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Grigio was a small stray dog, a mongrel for generations. He never had a real owner. For a while he followed one of those couples of itinerant musicians who wander through rural villages and the outskirts of big cities. It was one of them who, one day, gave him the name Grigio.

A tour of the nightlife in Rome, Paris, London, Madrid, Vienna, Brussels and more. Episodes presenting famous artists and people performing.

The evolution of Picasso's painting up to his “pink phase.”

Approximately ten minutes of 35mm footage survives at the Svenska Filmminstitutet from a documentary (probably not completed or even edited) shot in the convent of the Swedish sisters of Saint Brigid, Rome, at the request of the Swedish Red Cross, for victims of the Polesine flood of November 1951.

This documentary tells the story of the brilliant Italian polymath, artist, sculptor, painter, poet, musician, writer, philosopher, scientist, botanist, geologist, cartographer, mathematician, anatomist, paleontologist, architect, urban planner, engineer, and inventor. The legacy of the brilliant Leonardo (1452-1519) to the world came in many forms: in the breathtaking beauty of The Last Supper and The Mona Lisa; in his rich collection of engravings; and in his notes on original thoughts on astronomy, biology, and physiology.

A tribute not so much to the river that runs through the Eternal City, but to that part of Rome that very often remains invisible to the eyes of tourists-the suburbs, with their streets and rituals.

After the successful conquest of Everest in 1953, two Italians reach the summit of K2, the second highest mountain in the world, the next year,after careful preparation and the formation of the team of climbers, scientists, and porters.

Vertigine (Vertigo) is the original title of a fragment of around 4', signed by Michelangelo Antonioni, which is a part of the eight-minutes documentary La funivia del Faloria. The title was eventually modified in La funivia del Faloria because considered more effective to obtain the governmental prize (at the time the minimum length allowed was 8 minutes). Vertigine was shot in 1949 with the cinematographer Bellisario, who was director of photography in several documentaries in those years, but was edited only in 1950, after Antonioni had made his first feature film, Cronaca di un amore.

The life, the problems, the hopes of the ragazzi of the suburbs of Rome. Ignored by the city, these young men spontaneously express their vitality, their violence, their willingness to put themselves at risk. They are at the center of "Ragazzi di vita", the first novel by Pier Paolo Pasolini, author of the text of this documentary.

Vittorio De Seta travels to Alessandria del Carretto, a small town in the province of Cosenza, to capture a unique celebration known as the “Feast of Silver.”

A travelogue of China.

Presents life in 18th century Spain as the painter Francisco de Goya showed it to us.

A 1955 Italian independent film, released in the USA in 1956, which is basically a travelogue telling four stories, each about a different island in the South Pacific. Native customs, tribal rites,ceremonial procedure, courtships, and feats of strength and courage are depicted. The test of courage, for males, on one island , is a leap from a high wooden tower to the ground with a thin vine wrapped around their ankle breaking the fall at the last minute. The first bungee-jumpers?

This short documentary, Elio Petri's directorial debut, deals with the passion of the Italians for cycling. It concentrates on a young deliveryman, who uses the bicycle at all times of his life and dreams of becoming a professional cyclist.

A day in the life of a train station.

Colorful widescreen travelogue along the Amazon River jungle of Peru, featuring an indigenous village carnival and a snake dance.

A documentary made up of 16-mm footage shot by explorers/filmmakers, originally shown to audiences during lectures organized by Connaissance du Monde.

A documentary covering the 1956 Olympic Games in Cortina d’Ampezzo, Italy.

A short documentary film about the life of children in the peripheric areas of a big city, left to themselves as they are shown playing various games.

An Italian movie shot in Eritrea in the early 50s. In four episodes the film tries to explain the nature and behavior of black girls in relation to the costume and education of the native land.

Five young Italian climbers, Paolo Grunanger, Lorenzo Marimonti, Pietro Meciani, Lodovico Gaetani and Giorgio Gualco, members of the expedition organized under the patronage of the Milanese section of the Italian Alpine Club, reached Tamanrasset, in Hoggar, the Tuareg kingdom. From there, with a caravan of camels, they head towards the mountainous volcanic chain of Tahalra, little known to Westerners. During the exploration, climbers will climb seven virgin peaks via very difficult routes and at the same time carry out topographical surveys.

Incom week 01643 of 04/18/1958 Young people and work.

Short documentary about pagan rites in the countryside.

A historical documentary tracing Italy’s turbulent first half of the twentieth century, from the assassination of King Umberto I in 1900 to the proclamation of the Italian Republic after World War II. Moving through monarchy, fascism, war, and renewal, the film situates political upheaval alongside cultural moments such as the Holy Year celebrations.

