Lunetta Savino (born 2 November 1957 in Bari) is an

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance language *** Regional Ita ...

theatre and movie actress, particularly famous for starring in popular TV series. She is best known in her home country for playing Cettina, one of the leading characters on

Rai Uno Rai 1 () is an Italian free-to-air television channel owned and operated by state-owned public broadcaster RAI – Radiotelevisione italiana. It is the company's flagship television channel, and is known for broadcasting mainstream and gener ...

's primetime TV series ''

Un medico in famiglia ''Un medico in famiglia'' (English: ''A doctor in the family'') is an Italian television series, based on the format of the Spanish series of Telecinco ''Médico de familia'', produced by Publispei and Rai Fiction. The series aired for ten seaso ...

''. In 2010, she starred in

Ferzan Özpetek Ferzan Özpetek (born 3 February 1959) is a Turkish-Italian film director and screenwriter, residing in Italy. Biography Ferzan Özpetek was born in Istanbul in 1959. In 1976, he decided to move to Italy to study Cinema History at Sapienza Unive ...

's movie '' Loose Cannons'', which received international acclaim.

Career

After graduating at Teatro "Alessandra Galante Garrone" in

Bologna Bologna (, , ; egl, label=Emilian language, Emilian, Bulåggna ; lat, Bononia) is the capital and largest city of the Emilia-Romagna region in Northern Italy. It is the seventh most populous city in Italy with about 400,000 inhabitants and 1 ...

, Lunetta Savino made her stage debut in 1981 with '' Macbeth''. Savino has enjoyed a successful stage career, performing in several plays including an Italian-language version of ''

The Merchant of Venice ''The Merchant of Venice'' is a play by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written between 1596 and 1598. A merchant in Venice named Antonio defaults on a large loan provided by a Jewish moneylender, Shylock. Although classified as ...

'' (1984), ''Sorelle Materassi'' (from a novel by

Aldo Palazzeschi Aldo Palazzeschi (; 2 February 1885 – 17 August 1974) was the pen name of Aldo Giurlani, an Italian novelist, poet, journalist and essayist. Biography He was born in Florence to a well-off, bourgeois family. Following his father's direction, ...

, 1988), and ''

Medea In Greek mythology, Medea (; grc, Μήδεια, ''Mēdeia'', perhaps implying "planner / schemer") is the daughter of King Aeëtes of Colchis, a niece of Circe and the granddaughter of the sun god Helios. Medea figures in the myth of Jason an ...

'' (1994). In 1995, she made her stage debut at Teatro dell'Orologio in Rome with ''Prova orale per membri esterni'', a play by Claudio Grimaldi in which she starred as an oral sex instructor. The play proved to be extremely successful, being replicated for six seasons in many Italian cities. In 1982, Savino made her screen debut, playing a small part in ''Grog'', directed by Francesco Laudadio. From 1998 to 2010, Savino played her breakthrough role. She starred as flamboyant au-pair girl from Southern Italy Cettina Gargiulo, a leading character in ''

'', one of the most famous Italian TV-series of all times. Savino has taken part in many TV series in her country, such as ''Il bello delle donne'', '' Raccontami'' and ''Il figlio della luna''. In 2010, she starred as Stefania Cantone, a mother struggling with her grown-up son's sexual orientation, in

's internationally acclaimed movie '' Loose Cannons'' She briefly starred alongside

Luciana Littizzetto Luciana Littizzetto (born 29 October 1964) is an Italian comedy actress, shock jock and humor writer. Littizzetto is known in her home country for her irreverent gags, lampooning government ministers and church prelates alike. Nicknamed "Luciani ...

in the TV series '' Fuoriclasse'', playing the leading character's dishonest sister. In 2015, Savino starred in Rai Uno's primetime TV series '' È arrivata la felicità'', once again playing the role of a mother struggling with her child's

homosexuality Homosexuality is romantic attraction, sexual attraction, or sexual behavior between members of the same sex or gender. As a sexual orientation, homosexuality is "an enduring pattern of emotional, romantic, and/or sexual attractions" to pe ...

Personal life

Savino has a son, Antonio, born in 1988. She supports the Italian centre-left party, and she once took part in a rally against former Italian prime minister

Silvio Berlusconi Silvio Berlusconi ( ; ; born 29 September 1936) is an Italian media tycoon and politician who served as Prime Minister of Italy in four governments from 1994 to 1995, 2001 to 2006 and 2008 to 2011. He was a member of the Chamber of Deputies f ...

