During the late '50s and the '60s, the Italian
film industry produced many movies of this genre. Action, adventure, and fantasy
films, starring legendary heroes like Hercules, Samson, Maciste, Perseus, Ursus,
etc. Some of those films were based on historical events others on mythological tales and some other were just a
mixture of genres and characters. Most of these films required large sets of ancient
and mythological cities and scenarios. Matte
and glass shots were used very often.
The only credited Italian artists that
executed some of those shots were cinematographer and director Mario Bava. In the middle 50s, he recruited illustrator Amedeo Gigli to help him paint the miniatures. Gigli painted the castles, temples, and other elements on cut-out cardboard. Then Mario Bava pasted it on the glass and paint it over it to correctly match the
real setting.
Glass shots from Ercole e la regina di Lidia
/ Hercules Unchained (1959)
In the last image with the ship, the trick
is exposed when the water hits the rocks and emerges from behind the ship.
On many other occasions, it was Joseph
Natanson or Emilio Ruiz responsible for those tricks.
Poland-born artist Joseph Natanson started his
career in England, painting mattes for The red shoes, and later at Shepperton
studios. In the middle 5’´s he moved to Italy where he developed an extensive career
as a matte painter.
Maciste nella terra dei
ciclopi / Atlas against the Cyclops.
(1961)
Spanish artist Emilio Ruiz worked on some
Italian-Spanish films during the late '50s and was required very often by
Italian producers to do glass shots on their films.
Una spada per l´impero/ Sword of the Empire (1964)
There was no other artist who specialized in those
tricks in the Italian film industry but surely there was some other Italian artist
who executed matte shots from time to time. Most probably by some art director or scenic
painter.
Here there are some samples of uncredited
matte shots that I have not been
able to identify the author.
Vulcano figlio di gione / Vulcan son of Jupiter (1962)
Marte Dio della guerra / The Son of Hercules
vs. Venus (1962)
The set of the wall
city entrance, and the matte painting shot.
Le gladiatrici / Thor and the amazon women (1962)
Ercole l'invincibile / Hercules the Invincible (1964)
The same painting with two different lightings.
The same painting of the village after the attack.
A foreground miniature trick.
La valle dell'eco
tonante /Hercules of the desert (1964)
