‘Ci occuperemo di lei’. Immagini di donne sarde durante la “rinascita” dell’Isola (1948-1962)

Newsreels and documentary films were amongst the most popular means for distributing information in post-war Italy. They typically endorsed the agenda of both the government and capitalist lobbies and pervaded the everyday life of Italians, defining political, social, and cultural categories and discourses. The proposed article explores how post-war newsreels and short-film documentaries backed by the Italian government – particularly the famous newsreel series, Settimana Incom – engaged with the process of Sardinia’s modernization (the so-called rinascita sarda). Specific attention is paid to the representation of Sardinian women, who embodied the island as a whole, as well as the tension between tradition and modernity. Adopting decolonial and intersectional perspectives, this article deconstructs representations of, and narratives about, the island and its inhabitants. The analysis contends that newsreels and documentaries fashioned racial and gender constructions that were entirely consistent with an externally imposed economic and capitalist agenda; but shows that these policies were somewhat disconnected from the socio-cultural configuration of Sardinian society.