Edoardo Ponti (born 6 January 1973) is an Italian director. He is the younger son of actress

Sophia Loren Sofia Costanza Brigida Villani Scicolone (; born 20 September 1934), known professionally as Sophia Loren ( , ), is an Italian actress. She was named by the American Film Institute as one of the greatest female stars of Classical Hollywood ci ...

and producer Carlo Ponti Sr. and the brother of conductor Carlo Ponti Jr.

Early life

Ponti was born on 6 January 1973 in

Geneva Geneva ( ; french: Genève ) frp, Genèva ; german: link=no, Genf ; it, Ginevra ; rm, Genevra is the List of cities in Switzerland, second-most populous city in Switzerland (after Zürich) and the most populous city of Romandy, the French-speaki ...

, Switzerland. Ponti's mother is

, the actress. Ponti's father is Carlo Ponti Sr., a

film producer A film producer is a person who oversees film production. Either employed by a production company or working independently, producers plan and coordinate various aspects of film production, such as selecting the script, coordinating writing, di ...

. Ponti grew up in

, Switzerland.

Education

Ponti studied at

Aiglon College Aiglon College is a private co-educational boarding school in Switzerland, broadly modelled on British boarding school lines. It is an independent, non-profit school located in the Swiss Alps. It is located 60 km from Lausanne in the alpine vil ...

in Switzerland and graduated in 1990. In 1994, Ponti graduated magna cum laude from the

University of Southern California The University of Southern California (USC, SC, or Southern Cal) is a Private university, private research university in Los Angeles, California, United States. Founded in 1880 by Robert M. Widney, it is the oldest private research university in C ...

with a Bachelor of Arts degree in English Literature and Creative Writing. In 1998, Ponti earned his Master of Fine Arts degree in Film Directing & Production from the University of Southern California School of Cinema and Television.

Career

Between Strangers ''Between Strangers'' is a 2002 film written and directed by Edoardo Ponti. It stars an ensemble cast including Sophia Loren, Mira Sorvino, Deborah Kara Unger, Pete Postlethwaite, Klaus Maria Brandauer, and Malcolm McDowell. It premiered at the ...

'' was the first feature film which Ponti wrote and directed. It was produced by

Gabriella Martinelli Gabriella Martinelli is a Canadian film and television producer. She is president and CEO of Toronto-based Capri Films Inc., a vertically integrated production and distribution company that she founded in 2000. Born in Italy, Martinelli emigrate ...

and starred an ensemble cast which included

(his mother),

Mira Sorvino Mira Katherine Sorvino (; born September 28, 1967) is an American actress. She won the Academy Award and Golden Globe for Best Supporting Actress for her performance in Woody Allen's ''Mighty Aphrodite'' (1995). She also starred in the films ...

Deborah Kara Unger Deborah Kara Unger (born 12 May 1966) is a Canadian actress. She is known for her roles in the films '' Highlander III: The Sorcerer'' (1994), ''Crash'' (1996), '' The Game'' (1997), '' Payback'' (1999), '' The Hurricane'' (1999), ''White Noise ...

Gérard Depardieu Gérard Xavier Marcel Depardieu, CQ (, , ; born 27 December 1948) is a French actor, filmmaker, businessman and vineyard owner since 1989 who is one of the most prolific thespians in film history having completed over 250 films since 1967 alm ...

Pete Postlethwaite Peter William Postlethwaite, (7 February 1946 – 2 January 2011) was an English character actor. After minor television appearances, including in '' The Professionals'', his first major success arose through the British autobiographical film ...

, and

Malcolm McDowell Malcolm McDowell (born Malcolm John Taylor; 13 June 1943) is a British actor, producer, and television presenter. He is best known for portraying Alex DeLarge in ''A Clockwork Orange.'' He was born in the Horsforth suburb of Leeds and raised in ...

. The film premiered at the Venice and Toronto International Film Festivals. It won five Genie nominations, the Canadian equivalent to the Academy Award. Ponti earned the best first-time filmmaker award from the

Newport Beach Film Festival The Newport Beach Film Festival (NBFF) is an annual film festival in Newport Beach, California, typically held in late April. In 2022, it was announced that the festival have permanently changed its date to be held in October, as the festival beg ...

, as well as an award of merit from the Los Angeles Italian Film Festival. In 2011, Ponti wrote and directed the romantic comedy ''Coming & Going'' starring

Rhys Darby Rhys Montague Darby (born 21 March 1974) is a New Zealand actor and comedian, known for his energetic physical comedy routines, telling stories accompanied with mime and sound effects of things such as machinery and animals. He was nominated for ...

