Biography
Director, screenwriter, and multimedia artist, Jacopo Rondinelli began his artistic journey in the 1990s, working on film productions such as "Nirvana" (by Gabriele Salvatores) and "The Metalworker and the Hairdresser" (by Lina Wertmüller), as well as commercials and advertising campaigns, for which he designed and created props, sets, and various special effects. In parallel, he pursued music as a composer and performer in the musical project "JETLAG", releasing an album in 2025 for SONY Music and collaborating with artists such as Giorgia, Max Gazzè, Samuele Bersani, and many others.
Since 2006, he has been directing videos, creating music videos for major Italian artists, commercials, promos, and TV series for brands such as Renault, Gatorade, Lavazza, Red Bull, Nestlé, Stroili Oro, IGI&CO, and Freddy, as well as documentaries (including "PROG REVOLUTION" presented at the Trieste Film Festival and "LA GIOSTRA DEI GIGANTI" presented at the Rome Film Fest) for channels like MTV Europe and Sky Arte HD. His eclectic cinematic style and storytelling skills naturally led him to the world of cinema. In 2018, his first feature film "RIDE", produced and distributed by Lucky Red, was released in Italian theaters. Film critic Gianni Canova wrote: "There is more experimentation and research here than in all the Italian cinema seen in Venice," calling it "A small miracle of audacity, boldness, and passion." Il Messaggero called it "The future of the seventh art", and Screenweek described it as "A perfectly executed experiment, ready to set new cinematic rules."
RIDE was distributed worldwide by True Colours, with theatrical releases in the U.S., Canada, China, India, Germany, South Korea, Japan, and across various digital platforms such as Netflix and Amazon Prime. On Netflix Italy, the film ranked in the Top 10 for the first two weeks after its release. RIDE was selected for the Brussels International Fantastic Film Festival, the Noir In Festival, and the Festival dello Sport. The film also inspired a comic book published by La Gazzetta dello Sport, a novel titled "Ride: Il Gioco del Custode" (published by Mondadori), and a board game titled "Ride: Gioca o Muori" (produced by Pendragon Game Studio).
After RIDE, he wrote several screenplays for films and TV series, including "UPSTAIRS", acquired by Lucky Red. In March 2025, his second feature film "PROPHECY" was released in theaters, produced by Brandon Box and distributed as a special event by Nexo Digital. Movie Players wrote: "There's no doubt that Rondinelli knows how to direct and has given the project a strong pop identity, making it lively, enjoyable, and accessible." My Movies called it "A vibrant action comedy that effectively entertains, with a great performance from the cast. Jacopo Rondinelli directs with confidence and skill, especially excelling in scenes where suspense and dynamism come to the fore." Sentieri Selvaggi wrote: "Rondinelli has all it takes to continue establishing himself among directors who can create with the sheer strength of ideas."
PROPHECY will be available on Disney+ starting Summer 2025. According to several publications, including VICE magazine, Jacopo Rondinelli is one of the Italian directors to watch, contributing to what is being called the renaissance of a new wave in Italian cinema.
