Ruggero Deodato, director of the notorious 1980 horror film Cannibal Holocaust, has died aged 83.
The iconic director had a glittering film-making career and was known for working in a variety of genres, however he remains best known for his gruesome horror film, Cannibal Holocaust.
The controversial flick was banned in multiple countries and even resulted in him being put on trial for murdering his actors.
Cannibal Holocaust became infamous for its real violence against animals, including onscreen killings of monkeys and a coati, as well as the depictions of extreme violence and torture.
Released in 1980, less than a two weeks after its release in Italy, the film was seized by local authorities.
Deodato was charged with obscenity and murder after an article alleged some of the deaths in the movie were actually real and not fictitious.
However, the murder charges were dropped after Deodato produced the supposedly dead actors in court.
He was however convicted for animal cruelty – a verdict that was overturned in 1984.
Speaking to the Guardian in 2011, Deodato defended the scenes of animal cruelty.
The director insisted that animals had to be killed as part of the circle of life.
“In my youth, growing up, I spent a lot of time in the country close to animals and therefore often seeing the moment of their death.
"The death of the animals, although unbearable – especially in a present-day urban mindset – always happened in order to feed the film’s characters or the crew, both in the story and in reality.”
“I make films that people call ‘horror’ because I want to make films about real things that happen in the world," said Deodato. "And most real things aren't very nice."
The film was banned or heavily censored in around 40 countries - including the US, UK, Australia, New Zealand, Norway and Finland.
The Italian director leaves behind a varied filmography that includes thrillers (Concorde Affaire '79), peplums (The Barbarians) and melodramas (Last Feelings), but he was best known for his gory contributions to the horror genre, including the giallos Body Count and Phantom of Death.
Deodato started out as an extra, but after failing an audition for a Federico Fellini film, he gave up his acting career to take up directing.
From 1959 to 1968, he worked on nearly 30 films, including several by Sergio Corbucci and Antonio Margheriti.
