Giovanni Veronesi (born August 31, 1962) is an Italian director, screenwriter and actor. Most known for his romantic comedy trilogy: Manual of Love (2005), Manual of Love 2 (2007) and The Ages of Love (2011), he work as a screenwriter for Francesco Nuti, Leonardo Pieraccioni, Carlo Verdone and Massimo Ceccherini.
Throughout his career, he has been honored with a David di Donatello for Best Screenplay for For Love, Only for Love (1993), two Nastri d'Argento for Best Screenplay for the films Il ciclone (1996) and Manual of Love (2005), and a Globo d'oro for his direction of Romeo Is Juliet (2024). He has also directed music videos for italian music artists Elisa, Negramaro and Gianna Nannini, directed theatre productions and hosted television and radio programs.
Life and career Giovanni Veronesi was born on August 31, 1962, in Prato. His father, Giannino Veronesi, was an engineer and sailor, and his mother, Luisa Govoni, an literature teacher; both were originally from Bologna. Veronesi grew up in Prato and Roccamare with his parents and his brother Sandro Veronesi.
After graduating at the high school in Prato, he joined the city's theater circles, where he met Francesco Nuti, a fledgling director from Florence. Veronesi formed a close friendship with Nuti, who had temporarily moved to Rome to work on the production of Maurizio Ponzi’s film What a Ghostly Silence There Is Tonight. Nuti persuaded Veronesi to move to Rome with him at the age of 20, offering him a place to stay as a roommate.
1980–1999: Francesco Nuti, directorial debut and emergence as a screenwriter After some minor roles in Maurizio Ponzi and Pupi Avati's movies, in 1984, Veronesi co-wrote his first feature film screenplay All the Fault of Paradise with Vincenzo Cerami and Francesco Nuti, who also directed the film. In 1986, he wrote the screenplay for Nuti’s second film Stregati, while in 1987, he co-wrote his directorial debut Maramao, written with his brother Sandro. Between 1988 and 1993, he wrote three screenplays with Nuti, appearing in the cast as an actor in Caruso Pascoski, Son of a Pole (1988) and Willy Signori e vengo da lontano (1989).
In 1993, Aurelio De Laurentiis produced Veronesi's second film, For Love, Only for Love, written by Veronesi and Ugo Chiti, the film starred Penélope Cruz, Diego Abatantuono, Stefania Sandrelli and Alessandro Haber. The film received ten David di Donatello nominations, winning for Best Screenplay. Between 1994 and 1995, he returned to work as a screenwriter on Nuti's OcchioPinocchio (1994) and collaborated with Christian De Sica on Men Men Men (1995) and with Leonardo Pieraccioni on The Graduates.
While he directed some box-office flop films, including Viola Kisses Everybody (1998) starring Asia Argento and Valerio Mastandrea, he achieved greater success as a screenwriter, co-writing the films Il ciclone (1996) and Fuochi d'artificio (1997) with Leonardo Pieraccioni. For Il ciclone, Veronesi won his first Nastro d'Argento for Best Screenplay.
2000–2010: The success with What Will Happen to Us and Manual of Love's saga In 2000, he worked with Carlo Verdone for the first time on A Chinese in a Coma. In 2001, Veronesi returned to directing with Witches to the North, co-written with his brother Sandro Veronesi and Massimiliano Governi. In 2004, he wrote and directed What Will Happen to Us, earning twelve nominations at the 2005 David di Donatello, including for Best Film.
In 2005, Manual of Love, written and directed by Veronesi, was a critical and box-office success. The film received twelve nominations for the 2006 David di Donatello, winning in the lead acting categories for Carlo Verdone and Margherita Buy, and earning Veronesi his second Nastro d'Argento for Best Screenplay. In 2007 Veronesi directed the sequel, Manual of Love 2, the film was a box office success and received critical acclaim. Veronesi also directed the music video for the film's soundtrack song, "Eppure sentire (Un senso di te)", written and performed by Italian singer-songwriter Elisa.
In 2008, he directed the music video for Negramaro's "Meraviglioso", a song included on the soundtrack for Veronesi's film Italians, which was released in Italian theaters in 2009. That same year, he co-wrote the film Me and Marilyn with Leonardo Pieraccioni. In 2010, he directed Parents and Children: Shake Well Before Using starring Silvio Orlando, Luciana Littizzetto, and Elena Sofia Ricci. The film earned Veronesi a nomination for the David Giovani Award and two nominations for the Nastri d'Argento.
2011-2019: Career as a director and new projects in television, radio and theater In 2011, The Ages of Love was released in theaters, featuring a cast that included Carlo Verdone, Riccardo Scamarcio, Monica Bellucci, and Robert De Niro. That same year, he wrote the screenplay for the film Finalmente la felicità, directed by Leonardo Pieraccioni. In 2013, he directed the film The Fifth Wheel , the opening film of the eighth edition of the Rome International Film Festival, which received nominations at the Ciak d'oro and Nastri d'Argento. The film's soundtrack was composed by singer-songwriter Elisa, who also wrote the title track "Ecco che", whose music video was directed by Veronesi himself.
