Matera has a very strong relationship with cinema because it offers something that few cities possess: a layered, recognizable, and visually powerful urban landscape. The Sassi, with their houses carved into the rock, their stairways, narrow alleys, and unexpected views, allow directors to work on depth, perspective, and light contrasts without having to build artificial sets.

It is no coincidence that the city has been chosen for very different films. Pier Paolo Pasolini filmed several scenes of The Gospel According to Matthew here, using Matera to represent a poor and essential Palestine. Mel Gibson made a similar choice for The Passion of the Christ, enhancing the archaic character of the Sassi and the Murgia. More recently, some sequences from No Time to Die, a chapter in the James Bond saga, showed Matera in a completely different light: no longer just a biblical or historical place, but a dynamic setting for a major international action film.

This versatility is one of the most interesting aspects of the city. Matera can evoke the past, the Mediterranean, the Middle East, but also become a contemporary setting with a high visual impact. The motif is technical even before it is evocative: the light stone reflects light very well, the differences in level create natural shots, and the structure of the Sassi allows for continuous changes in perspective.

For those visiting Matera, this connection with cinema is another way to understand the city. There’s no need for a specialized tour: just observe how a street, a square, or a view can easily transform into a scene. This is one of the reasons why Matera remains so memorable: it is not only beautiful to look at, it is constructed in an almost naturally cinematic way.