Scalera Film

Background

Scalera Film was an Italian Rome-based film production and distribution company founded by the brothers Michele and Salvatore Scalera, that operated between 1938 and 1950. It had strong backing from the Italian state, as the Fascist government of Benito Mussolini was keen to build up and centralise the Italian film industry. In 1943, the studio was relocated to Venice in the Italian Social Republic as part of a planned Cinevillaggio film complex developed by Mussolini loyalists. During the second world war, it had difficulty repossessing its Rome-based studios which was politically suspected of being closely linked with the old regime.

Eventually, Scalera restarted its production to build co-production arrangements with foreign filmmakers from different countries. Scalera released its distribution subsidiary in the United States in late 1950, abruptly collapsing during the shooting of Othello, resulting in the company being liquidated two years later, as well as its American office closing in 1951.

1st Logo (December 30, 1938-April 8, 1943)

with "presenta"

Visuals: The first element shown is a screenshot of a staircase leading to a royal palace. Shortly, "SCALERA" appears on the staircase letter by letter, with the camera slowly zooming in as it is slowly appearing. and once that is complete, "FILM" wipes in underneath in the same style, along with "presenta" wiping in underneath both of the text.

Variant: Earlier films don't contain "presenta".

Technique: A mix of practical effects and cel-animation (for the text).

Audio: A triumphant orchestral fanfare with bell tongs corresponding to the text appearing. On earlier films, it uses the opening theme of the movie.

Availability:

It was seen in Io, suo padre, Le sorprese del divorzio, and Il treno crociato.
The textless variants were seen on Inventiamo l'amore and La Vedova.

2nd Logo (February 13, 1941-November 4, 1942)

Era Film co-production variant

Visuals: A silhouette of a mountain is seen against a grey background with a spotlight in the middle. Light illuminates from above, revealing the entire mountain. A giant S forms by itself on the mountain, followed by "CALERA" appearing by itself letter-by-letter, being noticeably smaller than the giant S. Once it is fully formed, the cursive word "film" forms right below "CALERA" along with five lines morphing below "film" from left to right, which connects to both the cursive word "film" and the giant S. The camera zooms in once it is complete. After a few seconds, the logo fades to a black background with a cursive "Presenta" in white.

Variants:

In some films, the "Presenta" screen doesn't appear, and the logo fades out before the fanfare even finishes.
On films associated with Era Film, the logo, now shrunken in a white box, is placed under a white ribbon with "UNA" sitting above the ribbon and right next to the Era Film logo, designed in the fashion of Scalera Film's logo. In the ribbon, two sets of text are inscribed within the ribbon: "PRODUZIONE" in the first half and "ASSOCIATE" in the right, and between the two boxes, a small "ROMA" is placed. The logo is superimposed against the film's opening credits.

Technique: Stop-motion animation.

Audio: A harp glissando with a shrill string theme at the beginning, followed by a vibraphone note with its pitch getting higher for every letter, and it ends with a bombastic orchestral fanfare.

Availability: The majority of its films use an in-credit notice or have been lost, and its known appearances were in La nave bianca, Il bravo di Venezia, Il re si diverte, Uomini sul fondo, Tragica notte, and Alfa Tau. The co-production variant can be seen in Noi vivi and Addio Kira!.