 in Alexandria, Egypt to Italian parents.^[2][5] Freda attended school in Milan where he took art classes at the Centro Sperimantale.^[2] After school he took on work as a sculptor and art critic.^[2]

Film career

Freda first began working in the film industry in 1937 and directed his first film Don Cesare di Bazan in 1942.^[2] Freda began directing I Vampiri.^[6][7][8] I Vampiri was the first Italian horror film of the sound era, following the lone silent horror film Il mostro di Frankenstein (1920)^[9][10] A wave of Italian horror productions did not follow until Mario Bava's film Black Sunday was released internationally.^[9][11][12]

Freda died on 20 December 1999 in Rome.^[3]

Filmography

Title	Year	Credited as				Notes	Ref(s)
		Director	Writer	Editor	Other
Lasciate ogni speranza	1937		Yes				[13]
L'allegro cantante	1938		Yes				[13][14]
Fuochi d'artificio			Yes				[14]
La voce senza volto	1939		Yes				[14]
Piccoli naufraghi			Yes		Yes	Assistant director	[14][15]
Il cavaliere di San Marco			Yes				[15]
In the Country Fell a Star			Yes		Yes	Collaborator to direction	[16][17]
Fascino	1940			Yes			[16]
Il barone di Corbò			Yes				[16]
La granduchessa si diverte			Yes				[17]
Cento lettere d'amore			Yes				[17]
Lucky Night	1941		Yes				[17][18]
Caravaggio, il pittore maledetto			Yes		Yes	Collaboration to the making	[18]
L'avventuriera del piano di sopra			Yesa	Yes			[18][19]
Don Cesare di Bazan	1942	Yes	Yes		Yes	Producer	[20]
L'abito nero da sposa	1945		Yes				[19]
Non canto più		Yes	Yes				[20]
Tutta la città canta		Yes	Yes	Yes		Story	[20]
07... Tassì		Yes		Yes			[19]
The Black Eagle	1946	Yes	Yes		Yes	Story	[21]
Les Misérables	1948	Yes	Yes				[22]
The Mysterious Rider		Yes	Yes		Yes	Story	[23]
O caçula do barulho	1949	Yes	Yes		Yes	Story	[23][24]
The Iron Swordsman		Yes	Yes				[24]
Guarany	1950	Yes	Yes	Yes		Story	[24][25]
The Gay Swordsman		Yes	Yes		Yes	Story	[25]
L'astuto barone		Yes	Yes			Short film	[26]
Magia a prezzi modici	1951	Yes				Short film	[25][26]
Double Cross		Yes	Yes				[26]
Tenori per forza		Yes	Yes			Short film	[26][27]
Revenge of Black Eagle		Yes	Yes		Yes	Story	[27]
See Naples and Die	1952	Yes					[27]
La Leggenda del Piave		Yes	Yes				[28]
Sins of Rome	1953	Yes					[28]
Theodora, Slave Empress	1954	Yes	Yes		Yes	Story, general manager	[29]
I mosaici di Ravenna		Yes		Yes			[30]
Da qui all'eredità	1955	Yes	Yes				[30]
Beatrice Cenci	1956	Yes		Yes		Story	[30]
I Vampiri	1957	Yes	Yes		Yes	Actor (Autopsy doctor)	[31]
Trapped in Tangiers		Yes	Yes		Yes	Story	[32]
Sheba and the Gladiator	1959				Yes	2nd unit director–battle scenes	[33]
The White Warrior		Yes	Yes	Yes			[32]
Caltiki – The Immortal Monster		Yes	Yes				[34]
The Giants of Thessaly	1960	Yes	Yes				[34][35]
The Mongols	1961				Yes	Director–battle scenes	[33]
Samson and the Seven Miracles of the World		Yes					[35]
Caccia all'uomo		Yes					[36]
Marco Polo	1962				Yes	Director–battle scenesc	[37]
Alone Against Rome					Yes	Director–Arena sequences	[38]
Seven Seas to Calais					Yes	Editor–naval battle scened	[38][39]
The Witch's Curse		Yes					[40]
The Horrible Dr. Hichcock		Yes					[40][41]
The Seventh Sword		Yes	Yes		Yes	Story	[41]
Gold for the Caesars	1963				Yes	2nd unit directore	[39]
The Ghost		Yes	Yes				[41][42]
The Magnificent Adventurer		Yes			Yes	Story	[42][43]
Romeo e Giulietta	1964	Yes	Yes				[43]
Genoveffa di Brabante		Yes	Yes		Yes	Story	[43][44]
The Two Orphans	1965	Yes	Yes				[44]
Coplan FX 18 casse tout		Yes					[44][45]
Trap for the Assassin	1966	Yes		Yes			[45]
Mexican Slayride	1967	Yes					[46]
La morte non conta i dollari		Yes					[46][47]
Double Face	1969	Yes	Yes				[47]
Tamar Wife of Er	1970	Yes					[48]
L'iguana dalla lingua di fuoco	1971	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Story	[48][49]
Tragic Ceremony	1972	Yes					[49]
Murder Obsession	1981	Yes	Yes	Yes			[50]
Un tour de manège	1989				Yes	Actor (Riccardo the film director)	[51]
Revenge of the Musketeers	1994				Yes	Based on "an idea by Freda and Éric Poindron	[51][52]

Notes

• ^ ^a Freda has denied having taken part in writing the script for this film, despite being credited.^[19]
• ^ ^b Freda was originally to direct the film but stated that he walked off the set on the first day of shooting.^[33]
• ^ ^c Freda name is not in the credits but some sources state he directed several battles scenes in the film, which Freda denies.^[33]
• ^ ^d Freda name is not in the credits but some sources state he edited the naval battle scenes in the film, which Freda denies.^[38][39]
• ^ ^e Freda has claimed to have shot the entire film.^[38][39]