Cineriz

Cineriz was an Italian film production and distribution company established in 1956 by businessman Angelo Rizzoli. Its business combined the creation of films with the acquisition and theatrical distribution of motion pictures in Italy, placing the company within the postwar expansion of Italian cinema. Although the available reference material does not provide a detailed account of its offices, financing structure, workforce, or annual performance, Cineriz is documented as having participated in a substantial body of influential Italian film culture. The company’s production credits include works associated with several of the most important directors of postwar European cinema. Among the films identified as produced by Cineriz are Federico Fellini’s 8½, Michelangelo Antonioni’s L’eclisse, Vittorio De Sica’s segment in Boccaccio ’70, Pier Paolo Pasolini’s La commare secca, and Gillo Pontecorvo’s The Brigand. The production list also includes Africa Addio, The Flowers of St. Francis, and Mondo Cane. These titles span art cinema, social drama, anthology film, documentary-related exploitation cinema, and other commercially varied forms, indicating that Cineriz was not confined to one narrow genre or audience. Cineriz also operated as an Italian distributor for domestic and international releases. Its distribution catalogue included François Truffaut’s The 400 Blows, Federico Fellini’s La Dolce Vita, Juliet of the Spirits, Satyricon, and Ro.Go.Pa.G.; Pietro Germi’s An Average Little Man; Fantozzi and Il secondo tragico Fantozzi; The Traffic Policeman; In the Name of the Pope King; Sunday Heroes; and a number of other titles. This role gave Cineriz importance not only as a producer but also as a channel through which films reached Italian cinemas. The company’s catalogue connects it with directors including Fellini, Pontecorvo, Luchino Visconti, Antonioni, Pasolini, Pietro Germi, Roberto Rossellini, and De Sica. The reference material does not specify the precise contractual or financial arrangements behind each title, so individual producer, co-producer, and distributor relationships should not be inferred beyond the documented production and distribution classifications. In 1993, Cineriz was incorporated into RCS MediaGroup. This marked the end of Cineriz as an independent company or separately operating corporate entity, although the films associated with its production and distribution history remain relevant to accounts of Italian cinema and film distribution. No current standalone website, listed ticker, or independent operating activity is identified in the supplied sources.

Cineriz was founded in Italy in 1956 by businessman Angelo Rizzoli. From the information available in the reference material, its core activity consisted of two related functions: producing films and distributing films in the Italian market. This dual role placed Cineriz within the institutional structure of postwar Italian cinema, where companies could participate both in the development of new productions and in the circulation of completed films through domestic theatrical channels. The company’s production history is associated with a broad group of notable Italian filmmakers. Its documented production credits include Federico Fellini’s 8½, Michelangelo Antonioni’s L’eclisse, Pier Paolo Pasolini’s La commare secca, and titles connected with Gillo Pontecorvo, Vittorio De Sica, and other major directors. The production catalogue also includes Boccaccio ’70, Africa Addio, The Brigand, The Flowers of St. Francis, and Mondo Cane. Taken together, these titles show a varied catalogue rather than a single genre strategy. It included internationally recognized auteur films alongside works with documentary, social, anthology, and popular entertainment characteristics. Cineriz’s distribution activities extended beyond films it produced. In Italy, the company distributed titles such as The 400 Blows, La Dolce Vita, Juliet of the Spirits, Satyricon, and Ro.Go.Pa.G. It also distributed commercially significant Italian films including Fantozzi, Il secondo tragico Fantozzi, The Traffic Policeman, and In the Name of the Pope King. Other listed releases include An Average Little Man, Le belle famiglie, Me, Me, Me... and the Others, Move and I’ll Shoot, Sunday Heroes, The Psychic (also known as Sette note in nero), Una jena in cassaforte, and Bionda fragola. The distribution list therefore connects Cineriz with both prestigious cinema and mainstream Italian releases. The company’s catalogue is particularly notable because it intersects with the work of Fellini, Antonioni, Pasolini, Pontecorvo, Luchino Visconti, Pietro Germi, Roberto Rossellini, and De Sica. The available source does not provide a complete chronology of management, individual production arrangements, financial results, release dates, or the precise territories covered by each distribution agreement. Accordingly, Cineriz is best characterized from the supplied evidence as an Italian production and distribution company with a significant historical film catalogue, rather than as a fully documented contemporary media group. In 1993, Cineriz was incorporated into RCS MediaGroup. The reference does not describe the transaction’s financial terms or specify whether particular catalogue rights, staff, or operating divisions were transferred separately. The incorporation nevertheless represents the decisive corporate transition in Cineriz’s documented history: after that point, the company was no longer presented as an independent entity. Its historical importance survives primarily through the films it produced or distributed and through its association with central figures in Italian cinema.

• 1993

  Incorporation into RCS MediaGroup

  [1]Cinerizen.wikipedia.org

  Cineriz was incorporated into RCS MediaGroup, ending its documented independent corporate existence.

• 1956

  Cineriz is founded

  [1]Cinerizen.wikipedia.org

  Businessman Angelo Rizzoli founded Cineriz in Italy as a film production and distribution company.

A postwar Italian film company combining film production with domestic theatrical distribution, with a catalogue spanning acclaimed auteur cinema, popular Italian releases, and internationally circulated films.

• Film production

  8½

  A Cineriz-produced film associated with Federico Fellini and identified among the company’s principal production credits. It represents the company’s involvement in internationally recognized Italian auteur cinema.

• Film production

  L’eclisse

  A Cineriz-produced film associated with Michelangelo Antonioni. Its inclusion in the catalogue illustrates the company’s role in producing major works of postwar Italian art cinema.

• Film production

  Boccaccio ’70

  An anthology film listed among Cineriz’s production credits. The title reflects the company’s participation in multi-director or multi-segment Italian film projects.

• Film production

  La commare secca

  A film associated with Pier Paolo Pasolini and included in Cineriz’s production catalogue. It forms part of the company’s documented connection with influential Italian directors.

• Italian film distribution

  La Dolce Vita

  A Federico Fellini film distributed in Italy by Cineriz. It is one of the best-known titles in the company’s distribution history and demonstrates its role in bringing major Italian productions to domestic audiences.

• Italian film distribution

  Fantozzi

  A popular Italian film listed among titles distributed in Italy by Cineriz. Its presence alongside art-cinema releases shows the breadth of the company’s theatrical distribution catalogue.

• Italian film distribution

  Satyricon

  A film associated with Federico Fellini and distributed in Italy by Cineriz. It belongs to the company’s group of high-profile Italian cinema releases.

• 1993

  Corporate incorporation into RCS MediaGroupM&A

  Background

  Cineriz had operated as an Italian film production and distribution company since its founding in 1956.

  Action taken

  Cineriz was incorporated into RCS MediaGroup.

  Aftermath

  The incorporation marked the end of Cineriz as an independently documented company; the supplied source does not provide transaction terms or detailed information about subsequent catalogue administration.

  Source

1. 1Cinerizen.wikipedia.org