Fionnula Flanagan Fionnghuala Manon "Fionnula" Flanagan (born 10 December 1941) is an Irish stage, television, and film actress. For her contributions to the entertainment industry, she was given the IFTA Lifetime Achievement Award in 2012. Flanagan is known f ...

, and

Sasha Alexander Sasha Alexander (born Suzana Drobnjakovic on May 17, 1973), is an American actress and TV director. She played Gretchen Witter in ''Dawson's Creek'' and has acted in films including '' Yes Man'' (2008) and ''He's Just Not That Into You'' (20 ...

, as well as ''Away we Stay'', a branded short for W Hotel Chain starring

Helena Christensen Helena Christensen (born 25 December 1968) is a Danish model and photographer. She is a former Victoria's Secret Angel, clothing designer and beauty queen. Christensen was also the co-founder and original creative director for ''Nylon'' magazine, ...

and

David Gandy David James Gandy (born 19 February 1980) is an English male fashion model who began his career after winning a televised model-search competition. For several years, Gandy was the lead male model for Italian designers Dolce & Gabbana who featur ...

, which premiered in London. In 2012, Ponti directed, ''Il Turno di Notte lo fanno le stelle'', his first Italian-language film, written by

Erri De Luca Enrico "Erri" De Luca (born 20 May 1950, Naples) is an Italian novelist, translator and poet. He has been recognized by critic Giorgio De Rienzo of '' Corriere della Sera'' as "the writer of the decade". He is also known for his opposition to t ...

, and starring

Nastassja Kinski Nastassja Aglaia Kinski (; , ; born 24 January 1961) is a German actress and former model who has appeared in more than 60 films in Europe and the United States. Her worldwide breakthrough was with ''Stay as You Are'' (1978). She then came to gl ...

Enrico Lo Verso Enrico Lo Verso (born 18 January 1964) is an Italian actor. He studied acting at Centro Sperimentale di Cinematografia and ''INDA, Istituto Nazionale del Dramma Antico''. Filmography * ''Atto di dolore'' (1990) * '' A Season of Giants'' (1990) ...

, and

Julian Sands Julian Richard Morley Sands''Births, Marriages & Deaths Index of England & Wales, ...

. The same year, he starred as an actor in Michel Comte's directorial debut, a film adaptation of ''Madam Butterly'', in which he played the lead character, Pinkerton. In 2014, he directed ''Voce umana'' (''Human Voice''), a short film adaptation of

Jean Cocteau Jean Maurice Eugène Clément Cocteau (, , ; 5 July 1889 – 11 October 1963) was a French poet, playwright, novelist, designer, filmmaker, visual artist and critic. He was one of the foremost creatives of the su ...

’s one-act play ''

The Human Voice ''The Human Voice'' (french: La voix humaine) is a monodrama first staged at the Comédie-Française in 1930, written two years earlier by Jean Cocteau. It is set in Paris, where a still-quite-young woman is on the phone with her lover of the l ...

'', starring Sophia Loren. He was also attached to direct the British motion picture ''Payment Deferred'' starring

based on

CS Forester Cecil Louis Troughton Smith (27 August 1899 – 2 April 1966), known by his pen name Cecil Scott "C. S." Forester, was an English novelist known for writing tales of naval warfare, such as the 12-book Horatio Hornblower series depicting a Royal ...

’s bestselling novel and the period piece ''Behind her Smile'' produced by

Fred Roos Frederick Ried Roos (born May 22, 1934) is an American film producer. Biography Fred Roos was born on May 22, 1934, in Santa Monica, California, the son of Florence Mary (née Stout) and Victor Otto Roos. He attended Hollywood High School and sub ...

. Ponti’s past film credits include a starring role in the film ''Aurora'' directed by

Maurizio Ponzi Maurizio Ponzi (born 8 May 1939) is an Italian film director, screenwriter and cinema critic. Born in Rome, he wrote cinema reviews in several Italian magazines during the early 1960s. He worked as assistant director in Pier Paolo Pasolini's e ...

, for which he earned a "Nastro d’Argento" nomination, Italy's prestigious film critics' prize. The first short Ponti wrote and directed entitled ''Liv'' was executive produced by

Robert Altman Robert Bernard Altman ( ; February 20, 1925 – November 20, 2006) was an American film director, screenwriter, and producer. He was a five-time nominee of the Academy Award for Best Director and is considered an enduring figure from the New H ...

and

Michelangelo Antonioni Michelangelo Antonioni (, ; 29 September 1912 – 30 July 2007) was an Italian filmmaker. He is best known for directing his "trilogy on modernity and its discontents"—''L'Avventura'' (1960), ''La Notte'' (1961), and ''L'Eclisse'' (1962 ...