From June 2014 through 2019, he co-hosted the Rai Radio 2 TV show Non è un paese per giovani with Massimo Cervelli. In 2014, he directed and co-wrote the film A Woman as a Friend, starring Fabio De Luigi and Laetitia Casta. In 2015, he collaborated again with Leonardo Pieraccioni on Il professor Cenerentolo. In 2016, he embarked the italian theater tour A ruota libera with Nino Frassica, Sergio Rubini, Alessandro Haber and Rocco Papaleo, which ended in 2019.
In 2017, he directed the film No Country for Young Men, which received nominations for the Ciak D'oro and Nastri d'Argento. In 2018, The King's Musketeers was released, a comedy starring the musketeer, for which he received a David Giovani nomination at the 2019 David di Donatello. In 2019, he host and co-write Rai 2 TV show's Maledetti amici miei, based on his the stage play A ruota libera, featuring Rocco Papaleo, Sergio Rubini, Alessandro Haber, Max Tortora and Margherita Buy.
2021–present: Return to film and theater and the success with Romeo is Juliet In 2020, the film Tutti per 1 - 1 per tutti, the sequel to The King's Musketeers, was not released in theaters due to the COVID-19 pandemic in Italy but was broadcast on Sky Cinema Uno Italia. In 2021, he reunited with Carlo Verdone, after twenty years from their first collaboration, to co-write the screenplay for the film Si vive una volta sola, which was nominated for a Nastro d'Argento for Best Comedy.
In 2024, the film Romeo Is Juliet, starring Sergio Castellitto and Pilar Fogliati, was released in italian theaters, earning Veronesi a nomination for Best Comedy at the Nastri d'Argento Awards and his first Globo d'Oro for Best Comedy.
In 2026, Dio Ride will mark his first film selected to the Venice Film Festival, as the closing film for the 83rd edition.
Personal life Born in Prato, he is the brother of the writer Sandro Veronesi. His partner is the Italian actress Valeria Solarino, whom Veronesi directed in What Will Happen to Us.
Filmography
Feature films YearEnglish TitleOriginal TitleNotes1987Maramao Co-written with Sandro Veronesi1993For Love, Only for LovePer amore, solo per amoreCo-written with Ugo Chiti1996Silenzio... si nasceThe Barber of RioIl barbiere di Rio1998Viola Kisses EverybodyViola bacia tuttiCo-written with Rocco PapaleoGunslinger's RevengeIl mio WestCo-written with Leonardo Pieraccioni2001Witches to the North Streghe verso nordCo-written with Sandro Veronesi and Massimiliano Governi2004What Will Happen to UsChe ne sarà di noiCo-written with Silvio Muccino2005Manual of LoveManuale d'amoreCo-written with Vincenzo Cerami and Ugo Chiti2007Manual of Love 2Manuale d'amore 2 - Capitoli successiviCo-written with Andrea Agnello and Ugo Chiti2009Italians 2010Parents and Children: Shake Well Before UsingGenitori & figli - Agitare bene prima dell'uso2011The Ages of LoveManuale d'amore 3Co-written with Ugo Chiti2013The Fifth WheelL'ultima ruota del carroCo-written with Filippo Bologna, Ugo Chiti and Ernesto Fioretti2014A Woman as a FriendUna donna per amicaCo-written with Ugo Chiti2017No Country for Young MenNon è un paese per giovaniCo-written with Ilaria Macchia and Andrea Paolo Massara2018The King's MusketeersMoschettieri del re - La penultima missioneCo-written with Nicola Baldoni2020Tutti per 1 - 1 per tutti2024Romeo Is JulietRomeo è GiuliettaCo-written with Pilar Fogliati and Nicola Baldoni2026God LaughsDio Ride
Only screenwriter All the Fault of Paradise (1985) Stregati (1987) Caruso Pascoski, Son of a Pole (1988) Women in Skirts (1991) Vacanze di Natale '91 (1991) Anni 90 (1992) Amami (1992) OcchioPinocchio (1994) Men Men Men (1995) The Graduates (1995) 3 (1996) The Cyclone (1996) Five Stormy Days (1997) Fireworks (1997) Lucignolo (1999) The Fish in Love (1999) A Chinese in a Coma (2000) Picasso's Face (2000) The Prince and the Pirate (2001) My Life with Stars and Stripes (2003) Suddenly Paradise (2003) I Love You in Every Language in the World (2005) Il professor Cenerentolo (2015) Si vive una volta sola (2021)
Music video YearSongArtistNotes2007"Eppure sentire (Un senso di te)" ElisaDirector2008"Meraviglioso"Negramaro2013"Ecco che"Elisa"Inno"Gianna Nannini2014"Un amore così grande"Negramaro2016"Lo sai da qui"
Actor A School Outing (1983) Caruso Pascoski, Son of a Pole (1988) Picasso's Face (2000) Fughe da fermo (2001)
Accolades AwardYearCategory Nominated workResult David di Donatello Award 1994 Best ScreenplayFor Love, Only for Love 2005 Best FilmManual of Love Best Screenplay 2010 Young David AwardParents and Children: Shake Well Before Using 2019 The King's Musketeers Globo d'oro 2024 Best Comedy FilmRomeo Is Juliet Nastri d'argento 1997Best ScreenplayThe Cyclone2006 Best Italian FilmManual of LoveBest Screenplay2010 Best Comedy FilmParents and Children: Shake Well Before UsingBest Screenplay2021Best Comedy FilmAll for One, One for All2024Romeo Is Juliet2025 Special Nastro d'ArgentoThe Blue Avalanche
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