David di Donatello for Best Director
The David di Donatello Award for Best Director is a film award presented annually by the Accademia del Cinema Italiano to recognize the outstanding direction of a film director who has worked within the Italian film industry during the year preceding the ceremony. The award was first given in 1956, and became competitive in 1981.
Nominees and winners are selected via runoff voting by all the members of the Accademia.
Francesco Rosi is the record holder with six awards in the category, received from 1965 to 1997, followed by Mario Monicelli and Giuseppe Tornatore with four.
Winners and nominees
Below, winners are listed first in the colored row, followed by other nominees.| Indicates the winner. | |
| Indicates that the director was also nominated to the Academy Award for Best Director. | |
| Indicates that the director also won the Academy Award for Best Director. |
was the first holder of the award, winning in 1956 for Roman Tales.
won the award three times from 1957 to 1974, for Nights of Cabiria, La dolce vita, and Amarcord.
won in 1961 for La notte.
was nominated five times, winning three times over a span of four decades.
won twice, in 1963 and 1965.
won twice for Seduced and Abandoned and The Birds, the Bees and the Italians.
won in 1969 for Romeo and Juliet and in 1972 for Brother Sun, Sister Moon.
won twice, in 1970 and 1980.
won twice, for Death in Venice in 1971 and Ludwig in 1974.
won in 1972 for Duck, You Sucker!.
won in 1975 for Scent of a Woman.
won four times from 1976 to 1990, every year he was nominated.
won three times from 1978 to 1987, being nominated six times.
won twice in 1980 and 2010.
won twice in 1983 and 2012.
won in 1988 for The Last Emperor.
won four times from 1996 to 2013, being nominated six times.
won in 1998 for Life is Beautiful.
won in 2003 after six nominations.
won in 2005 for The Consequences of Love and in 2014 for The Great Beauty.
won in 2006 for The Caiman, after seven nominations.
won three times, in 2009, 2016 and 2019, for Gomorrah, Tale of Tales and Dogman.
1950s
1960s
1970s
1980s
1990s
2000s
2010s
Multiple wins and nominations
The following individuals have won multiple Best Director awards:| Wins | Director |
| 6 | Francesco Rosi |
| 4 | Mario Monicelli |
| 4 | Giuseppe Tornatore |
| 3 | Federico Fellini |
| 3 | Matteo Garrone |
| 3 | Ermanno Olmi |
| 3 | Ettore Scola |
| 2 | Marco Bellocchio |
| 2 | Vittorio De Sica |
| 2 | Pietro Germi |
| 2 | Gillo Pontecorvo |
| 2 | Paolo Sorrentino |
| 2 | Taviani brothers |
| 2 | Ricky Tognazzi |
| 2 | Luchino Visconti |
| 2 | Franco Zeffirelli |
won the award six times, more than everyone else, from 1965 to 1997.
is the most nominated director without any wins, being nominated six times from 2003 to 2017.
The following directors have received three or more Best Director nominations :
| Nominations | Director |
| 7 | Marco Bellocchio |
| 7 | Federico Fellini |
| 7 | Nanni Moretti |
| 6 | Gianni Amelio |
| 6 | Pupi Avati |
| 6 | Matteo Garrone |
| 6 | Ferzan Özpetek* |
| 6 | Francesco Rosi |
| 6 | Ettore Scola |
| 6 | Giuseppe Tornatore |
| 5 | Mario Martone |
| 5 | Ermanno Olmi |
| 5 | Paolo Sorrentino |
| 5 | Paolo Virzì |
| 4 | Bernardo Bertolucci |
| 4 | Mario Monicelli |
| 4 | Carlo Verdone |
| 3 | Paolo Genovese* |
| 3 | Marco Tullio Giordana |
| 3 | Daniele Luchetti |
| 3 | Marco Risi |
| 3 | Gabriele Salvatores* |
| 3 | Silvio Soldini |
| 3 | Taviani brothers |
| 3 | Ricky Tognazzi |