Claudia Cardinale is a cocktail of beauty, charm and class. The actress, flying from Paris to Rome for the Film Festival, was greeted on arrival by staff from Aeroporti di Roma.

First arrivals at Fiumicino airport for the 11th edition of the Rome Film Fest (13-23 October). Today Claudia Cardinale was, so to speak, the "opening act": in front of the photographers waiting for her at the airport, she appeared to be pleasantly surprised and amused at the same time.

Arriving from Paris, where she has lived for years, the actress, wearing a black jersey and black trousers with a three-quarter length grey jacket, was greeted on arrival by the ground staff of Aeroporti di Roma and the flashing cameras.

"What a surprise, I did not expect to find you here already at the airport", said an amused Cardinale who, after posing for some pictures taken in front of a billboard in English that welcomes stars of Italian and international cinema to Leonardo da Vinci arriving these days in Rome for the event; she added that she was grateful for the warm welcome and that she always feels "a great excitement when returning to Italy, the most beautiful country in the world".  

At the Film Festival, Cardinale will attend the screening of the film "Il giorno della civetta" (The Day of the Owl), directed by Damiano Damiani, shot in '68 with Franco Nero.

In the history of cinema, no one can leave out her interpretation of Angelica, fifty years ago: The Leopard holds one of the most famous film scenes the world over, when, in a white dress, she twirls around in the arms of Burt Lancaster during a waltz.

Born in 1938 in Tunisia, Cardinale has been living in Paris for years. In 1957 she won a beauty contest in Tunis and, with that, a trip to the Venice Film Festival: from there she began her unparalleled rise to stardom.

Her first role was in “Big Deal in Madonna Street” by Mario Monicelli, alongside stars like Vittorio Gassman and Totò.

She has starred in numerous famous films, from "Rocco and His Brothers" to "The Leopard", from "Cartouche" to "8 1/2", from "Once Upon a Time in the West" to comedies such as "The Pink Panther".

Claudia Cardinale  has appeared alongside actors such as Alain Delon, Sean Connery, Burt Lancaster  and Cary Grant.