Lamberto Bava

Biography

Lamberto Bava was born in Rome, Italy, and was the first of a third generation of Italian filmmakers. His grandfather, Eugenio Bava (1886-1966), was a cameraman and optics effects artist during the early days of Italian silent cinema. His father, Mario Bava (1914-1980), was a legendary cinematographer, special effects designer and director. Lamberto entered the cinema as his father's personal assistant, starting with "Planet of the Vampires" (1965). Bit by bit he gained experience from his father, who made him the assistant director for most of the rest of his films. He even co-wrote the screenplay for "Shock" (1977), Mario's last theatrical film where, in poor health during the shoot, Mario often feigned illness so Lamberto could direct a few scenes, uncredited, to gain further experience. Both Lamberto and Mario directed the made-for-TV drama "I giochi del diavolo: La Venere d'Ille" (1979). Both worked on the Dario Argento horror flick "Inferno" (1980), for which Mario designed some of the color set pieces, including the underwater ballroom, and created all the visual special effects, while Lamberto worked as Argento's assistant director. Late in 1979 Lamberto made his solo directorial debut with "Macabre" (1980), a tense drama-horror flick loosely based on a 1977 incident in New Orleans about a woman who keeps her lover's severed head in her freezer.