Spaghetti Western Directors, Screenwriters, Cinematographers

Spaghetti Western Director – Ramón Barreiro

Ramon Barreiro was born in Pontevedra, Galicia, Spain on August 28, 1906. He was a director, writer, cinematographer and actor. He wrote stories and screenplays for ten films between 1944 and 1964 for both films and television. He also directed ten films between 1937 and 1970. He was a voice actor on two films in 1944.

Barreiro grew up in Pontevedra and moved to Madrid in 1935, where he attended the Royal Conservatory of Music and became known as a guitar virtuoso. He worked as a correspondent for Vogue and after the Spanish Civil War founded the "Laboratorias Laisa", dedicated to photography, for which he also made several documentaries. In 1944 he made his feature film debut with the Western parody “El sobrino de Don Buffalo Bill”, as well as his later films based on his own screenplay. Two years later, he continued the parodic series, whose female lead was always played by Rosita Yarza, with “El otro Fu-Man-Chu” and ended it with “El pirata Bocanegra”. The long documentary “A toda vela” was also made in this year 1946. Barreiro's most popular and personal film is “Póker de ases” from 1947, which tells an adventurous story of the Spanish Legion in Africa. With “Pototo, Boliche y compañía”, his last film followed in 1948, enriched with numerous guest appearances, whose protagonists had become popular through radio programs.

In the following years, Barreiro worked for radio, wrote essays and columns, and was involved in early television broadcasts.

Ramón Barreiro died in Madrid, Spain on May 1, 1981, at the age of 75.

As mentioned above Barreiro first and only Euro-western was “El sobrino de don Buffalo Bill” (The Nephew of Buffalo Bill) in 1944.

BARREIRO, Ramón (aka Ramon Barreiros) [8/28/1908, Pontevedra, Galicia, Spain – 5/1/1981, Madrid, Madrid, Spain] – director, writer, cinematographer, voice actor, musician founded Laboratorias Laisa photography studio.

The Nephew of Buffalo Bill – 1944

Spaghetti Western Screenwriter – Franco Arcalli

Franco Arcalli was born in Rome on March 13, 1929. His father's surname was originally Orcalli, but it was erroneously recorded as Arcalli due to a mistake by the civil registry official at birth. Arcalli initially appeared in minor acting roles before transitioning to editing and writing where he worked as an assistant director, writer and film editor. Arcalli edited or supervised on fifty-three films from 1964-1977. Writing was a secondary field for Franco as he wrote stories and screenplays for nine films between 1963 and 1984. During his career he became close friends with Bernardo Bertolucci and Giulio Questi. He was from a Communist family living in hiding during the Fascist era. At 15, he became a leader of a Resistance group. He helped Bertolucci and the screenwriters for 1900 by his comments because of that different experience.

Arcalli died of cancer on February 24, 1978, during the initial writing process of Sergio Leone's “Once Upon a Time in America” which was released in 1984.

Arcalli co-wrote the screenplay for only one Spaghetti western “Se sei vivo spara!” (Django Kill) in 1966 with Benedetto Benedetti and his friend who directed the fil Giulio Questi.

ARCALLI, Franco (aka Kim Arcalli) (Franco Kim Arcalli) [3/13/1929, Rome, Lazio, Italy – 2/24/1978, Rome, Lazio, Italy (cancer)] – assistant director, writer, film editor, actor, married to ? father of Max Arcalli [1952-    ].

Django Kill – 1966 (co)

Spaghetti Western Cinematographer – Adolfo Bartoli

Adolfo Bartoli was born in Rome on August 12, 1950. Bartoli started working as a technician for Mole Richardson, then, worked as assistant operator for such important cinematographers, such as Pasqualino De Santis (Academy award for "Romeo and Jiulietta"). He also worked with other cinematographers such as: Marcello Gatti, Tonino Delli Colli, Giuseppe Rotunno, Aldo and Giorgio Tonti, Gabor and Cristiano Pogany, Roberto D'Ettorre Piazzoli, Geoffrey Unsworth, Jack Hilyards. He became a cinematographer filming many documentaries and fiction films such as: "Rosso di Sera" and "Delta Force Commando". He moved to the U.S.A. and filmed several movies such as: "Jungle Book: Mowgly and Baloo", "Sabrina Goes to Rome", "The Pit and the Pendulum" and the television series called "‘Conan the Adventurer". He worked mainly in action films, adventures and science fiction mostly in an international environment. Bartoli worked as a second unit cinematographer, taking care of the special effect, in "Pinocchio" a film by Roberto Benigni. In 1992 he was invited by the American film company "Full Moon ent." to Romania in order to open with Vlad Paunescu a big studio named "Castel Film". It is in this studio that he made 17 movies for Paramount and taught film Techniques to the Romanians. He was a member of the AIC (Society of Italian Cinematographers) which he was also a Members of the Board, also member of IMAGO (European Federation of Cinematographers).

Adolfo Bartoli died in Rome on June 30, 2024, at the age of 74.

As mentioned above he while working for Castel Film in Romania he was the cinematographer on two Euro-westerns: “Oblivion” in 1994 and its sequel “Backlash: Oblivion 2” in 1996

BARTOLI, Adolfo (aka Bartoli Adolfo) [8/12/1950, Rome, Lazio, Italy – 6/30/2024, Rome, Lazio, Italy] – cameraman, cinematographer.

Oblivion – 1994

Backlash: Oblivion 2 - 1996