The third edition of the Italian CC is based in Sorrento, a few miles from Dr. Fabrizio Cilento’s native town of Naples in Southern Italy. The course will now focus on the relationship between film locations and the commedia dell'arte theatrical tradition. On top of that, we have maintained our partnership with the Sant'Anna Institute. The school is located in a historic convent perched on the cliffs of the Amalfi coast (see cover picture on the syllabus), overlooking the fishing village of Marina Grande. Sant’Anna is recognized for excellence in independent and faculty-led study abroad programs. The Italian CC falls in the latter category. The Messiah professors will plan and teach all the classroom sessions and coordinate external activities. Yet, the institute will provide logistic support for service learning opportunities and connect our students with the best local guides and entrepreneurs, non-profit organizations, and social activists. The team we’ll work with includes President Cristiana Panicco, Director Olga Stinga, and Academic Coordinator Dr. Marco Marino. For more information on the Sant’Anna Mission, click here.
 

Fabrizio Cilento is a Professor of Film and Digital Media in Central PA. He is the author of the poetry collection Somewhere Else and the academic book An Investigative Cinema: Politics and Modernization in Italian, French, and American Film (Palgrave, 2017), which explores the intersection between politics, recent history, and the aesthetics of moving images. His poems and articles appeared in many peer-reviewed journals, anthologies, and edited volumes. Dr. Cilento is the Chair of the Society for Cinema and Media Studies Translation/Publication Committee, Chair of the Film Studies Area of the Popular Culture Association, and serves on the Advisory Board of Film Matters (Intellect). The upcoming manuscript Everything Documentary, All Arbitrary (Bloomsbury Press, 2025) focuses on the intersection between fiction and nonfiction in the 21st Century. 
 
Gregg Hurley is an Associate Professor of Dance at Messiah University. He earned his MFA in dance from the University of Arizona School of Dance and holds a BA in dance from Hofstra University. He has been fostering the growth of dance on the campus of Messiah University since 2010. Gregg is the artistic director of HurleyInMotion, a collaborative performance group that strives to build bridges and connect communities through dance. The latest work of HIM, Grief is a Dancer. Gregg has performed internationally in the musical revue The Best of Broadway and nationally on the 50^th Anniversary tour of Oklahoma! He has also performed as the Cow Skull in the world premiere production of Georgia O’Keefe: A Woman on Paper. He spent over eleven years as the resident choreographer and assistant director at Sight and Sound Theatres. He was creatively involved in the premiere productions of Abraham and Sarah, Daniel, Ruth, Psalms of David, In the Beginning, and Voices of Christmas.