Documentary filmed in the judicial asylum of Aversa which testifies to the systems of care still based on violence and segregation.

Next to the Venice of canals, palaces and squares, in Marghera there is a modern Venice made up of factories and industries.

A short concerning the excavations in Herculaneum.

Film by Armando W. Tamburella.

A group of Italians explore the jungles of South America.

Documentary on the 'Macchiaioli', a painting school developed in the second half of the nineteenth century.

The documentary illustrates the history of the birth and development of the porticoes module in Bologna, starting from the Middle Ages. After a brief historical investigation on the origin of the arcades and on the revolution that affected urban architecture following their introduction, we analyze the social impact that these had, and still have, on the lives of Bolognese citizens. The porch, among other things, is presented as an architectural solution capable of facilitating meeting and communication.

The first light of dawn. The sound of a boat and the screech of birds fill the wide expanse of sea. Black rocks emerge from the water, the “sciara” – the volcanic scoria – of Stromboli, the underwater sulfurous emanations, the layers of reddish rock eroded by the sea. The roar of the volcano can be heard, the flames and the liquid lava are thrown skyward. As nature unleashes itself, the fishermen row toward the shore, the sheep stray and the women return home.

On the evening of March 11, 1950, Annabella Bracci, a 12-year-old girl, was brutally killed and thrown into a pit on the outskirts of Rome, near the village of Primavalle. A brief and poetic account of the events and their impact on an impoverished community. A handful of wild flowers and a painful catch in the voices.

A satirical and surreal mockery of top-down, positivist urban planning exemplified in the character of "Professor C", the film was made by the architect Giancarlo De Carlo with Carlo Doglio, Michele Gandin, Billa Pedroni, Ludovico Quaroni and Elio Vittorini for the 10th Milan Triennale in 1954. Shot on 35mm film.

A documentary record of the 1953 Mille Miglia, tracing the race across Italy from Brescia to Rome and back.

Short Documentary about a garden with strange sculptures near Rome.

Images of the construction of the Sabbioni dam, which submerged a glacier tongue to build a hydroelectric power plant.

Tonino, son of a museum guard in Venice, is barred from a masked ball. In a little theater he dons an Arlecchino costume and, guided by Beatrice, embarks on a fantastic journey through masks, monuments, and Goldoni’s characters.

Snow arrives in Val Chiese and work on the dam stops. Winter caretakers appear on the scene to replace the workers.

A short anthropological documentary from 1954. Director De Seta was fortunate enough to document swordfish fishing; by 1956 it no longer existed.

A short film which retells the story of Jesus Christ's death and resurrection.

Three directors collaborated on the Italian documentary Continente Perduto. The "lost continent" of the title is Asia, specifically Indonesia, here lovingly photographed in Ferraniacolor by Mario Craveri, Giannni Rafaldi and Franco Bernetti. Highlights include a Cantonese wedding aboard a floating junk, the annual wheat and rice harvest, the animal-sacrifice rites at the rim of a volcano, a ceremonial chariot race, and a bevy of Balinese dancers. Though there's no story to speak of, the film has the rhythm and pace of a "continuity" picture. Continente Perduto was the winner of a Special Jury Prize at the Cannes Film Festival.

Harshness and beauty exist side by side in this look at the lives of sulfur mine workers and their families in southern Italy.

This 95-minute, full-color documentary was released in the U.S. as Sixth Continent. That continent is Africa -- or, more specifically, the coast of Ethiopia. Director Folco Quillici takes his cameras deep, deep into the waters near the coastal islands of Dalach, observing the passing parade of sea life on an up-close-and-personal basis. Particularly thrilling is a shark attack and its aftermath, with the cinematographers obviously in the thick of things. Gian Caspare Napolitano provides the narration, while the lush, evocative musical score is the handiwork of Roberto Nicolosi.

After a big flood some Calabrian children are sent to Milan.

Documentary short about barrel organ players in Italy.

Documentary produced by the Propaganda Office of “Costruzione Meccaniche Riva S.p.a.” in collaboration with the Cinema Section of “Edisonvolta S.p.a.”. It illustrates in detail the construction of a Pelton wheel: from the design phase to construction and transport to its final destination. Every technical and logistical problem was solved thanks to the professionalism and joint efforts of technicians and workers, who together conceived, designed, and implemented the project.

Deals with the establishment of the Italian republic and Italy’s foreign affairs, particularly how Italy regained national sovereignty and appreciation from the USA and Western Europe after the Second World War. It explains in what way Italy benefits from integration into a Western alliance system (NATO, Council of Europe, European Coal and Steel Community) during the Cold War.