Francesco Carrozzini

Francesco Carrozzini (born September 9, 1982) is an Italian-born, Emmy Award-nominated film director and photographer currently based in Los Angeles.

Early life

Carrozzini was born in Monza, Italy. The son of Franca Sozzani, former Italian Vogue's editor-in-chief, he grew up surrounded by actors, musicians and artists, and spent time on set with photographers Bruce Weber and Peter Lindbergh. He began taking pictures and making short films with friends in his early teens. In the summer of 1999, he relocated to Los Angeles to study film at the University of California, Los Angeles. He later returned to Italy to study philosophy at the University of Milan before moving to New York City in 2004.

Film

Carrozzini's first major film job came at age 19, when he directed a 30-second spot for Italian MTV. In 2005, commissioned by advertising agency McCann Erickson, he created a television promo for the 51st Venice Biennale. He traveled to Poland in 2006 to shoot a documentary about the life and creative process of the Polish Theatre Wierszalin. Later that year, he collaborated with The New York Times on a project that became known as “The New York Times Screen Tests,” a collection of intimate video interviews with a variety of entertainment figures that included Natalie Portman, Charlize Theron, and Marion Cotillard. The series received a nomination in the "New Approaches - Daytime Entertainment" category at the 37th Annual Daytime Emmy Awards.

Also in 2008, Carrozzini directed the short film "1937", a psychological thriller shot in Suite #822 of the infamous Chelsea Hotel, which screened in competition at the Venice Film Festival. In the years since, he has directed commercials for clients such as Tommy Hilfiger, DKNY, Fiat 500 and Ray Ban. In 2009, his Ray Ban viral short "Color Goes Pop" received a Young Director Award nomination at the Cannes Lion International Festival of Creativity.

In 2013, he began directing music videos, and has collaborated with musicians A$AP Rocky, Lana Del Rey, and Marilyn Manson, among others.

In 2016, Carrozzini debuted his first feature-length film, a documentary focusing on the life and legacy of his mother entitled Franca: Chaos and Creation. The film, which took Carrozzini roughly six years to complete, highlights the groundbreaking accomplishments of Sozzani's career in fashion publishing while also exploring the more personal relationship between a mother and her son. Franca: Chaos and Creation premiered on September 2, 2016 in the "Cinema Nel Giardino" category at the 73rd Venice International Film Festival and received praise from several prominent members of the fashion industry, with Suzy Menkes describing it as "a powerful personal journey". The film hosted its North American premiere as part of the Hamptons International Film Festival on October 8, 2016 and was featured at AFI Fest in Los Angeles. The film will also be screened at festivals in Mumbai, Denver, Vancouver, and Tallinn. On November 22nd, 2016, it was announced that the film had been picked up for U.S. distribution by Bond/360 and will see a limited theatrical run in early 2017, in addition to release on DVD and digital outlets.

Carrozzini has stated that he is currently developing a second feature film.

Photography

Carrozzini is also known for his cinematic approach to portraiture; he has photographed a diverse range of contemporary pop culture icons including actors Angelina Jolie, Robert De Niro, Cate Blanchett, and Scarlett Johansson; models Naomi Campbell, Heidi Klum, Linda Evangelista, Milla Jovovich, Stephanie Seymour and Tyra Banks; musicians Beyoncé, Lana Del Rey, Sting, Keith Richards, Kanye West, Jay-Z, and Nicki Minaj, as well as artists Jeff Koons, Richard Prince, Andres Serrano, and Marina Abramović.

He has also worked with political figures; among them, former Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan, former Prime Minister of the United Kingdom Tony Blair, former Pakistani Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz, acting United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon, and former New York City mayor Michael Bloomberg.

Carrozzini's images have appeared on the covers and in the pages of: Vanity Fair, The New Yorker, New York Magazine, W, Rolling Stone, L'Uomo Vogue, Vogue Italia and Pop, among others. His advertising client list includes Estee Lauder, Biotherm, Sony Music, Mini Cooper, Roberto Cavalli, Emporio Armani, Salvatore Ferragamo, DKNY, Tommy Hilfiger, Levi's, Baume & Mercier and Chopard.

Videography

Year	Project
2015	Marilyn Manson, "The Mephistopheles of Los Angeles"
2014	Singtank, "Coming Down"
2014	Nicki Minaj, "The Pinkprint Movie (Part II: I Lied)"
2014	Damien Marley, "Is It Worth It? (Gunman World)"
2014	Lenny Kravitz, "New York City"
2014	Lana Del Rey, "Ultraviolence"
2013	Beyoncé: "Jealous"
2013	A$AP Rocky: "Phoenix"

Filmography

Year	Project	Notes
2016	Franca: Chaos and Creation	Feature documentary, Official Selection 73rd International Venice Film Festival
2009	The Divine Jane: Reflections on Austen	Short documentary for The Morgan Museum and Library, New York
2008	Don't Blink!	Art film starring Linda Evangelista, Jeu de Paume Museum, Paris
2008	The New York Times Screentests	Emmy Award-nominated series for The New York Times
2008	1937	65th International Venice Film Festival, Short Film Competition
2007	Wierszalin	Short documentary, Official Selection 60th International Locarno Film Festival

Cinematography

Date	Project	Notes
2015	Janis: Little Girl Blue	Director: Amy J. Berg

Exhibitions

• September 2015: Solo photography and film exhibition, "Music", Earth Gallery, Paris
• May 2015: Solo photography exhibition, "Portraits", Istanbul'74 Arts Festival, Istanbul
• January 2012: L'Uomo Vogue cover shots included in Sotheby's charity auction celebrating the magazine, Paris
• May 2010: Solo photography exhibition, "Portraits", Diane Von Furstenberg Gallery, New York
• May 2007: Solo photography exhibition, "Unique Exposure", Galleria Cardi, Milan
• March 2004: Video installation "Pause", Duomo Cathedral, Milan

• "Francesco Carrozzini - "Music"". earthgallery.paris. Retrieved 20 July 2016. 
• "Istanbul '74 & Chopard Present: Francesco Carrozzini's "Portraits"". istanbul74.com. Retrieved 25 July 2016. 
• "L'Uomo Vogue on auction". vogue.it. 
• "Getting into Character: "Francesco Carrozzini: Portraits"". vanityfair.com. 
• "Francesco Carrozzini "Unique Exposure"". artnews.org. Retrieved 22 Oct 2014. 

Creative Direction

• Carrozzini has provided creative direction to the Connect4Climate program, a global initiative launched by the World Bank and the Italian Ministry of Environment that seeks to take on the challenge of climate change by promoting solutions and empowering people to act.

• "Action for Climate Empowerment at COP21". connect4climate.org. 

Awards

• In February 2016, Carrozzini and his team received an award from Global Green acknowledging the achievements for work done at Connect4Climate.

Brand Ambassador

2015

• Featured in "Sincerely, LA", a short film by Hugo Boss highlighting the unique spirit and culture of Los Angeles.

2013

• Face of Giorgio Armani's "Eau de Nuit" fragrance campaign.

• "Sincerely, LA". youtube.com. Retrieved 12 November 2015. 
• "EAU DE NUIT - The new fragrance by Giorgio Armani". facebook.com. Retrieved 10 July 2016. 

Vanity Fair Best Dressed

• In September 2013, Carrozzini was included on Vanity Fair's International Best Dressed List.

• "The 2013 International Best Dressed Poll". vanityfair.com. Retrieved 10 May 2015.