Francesca Gregorini
An Italian-American filmmaker who crafts darkly whimsical stories exploring the hidden corners of female desire and trauma.
Born 1968 (age 58)·Italian-American screenwriter and film director·Birthday: August 7·Generation X
Biography
Born in Rome to an Italian father and an American mother, Francesca Gregorini's life was steeped in artistic lineage from the start. She moved to the United States as a teenager, a shift that would later inform her outsider's perspective. Gregorini first emerged in the music world, but her true calling was cinema. She made her directorial debut with 'Tanner Hall,' a coming-of-age story set in a boarding school, establishing her taste for atmospheric, character-driven drama. Her breakthrough came with 'The Truth About Emanuel,' a psychological thriller starring Jessica Biel that delved into grief and maternal longing. Gregorini often collaborates with other female artists, most notably co-writing the provocative teen drama 'The To Do List' with actress and director Maggie Carey. Her work consistently returns to themes of complex women navigating worlds of secrecy and emotional danger, rendered with a distinct visual elegance.
Generation X
1965–1980
The latchkey kids. Raised during divorce, recession, and the end of the Cold War. Skeptical, self-reliant, media-literate. They invented indie culture, grunge, and the early internet — then watched the Boomers take credit.
Francesca was born in 1968, placing them squarely in the Generation X. The events that shaped this generation — economic uncertainty, the end of the Cold War, and the rise of personal computing — shaped the world they entered and the choices available to them.
#1 When Francesca Was Born
The biggest hits of 1968
#1 Movie
2001: A Space Odyssey
Best Picture
Oliver!
#1 TV Show
The Andy Griffith Show
Francesca's Life & Times
The world at every milestone
1968Born
Martin Luther King Jr. and Robert Kennedy assassinated
Gas: $0.34/galHome: $14,950Min wage: $1.60/hrPresident: Lyndon B. Johnson"Hey Jude" — The BeatlesBest Picture: Oliver!
1973Started school
US withdraws from Vietnam; Roe v. Wade decided
Gas: $0.39/galHome: $22,100Min wage: $1.60/hrPresident: Richard Nixon"Tie a Yellow Ribbon Round the Ole Oak Tree" — Tony Orlando & DawnBest Picture: The Sting
1981Became a teenager
MTV launches; first Space Shuttle flight; AIDS identified
Gas: $1.31/galHome: $52,300Min wage: $3.35/hrPresident: Ronald Reagan"Bette Davis Eyes" — Kim CarnesBest Picture: Chariots of Fire
1984Could drive
Apple Macintosh introduced
Gas: $1.13/galHome: $59,800Min wage: $3.35/hrPresident: Ronald Reagan"When Doves Cry" — PrinceBest Picture: Amadeus
1986Could vote
Challenger disaster; Chernobyl nuclear meltdown
Gas: $0.86/galHome: $66,600Min wage: $3.35/hrPresident: Ronald Reagan"That's What Friends Are For" — Dionne & FriendsBest Picture: Platoon
1989Turned 21
Berlin Wall falls; Tiananmen Square protests
Gas: $1.00/galHome: $79,100Min wage: $3.35/hrPresident: George H.W. Bush"Look Away" — ChicagoBest Picture: Driving Miss Daisy
1998Turned 30
Google founded; Clinton impeachment
Gas: $1.06/galHome: $107,300Min wage: $5.15/hrPresident: Bill Clinton"Too Close" — NextBest Picture: Shakespeare in Love
2008Turned 40
Barack Obama elected first Black US president; financial crisis
Gas: $3.27/galHome: $153,100Min wage: $6.55/hrPresident: George W. Bush"Low" — Flo RidaBest Picture: Slumdog Millionaire
2018Turned 50
Royal wedding of Harry and Meghan; Parkland shooting
Gas: $2.72/galHome: $211,800Min wage: $7.25/hrPresident: Donald Trump"God's Plan" — DrakeBest Picture: Green Book
2026Age 58 today
Gas: $3.91/galPresident: Donald Trump
Key Achievements
- Co-wrote and directed the psychological drama 'The Truth About Emanuel,' starring Jessica Biel and Kaya Scodelario.
- Co-wrote the 2013 comedy film 'The To Do List' with director Maggie Carey.
- Made her feature directorial debut with the 2009 coming-of-age film 'Tanner Hall.'
Did You Know?
Her mother is Barbara Bach, the actress and former Bond girl.
She was briefly a member of the 1990s band The Electrics.
Her full name includes the aristocratic title 'di Savignano di Romagna.'
“The stories I need to tell are about women on the edge of becoming.”