. While playing a

homophobic Homophobia encompasses a range of negative attitudes and feelings toward homosexuality or people who are identified or perceived as being lesbian, gay or bisexual. It has been defined as contempt, prejudice, aversion, hatred or antipathy, m ...

mother twice on screen, Savino is a supporter of gay rights in Italy. She defines herself as a

Catholic The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

.http://letteradonna.it/202725/intervista-lunetta-savino-grand-guignol-felicia-impastato/

Selected filmography

* 1981 - ''Grog'', directed by Francesco Laudadio * 1983 - ''Juke Box'' * 1983 - ''Mi manda Picone'', directed by

Nanni Loy Nanni Loy (born Giovanni Loi; 23 October 1925 – 21 August 1995) was an Italian film, theatre and TV director. Specifically, Nanni Loy was Sardinian, and one of several notable Sardinian film makers, including Franco Solinas. Biography Lo ...

* 1985 - ''Chi mi aiuta?'' * 1997 - ''Terra di mezzo'', directed by

Matteo Garrone Matteo Garrone (born 15 October 1968) is an Italian filmmaker. Born in Rome, the son of a theatre critic, Nico Garrone and a photographer, in 1996 Garrone won the ''Sacher d'Oro'', an award sponsored by Nanni Moretti, with the short film ''Silho ...

* 1998 - ''

Marriages Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognized union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children, and between ...

'', directed by

Cristina Comencini Cristina Comencini (; born 8 May 1956) is an Italian film director, screenwriter and novelist. Biography She is one of four daughters of Italian film director Luigi Comencini. She attended with her sisters the Lycée français Chateaubriand (Rom ...

* 1998 - '' Cucciolo'', directed by

Neri Parenti Neri Parenti (born 26 April 1950, in Florence) is an Italian film director and writer. He is known for comedy films, including the series starring Paolo Villaggio playing the character Ugo Fantozzi, and a later series of '' cinepanettoni'' - za ...

* 1999 - ''Maschi e femmine'' * 2000 - ''

Free the Fish ''Free the Fish'' ( it, Liberate i pesci!) is a 2000 Italian comedy film directed by Cristina Comencini. The film was nominated to three Nastro d'Argento awards. Cast *Laura Morante: Mara * Michele Placido: Michele Verrio *Francesco Paolantoni: ...

(Liberate i pesci)'', directed by Cristina Comencini * 2001 - ''Se fossi in te'', directed by

Giulio Manfredonia Giulio Manfredonia (born 3 November 1967 in Rome) is an Italian film director and screenwriter. Biography Manfredonia is the nephew of director Luigi Comencini. After working on several films as assistant director to Antonio Albanese, Luigi Co ...

* 2002 - ''W la scimmia'', directed by Marco Colli * 2002 - ''Amore con la S maiuscola'', directed by Paolo Costella * 2002 - ''Sono stato negro pure io'', directed by Giulio Manfredonia * 2005 - '' Never Again as Before'', directed by Giacomo Campiotti * 2007 - ''

Saturn in Opposition ''Saturn in Opposition'' ( it, Saturno contro) is a 2007 Italian-Turkish drama film directed by Ferzan Özpetek. The Turkish title is ''Bir ömür yetmez''. It had its United States premiere at Frameline in San Francisco on 20 June 2008. Plot A ...

'', directed by

* 2009 - '' Oggi sposi'', directed by

Luca Lucini Luca Lucini (born 26 November 1967) is an Italian film director. Filmography *'' Three Steps Over Heaven'' (2004) *'' L'uomo perfetto'' (2005) *'' Amore, bugie e calcetto'' (2008) *'' Solo un padre'' (2008) *'' Oggi sposi'' (2009) *'' The Woman ...

* 2010 - '' Loose Cannons'', directed by Ferzan Özpetek * 2011 - '' Bar Sport'', directed by Massimo Martelli * 2012 - ''

Tutto tutto niente niente ''Tutto tutto niente niente'' is a 2012 Italian film starring comedian Antonio Albanese as his famous character Cetto La Qualunque, a sleazy Southern Italy politician. Albanese also plays the roles of two other main characters: Rodolfo Favaretto ...

'', directed by Giulio Manfredonia * 2013 - ''Fiabeschi torna a casa'', directed by Max Mazzotta * 2014 - '' Do You See Me?'', directed by Riccardo Milani * 2015 - ''Io, Arlecchino'', directed by

Giorgio Pasotti Giorgio Pasotti (born 22 June 1973) is an Italian actor and former martial arts athlete. Life and career Born in Bergamo, Pasotti started performing martial arts at a very young age, practicing karate and kobudo and became European and World ...

* 2018 - '' Amici come prima'', directed by

Christian De Sica Christian De Sica (; born 5 January 1951) is an Italian actor and film director. Life De Sica was born in Rome the second son of Italian director Vittorio De Sica and Spanish actress María Mercader. His first cousin once removed was Ramón ...

* 2019 - ''Rosa''

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Savino, Lunetta 1957 births 20th-century Italian actresses 21st-century Italian actresses Italian film actresses Living people Nastro d'Argento winners People from Bari