Francesco di Assisi (sometimes credited as Francesco d'Assisi), English title Francis of Assisi, is a 1966 Italian drama television film by Liliana Cavani. It was Cavani's first non-fiction feature-length film, with a screenplay written by her and Tullio Pinelli. It follows the life of Saint Francis of Assisi from 1205 until his death in 1226.
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Production and release
Cavani, who, in her own words, had not had a Catholic upbringing, was drawn to the character of Francis of Assisi because of Paul Sabatier's biography, regarding him a "protestor" and his venture "existential and poetic" and "revolutionary". Francesco di Assisi was her first feature film after directing a series of documentary films for television station RAI, and also the first film produced by RAI and Leo Pescarolo. As she wanted an unknown actor for the role of Francis, she gave the part to Lou Castel (whose breakthrough film Fists in the Pocket had not been released yet), and also cast the majority of his friars with non-professional actors from the region of Umbria.
Francesco di Assisi was shot on 16 mm film and aired in two parts on RAI on 6 and 8 May 1966, reaching an audience of approx. 20 million viewers. It was shown out of competition at the 27th Venice International Film Festival the same year and eventually saw a limited cinema release in 1972.