Leonardo Cabrini

Assistant Instructional Professor in Italian
lcabrini@uchicago.edu
Gates-Blake 232
Office Hours: Wednesday 1:30-3:30 p.m.
PhD, Indiana University, 2023
Research Interests: Cinema and Media Studies, Cultural Studies, Second Language Pedagogy

Leonardo Cabrini earned his B.A. and M.A. in film and television studies at the University of Bologna and a Ph.D. in Italian Studies at Indiana University (Bloomington). His dissertation is titled “Tele-Cinefilia RAI (1975-2005)” and explores how television impacted the circulation of prestige cinema in Italy, stimulating cinephilia and passion for moving images. Other research interests include Italian cinema, TV series, comedy studies, history and methodology of film criticism, and popular music.

Leonardo has taught all levels of Italian in traditional, online, and hybrid formats. He promotes an immersive experience by integrating audiovisual media and authentic cultural materials in his classes. At the University of Chicago, Leonardo teaches various Italian language classes, co-organizes cultural events, and serves as a study-abroad liaison. Leonardo is also managing editor of the peer-reviewed journal gender/sexuality/italy, and occasionally writes film and TV reviews for Italian online magazines.

Selected Publications

  • “Pratiche sociali e culturali della critica cinefila italiana: una casistica.” Simultanea – Journal of Italian Media and Pop Culture. Vol 1, no 2, 2020.
  • “Italian Vulgar Criticism and Cinephilia: The Case of ‘i400Calci – Cinema da combattimento’.” in Offstream: Minority and Popular Culture. Edited by Paola Bernardini, Paolo Frascà, and Sara Galli. Firenze: Franco Cesati, 2019, pp. 119-132.
  • “Televisione, critica e analisi del film. Il caso Studio cinema (1978).” Atti critici in luoghi pubblici. Edited by Michele Guerra and Sara Martin. Parma: Diabasis, 2019, pp. 81-96.
  • “Marco Bellocchio.” Twentieth Century Italian Directors. Edited by Manuela Gieri, and Donato Santeramo. Rome: UniversItalia, 2020, pp.88-96.
Recent Courses in RLL
  • ITAL 10100 Beginning Elementary Italian I (Autumn 2022, Autumn 2023)
  • ITAL 10200 Beginning Elementary Italian II (Winter 2023, Winter 2024)
  • ITAL 10300 Beginning Elementary Italian III (Spring 2024)
  • ITAL 12200 Italian for Speakers of Romance Languages (Winter 2023, Spring 2023, Winter 2024)
  • ITAL 20222 Italian for Speakers of Romance Languages II (Spring 2024)
  • ITAL 20300 Language, History, and Culture III (Spring 2023, Spring 2024)
Subject Area: Italian Studies