The aftermath of Italy's cinematic movement neorealism left several directors searching for a new cinematic practice and a new directorial identity. Many of the most artistically intrepid directors of the era turned to women as a means of professional and personal reinvention. This study analyzes the collaborations of Vittorio De Sica, Roberto Rossellini, Federico Fellini, and Michelangelo Antonioni with the actresses Sophia Loren, Ingrid Bergman, Giulietta Masina, and Monica Vitti, respectively. / Romance Languages and Literatures