Two victories for Italians, and their contribution to North American cinema, stand out in an Oscar year that was not very generous with European films.

Calabria-born Mauro Fiore, Best Cinematography winner for Avatar, shouted out "Viva l'Italia" when picking up his prize. He said yesterday of James Cameron’s film: "This is the first time that a film with many computer-generated images mixed with a lot of live action has won an Oscar. It is a revolution for the industry".
Fiore (43) moved to the US at the age of seven and began his ascent in Hollywood first by studying in Janusz Kaminsky’s school then working as an electrician on Schindler's List and Amistad. He has lensed approximately 20 films, including Training Day.

The other Italian-American (born in New Jersey but recently obtained Italian citizenship) is composer Michael Giacchino (42), who won Best Original Soundtrack for Up. "It’s no secret that Italians have written the most beautiful music in the world. Just think of Rossini", he said. Giacchino, who began working in video games, has worked in television and scored the films The Incredibles, Ratatouille, Star Trek and Mission Impossible III.