Mario Soffici (14 May 1900 – 10 May 1977) was an

Argentine Argentines (mistakenly translated Argentineans in the past; in Spanish (masculine) or (feminine)) are people identified with the country of Argentina. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Argentines, ...

film director A film director controls a film's artistic and dramatic aspects and visualizes the screenplay (or script) while guiding the film crew and actors in the fulfilment of that vision. The director has a key role in choosing the cast members, pr ...

actor An actor or actress is a person who portrays a character in a performance. The actor performs "in the flesh" in the traditional medium of the theatre or in modern media such as film, radio, and television. The analogous Greek term is (), lit ...

and

screenwriter A screenplay writer (also called screenwriter, scriptwriter, scribe or scenarist) is a writer who practices the craft of screenwriting, writing screenplays on which mass media, such as films, television programs and video games, are based. ...

of the classic era.

Biography

A native of

Florence Florence ( ; it, Firenze ) is a city in Central Italy and the capital city of the Tuscany region. It is the most populated city in Tuscany, with 383,083 inhabitants in 2016, and over 1,520,000 in its metropolitan area.Bilancio demografico ...

, Soffici moved to Argentina in the 1920s and began acting in 1931 and directing in 1935 on the film '' El Alma de Bandoneón'', working with popular actors of the period such as

Libertad Lamarque Libertad Lamarque Bouza (; 24 November 1908 – 12 December 2000) was a Mexican-Argentine actress and singer, one of the icons of the Golden Age of Argentine and Mexican cinema. She achieved fame throughout Latin America, and became known as " ...

tango Tango is a partner dance and social dance that originated in the 1880s along the Río de la Plata, the natural border between Argentina and Uruguay. The tango was born in the impoverished port areas of these countries as the result of a combina ...

-based

musical film Musical film is a film genre in which songs by the characters are interwoven into the narrative, sometimes accompanied by dancing. The songs usually advance the plot or develop the film's characters, but in some cases, they serve merely as brea ...

s. He directed some 40 films between 1935 and 1962, most notably '' Prisioneros de la tierra'' (1939) (often cited as one of the greatest in Argentine cinema), '' El Curandero'' (1955), '' El hombre que debía una muerte'' (1955) and '' Rosaura a las 10'' (1958). He directed and co-wrote with

Eduardo Boneo Eduardo is the Spanish and Portuguese form of the male given name Edward. Another version is Duarte. It may refer to: Association football * Eduardo Bonvallet, Chilean football player and sports commentator * Eduardo Carvalho, Portuguese footba ...

and Francisco Madrid''

La cabalgata del circo ''The Circus Cavalcade'' ( es, La cabalgata del circo) is a 1945 Argentine musical film directed and written by Mario Soffici with Eduardo Boneo and Francisco Madrid. The film was shot on black-and-white stock with a monaural soundtrack. It s ...

,'' where

Eva Duarte Eva or EVA may refer to: * Eva (name), a feminine given name Arts, entertainment, and media Fictional characters * Eva (Dynamite Entertainment), a comic book character by Dynamite Entertainment * Eva (''Devil May Cry''), Dante's mother in ...

played a supporting role. He died in

Buenos Aires Buenos Aires ( or ; ), officially the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires ( es, link=no, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires), is the capital and primate city of Argentina. The city is located on the western shore of the Río de la Plata, on South ...

in 1977.

Filmography

As director

* ''Noche federal'' (1932) * '' El alma del bandoneón'' (1935) * '' La barra mendocina'' (1935) * '' New Port'' (1936) * ''

Cadetes de San Martín (film) ''Cadetes de San Martín'' is a 1937 Argentine film directed by Mario Soffici and written by José A. Saldías. It stars Enrique Muiño and Elías Alippi. Cast * Ángel Magaña * Enrique Muiño * Elías Alippi * Rosa Contreras * Héctor Calc ...

'' (1937) * ''

Viento Norte ''North Wind'' (Spanish: Viento norte) is a 1937 Argentine film directed by Mario Soffici Mario Soffici (14 May 1900 – 10 May 1977) was an Argentine film director, actor and screenwriter of the classic era. Biography A native of Florence, S ...

'' (1937) * '' Kilómetro 111'' (1938) * '' El viejo doctor'' (1939) * '' Prisioneros de la tierra'' (1939) * ''Héroes sin fama'' (1940) * '' Cita en la frontera'' 1940) * ''Yo quiero morir contigo'' (1941) * ''El camino de las llamas'' (1942) * ''Vacaciones en el otro mundo'' (1942) * ''Cuando la primavera se equivoca'' (1942) * ''

Tres hombres del río ''Three Men of the River'' ( es, Tres hombres del río) is a 1943 Argentine crime drama film directed by Mario Soffici and starring Elisa Galvé and José Olarra. The film is based on an old Argentine legend about an Aztec girl who is raped and ...

'' (1943) * ''

Wake Up to Life ''Wake Up to Life'' (Spanish:''Despertar a la vida'') is a 1945 Argentine drama film directed by Mario Soffici and starring Elisa Christian Galvé, Roberto Airaldi and Francisco de Paula. de Paula won a Silver Condor award for his performance. ...

'' (1945) * '' The Circus Cavalcade'' (1945) * ''Besos perdidos'' (1945) * '' La pródiga'' (1945) * ''Celos'' (1946) * '' The Sin of Julia'' (1946) * '' La gata'' (1947) * ''La Secta del trébol'' (1948) * ''Tierra del Fuego'' (1948) * ''La barca sin pescador'' (1950) * '' El extraño caso del hombre y la bestia'' (1951) * '' The Unwanted'' (1951) * '' Pasó en mi barrio'' (1951) * ''Ellos nos hicieron así'' (1953) * ''Una ventana a la vida'' (1953) * '' La Dama del mar'' (1954) * ''Mujeres casadas'' (1954) * ''Barrio gris'' (1954) * '' El hombre que debía una muerte'' (1955) * '' El Curandero'' (1955) * ''Oro bajo'' (1956) * '' Rosaura a las 10'' (1958) * ''Isla brava'' (1958) * ''Chafalonías'' (1960) * ''Propiedad'' (1962)

As screenwriter

* ''El alma del bandoneón'' (1935) * ''La barra mendocina'' (1935) * ''Viento Norte'' (1937) * ''Con las alas rotas'' (1938) * '' The Circus Cavalcade'' (1945) * ''Una ventana a la vida'' (1953) * ''La dama del mar'' (1954) * ''Barrio gris'' (1954) * ''Oro bajo'' (1956) * '' Rosaura a las 10'' (1958) * ''Isla brava'' (1958) * ''Los acusados'' (1960) * ''Propiedad'' (1962)

Actor

* '' Streets of Buenos Aires'' (1934)

Bibliography

Tomas Abraham article about Soffici

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Soffici, Mario 1900 births 1977 deaths Italian emigrants to Argentina Argentine film directors Argentine male film actors Male screenwriters Argentine male writers 20th-century Argentine male actors 20th-century Argentine screenwriters 20th-century Argentine male writers