Martin Scorsese Named Honorary President of the Accademia del Cinema Italiano- David di Donatello Awards

Martin Scorsese has been officially appointed Honorary President of the Accademia del Cinema Italiano, the institution behind the David di Donatello Awards, Italy’s most prestigious film honors.

The appointment, formally approved by the Academy’s Board of Directors on September 1, follows a proposal made by Italy’s Minister of Culture Alessandro Giuli in agreement with the Academy’s founding members and its President, Silvia Calandrelli.

For Scorsese, an Italian American, the appointment carries particular personal significance. His relationship with Italy is deeply rooted in his family history and in the Italian American world in which he grew up. Rebecca Miller’s five-part documentary Mr. Scorsese returns to those formative years, exploring his Sicilian roots, his family and his childhood in New York’s Italian American community, all part of the story of the filmmaker he would become.

The intersection of family, identity and cinema has surfaced repeatedly throughout his work. In his 1974 documentary Italianamerican, Scorsese turned the camera on his own parents, Catherine and Charles, recording their stories of family life, Sicilian ancestry and the immigrant experience in New York. Italian cinema became another part of that inheritance, from the neorealist films he encountered at an early age to the generations of Italian filmmakers who helped shape his understanding of the medium.

“Italian cinema has been a constant source of inspiration throughout my life,” Scorsese said in accepting the role. “The films, filmmakers and artistic traditions born in Italy have profoundly shaped both my understanding of cinema and my own work.”

Scorsese’s engagement with film history and preservation has also been a defining part of his career. Alongside directing films including Taxi Driver, Raging Bull, Goodfellas, The Departed and Killers of the Flower Moon, he has long championed the preservation of film heritage. Through The Film Foundation, which he established in 1990, Scorsese has helped support the restoration of films from around the world, including important works of Italian cinema.

The appointment also comes during a period of change for the Accademia del Cinema Italiano. Silvia Calandrelli has recently taken over as President, while Gian Luca Farinelli, director of the Cineteca di Bologna and a leading figure in film preservation and cultural programming, has been appointed Artistic Director of the David di Donatello Awards. The two responsibilities had previously been held by Piera Detassis, who led the Academy from 2018.

Scorsese’s new role gives an institutional dimension to a lifelong relationship with Italian cinema. He has said he intends to support the Academy’s efforts to promote Italian cinema and film culture internationally and to contribute to its cultural initiatives and activities.

Sources: Variety