.Westerns...All'Italiana!: Spaghetti Western Directors, Screenwriters, Cinematographers

Spaghetti Western Director ~ Olivier Beguin

Olivier Beguin was born in Neuchâtel, Switzerland on May 6, 1975. Beguin attended the London International Film School from 1996 to 1999, studying Art & Technique of Filmmaking. His early short film “Time with Nyenne” (2000), in which he acted as both director and editor, was selected for the Locarno Film Festival. He transitioned to professional editing work in 1999.

His directorial credits primarily consist of short films, including “Time with Nyenne” (2000), ‘”Si vous le voyez, tuez-le de ma part” (2002), “Naufrage” (2006), “Dead Bones” (2008), “Employé du mois” (2011), and “Chimères” (2013), the latter of which stands out as his most acclaimed work for securing awards such as Best Director at the Horrorant Film Festival and Best Editing at Screamfest Horror Film Festival. Beguin frequently handles multiple roles on his projects, including writing, editing, and producing, and has received a total of eight wins and twelve nominations across his career. He participated in Berlinale Talents in 2007, reflecting his engagement with international filmmaking networks.

Olivier Beguin directed two Euro-westerns: “Dead Bones” in 2008 and “Sons of Bitches” in 2017.

BEGUIN, Olivier [5/6/1975, Neuchâtel, Switzerland - ] – producer, director, editor.

Dead Bones - 2008

Sons of Bitches – 2017

Spaghetti Western Screenwriter ~ Richard Aubrey

Richard Harold Aubrey was born in Rhosllanerchrugog, Wales. In 1939 he joined the Army Reserve. He was with 1 Command Signals at Weybridge when, in January 1941, he was wounded by shrapnel during an air raid. He sustained a head injury which left him suffering from intermittent bouts of nervous disorder. He would suffer periods of depression as a result of this injury and was in receipt of a War Disability Pension. After the war Aubrey travelled to South Africa and toured as an actor in a play called “Battery Mess” in May 1948. Later that year he appeared as Taffy, a flight engineer, in the film “The Mystery of the Snakeskin Belt”, a children’s film made by Gaumont-British Africa and the J. Arthur Rank Organisation. He arrived back in Southampton in June 1949 as a stowaway on the R.M.M.V.

In the late 1960’s and 1970s Aubrey worked as a film writer. Among his successful ventures were “The One-Eyed Soldiers” (1967) starring Dale Robertson, “A Town Called Bastard (Hell)” (1971) starring Telly Savalas and Robert Shaw and “The Amazons” (1973) directed by Terence Young, who directed several of the James Bond films.

Aubrey was married twice. He had a daughter with later wife Elizabeth Keet who was given up for adoption and to actress Joy Owen. He committed suicide on December 23, 1980 after falling in deep depression after five operations on his arthritic hip and failing health.

As mentioned above Richard Aubrey co-wrote the screenplay for one Spaghetti western “Una ciudad llamada bastarda” (A Town Called Hell) in 1971 along with Benjamin Fisz.

AUBREY, Richard (Richard Harold Aubrey) [1918, Rhosllanerchrugog, Wales, U.K. – 12/23/1980, Dwyran, Wales, U.K. (suicide)] – stuntman, writer, actor father of daughter with Elizabeth Keet (1950-1960), married to Joy Owen (1961-1971).

A Town Called Hell – 1971 (co)

Spaghetti Western Cinematographer ~ Giovanni Bergamini

Giovanni Bergamini is/was one of the most used and reliable of the Italian cinematographers in the country's history yet there’s little information on him and he’s not even listed in the book Italian Film: A Who’s Who by John Stewart (McFarland 1994). The man’s been sorely neglected.

Bergamini was probably born in the late 1920’s or very early 1930s and worked on over 110 films between 1955 and 2001. Besides the twenty-six Spaghetti westerns he was either a cameraman or cinematographer on he worked on such notable films as “Inglorious Bastards” 1978 as director of photography and “Rush” (1983). He also appeared as an actor in “Cannibal Ferox in 1981. I can’t even find a photo of him on-line.

Some of his best-known Spaghetti westerns were “Django”, “Sugar Colt”, “Kill Them All and Come Back Alone”, “Companeros”, “Bad Man’s River”, “They Call Me Providence”, “Keona” and “California”.

Giovanni was a cinematographer on six Spaghetti westerns: “Vado…l’ammazzo e torno” (Any Gun Can Play) and “Odio per odio” (Hate for Hate) with Alejandro Ulloa, both in 1967, “Sono Sartana, il vostro becchino” (Sartana the Gravedigger) in 1970, “Zanna Bianca alla riscossa” (White Fang to the Rescue) in 1974, “Buck ai confini del cielo” (Buck at the Edge of Heaven) in 1991 and “Buck e il braccialetto magico” (Buck and the Magic Bracelet) in 1997.

BERGAMINI, Giovanni (aka Gianni Bergamini, Bergamini Gianni) [Italian] – cinematographer, cameraman, actor.

Two Mafiamen in the Far West – 1964 [cameraman]

Two Sergeants of General Custer – 1965 [cameraman]

Django – 1966 [cameraman]

$4.00 of Revenge – 1966 [cameraman]

Sugar Colt – 1966 [cameraman]

Two Sons of Ringo – 1966 [cameraman]

Any Gun Can Play – 1967 [as Gianni Bergamini]

Hate for Hate – 1967 (co)

I Came, I Saw, I Shot – 1968 [cameraman]

Kill Them All and Come Back Alone – 1968 [cameraman]

The Wild and the Dirty – 1968 [cameraman]