Filippo Trentin

Dr. Filippo Trentin is a Senior Lecturer in Italian Studies at the University of Pennsylvania’s School of Arts & Sciences, specializing in 19th–20th century Italian literature and cinema. His research bridges theories of modernity, psychoanalytic approaches to sexuality, and materialist histories of Rome’s urban transformation.

• Ph.D. in Italian Studies, University of Warwick (2013)
• M.A. in Comparative Literature, Dartmouth College
• B.A. in Comparative Literature, La Sapienza University of Rome

His work interrogates how philosophers, writers, and filmmakers like Gramsci, Pasolini, Fellini, and Carlo Levi redefined Rome’s symbolic relationship to European modernity. Current projects include a book on the gaze in Italian cinema through feminist and psychoanalytic lenses, alongside co-editing volumes like Rome: Postmodern Narratives of a Cityscape (Routledge, 2016).

Publications span journals such as Screen, GLQ, and Modern Language Review, with recurring themes in queer theory, urban studies, and critical theory. His editorial work includes the 2019 GLQ special issue The Ontology of the Couple and the 2022 Psychoanalysis & History special issue on anal/sexual theory.

• Andrew W. Mellon Postdoctoral Fellowship (2016–17)

Prior roles include Visiting Assistant Professor at Ohio State University (2015–16) and Postdoctoral Fellow at ICI Berlin (2013–15).