, and was premiered at the

Venice International Film Festival The Venice Film Festival or Venice International Film Festival ( it, Mostra Internazionale d'Arte Cinematografica della Biennale di Venezia, "International Exhibition of Cinematographic Art of the Venice Biennale") is an annual film festival he ...

. Ponti also produced and directed Eugène Ionesco's play ''The Lesson''. He then went on to adapt for the stage, produce, and direct

Nick Bantock Nick Bantock (born 14 July 1949) is a British artist and author based in Saltspring Island, British Columbia, known for his series, '' The Griffin and Sabine Trilogy''. His books are published by Raincoast Books in Canada and Chronicle Books in ...

’s best-selling epistolary trilogy ''Griffin & Sabine'' at the Spoleto Theatre Festival in Italy. He wrote and directed an opera with renowned Polish composer

Zbigniew Preisner Zbigniew Preisner (; born 20 May 1955 as Zbigniew Antoni Kowalski) is a Polish film score composer, best known for his work with film director Krzysztof Kieślowski. He is the recipient of the Gold Medal for Merit to Culture – Gloria Artis as we ...

, entitled '' Requiem for my Friend'' for which Warner Bros. awarded Ponti a platinum record. Ponti next directed ''

The Life Ahead ''The Life Ahead'' ( it, La vita davanti a sé) is a 2020 Italian drama film directed by Edoardo Ponti, from a screenplay by Ponti and Ugo Chiti. It is the third screen adaptation of the 1975 novel ''The Life Before Us'' by Romain Gary. It stars ...

'' starring Loren, Ibrahima Gueye, Abril Zamora,

Renato Carpentieri Renato Carpentieri (born 2 April 1943) is an Italian actor, stage director and playwright. Life and career Born in Savignano Irpino, Avellino, Carpentieri studied architecture in Naples, where from 1965 to 1974 he was engaged in the organizatio ...

and

Babak Karimi Babak Karimi ( fa, بابک کریمی, born 1960) is a Czech-Iranian actor. For his role in ''A Separation'', he won the Silver Bear for Best Actor at the 61st Berlin International Film Festival in 2011. Filmography Film * ''Tickets'' (2 ...

, based upon the novel '' The Life Before Us'' by

Romain Gary Romain Gary (; 2 December 1980), born Roman Kacew (, and also known by the pen name Émile Ajar), was a French novelist, diplomat, film director, and World War II aviator. He is the only author to have won the Prix Goncourt under two names. He i ...

, for

Netflix Netflix, Inc. is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service and production company based in Los Gatos, California. Founded in 1997 by Reed Hastings and Marc Randolph in Scotts Valley, California, it offers a fil ...

Other ventures

In 2008, Ponti co-founded TakeHollywood.com, an online service, which provides knowledge to those wanting to enter the world of show business from A-list actors, directors, producers, casting directors, managers, and agents.

Personal life

Ponti is fluent in English, French, and Italian. In his late teens he dated

Chiara Mastroianni Chiara Charlotte Mastroianni (born 28 May 1972) is a French actress and singer. She is the daughter of Marcello Mastroianni and Catherine Deneuve. Early life Mastroianni was born to French actress Catherine Deneuve and Italian actor Marcello Ma ...

, daughter of

Marcello Mastroianni Marcello Vincenzo Domenico Mastroianni (28 September 1924 – 19 December 1996) was an Italian film actor, regarded as one of his country's most iconic male performers of the 20th century. He played leading roles for many of Italy's top di ...

and

Catherine Deneuve Catherine Fabienne Dorléac (born 22 October 1943), known professionally as Catherine Deneuve (, , ), is a French actress as well as an occasional singer, model, and producer, considered one of the greatest European actresses. She gained recogni ...

. On 12 August 2007, Ponti married actress

, in Geneva. They have two children, Lucia Sofia Ponti (born 12 May 2006) and Leonardo Fortunato Ponti (born 20 December 2010).

Filmography

*''Aurora'' (1984) *''Liv'' (1998) *''

'' (2002) *''Coming & Going'' (2011) *''Away we stay'' (2011) *''The Nightshift Belongs to the Stars'' (2012) *''

The Girl from Nagasaki ''The Girl from Nagasaki'' is a 2013 romantic musical drama film directed by Michel Comte. The film had its premiere as the closing night film of the ''2013 Naples International Film Festival'' on November 9, 2013. The film later screened at the 2 ...

'' (2013) - Lt. Pinkerton *''Human Voice'' (''Voce umana'') (2014) - Director, writer *''

'' (2020) Director, writer

References

External links

*
TakeHollywood on twitter
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ponti, Edoardo American film directors of Italian descent Living people Film people from Geneva University of Southern California alumni USC School of Cinematic Arts alumni 1973 births