Isabella Rossellini

Delve into the life of Isabella Rossellini — Italian-American actress, model, filmmaker, and animal behaviorist. From her famous heritage to breakthrough roles, modeling career, nature projects, and ongoing artistic evolution.

Introduction

Isabella Rossellini (born June 18, 1952) is a multi-faceted artist: actress, former model, writer, filmmaker, and animal behavior enthusiast. As the daughter of Swedish actress Ingrid Bergman and Italian director Roberto Rossellini, she inherited a formidable artistic lineage—but carved her own path across cinema, television, art, and science. Her career spans decades of bold choices, and in recent years she’s embraced work exploring nature, ecology, and animal behavior alongside acting.

Early Life and Family

Isabella Fiorella Elettra Giovanna Rossellini was born on June 18, 1952, in Rome, Italy.

Her mother was Ingrid Bergman, the acclaimed Swedish actress. Roberto Rossellini, the influential Italian neorealist film director.

She grew up between Rome, Santa Marinella, and Paris. Isotta Ingrid Rossellini, among other siblings (maternal and paternal) including Pia Lindström (her mother’s daughter from a previous marriage) and several Rossellini siblings from her father’s marriages.

During childhood, she faced health challenges: she was diagnosed with severe scoliosis, which required extended treatments including body casts and surgery on her spine.

She also underwent an appendectomy at age five.

Her education included time in New York, where she attended Finch College and worked as a translator and TV reporter for Italian RAI television.

Career & Achievements

Modeling & Early Public Identity

Though her acting credentials are strong, Rossellini also built a significant modeling career. Around age 28 she began modeling for major magazines (Vogue, Harper’s Bazaar, Elle, etc.).

In 1982, she became the face and brand ambassador for the cosmetics company Lancôme—a relationship she maintained for many years. Trésor.

Acting & Film Work

Rossellini made her film debut in A Matter of Time (1976), appearing opposite her mother. Il prato (1979).

Her breakthrough, internationally, came with David Lynch’s Blue Velvet (1986). In Blue Velvet she played Dorothy Vallens, a role that earned her critical attention and is among her most remembered performances. Wild at Heart (1990).

Other notable films include Death Becomes Her (1992), Cousins (1989), Fearless (1993), Wyatt Earp (1994), Big Night (1996), Roger Dodger (2002), Enemy (2013), Joy (2015), and La chimera (2023).

In 2024, Rossellini played Sister Agnes in Conclave, a role that earned her an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actress.

In television, she has guest starred in shows like Friends, 30 Rock, Alias, Chicago Hope, and The Blacklist. Julia (2022).

She also took on roles as a jury president: she was president of the jury at the 61st Berlin International Film Festival (2011) and president of the jury for the Un Certain Regard section at Cannes in 2015.

Filmmaking, Art & Animal Behavior

In her later career, Rossellini has combined her artistic side with scientific curiosity. She created the web/short film series Green Porno (debuting 2008), in which she dramatizes and performs various animal mating behaviors—writing, directing, performing, and designing the creatures. Seduce Me: The Spawn of Green Porno and Mammas, exploring animal reproduction, motherhood, and behavior. Mammas, she presents maternal behaviors across species.

She also created a short film tribute, My Dad Is 100 Years Old, in which she plays multiple roles, including her father and mother, honoring her cinematic heritage.

Rossellini is active in conservation and animal work. She trains future guide dogs for the Guide Dog Foundation, and advocates for awareness of dog health and temperament over aesthetic breeding. Mama Farm, on Long Island (USA), engaging in regenerative agriculture, raising animals, and ecotourism.

Personality, Traits & Beliefs

Rossellini is known for her intellect, curiosity, and interdisciplinarity. She bridges art and science, and has spoken about her preference for authenticity, aging naturally, and living in harmony with nature.

She has publicly declined to undergo plastic surgery, preferring to age with integrity and accept her body’s changes.

She is fluent in Italian, French, and English.

She has also fought to define her identity beyond being “the daughter of Ingrid Bergman and Roberto Rossellini,” especially as her acting career matured and she differentiated her own voice.

Selected Quotes

Here are a few quoted reflections attributed to or about Isabella Rossellini:

• (About Blue Velvet controversies) She defended her choice to play Dorothy Vallens, saying she made that decision as an adult and embraced her role in the film.

• In a 2025 Oscars appearance, she honored David Lynch and her mother Ingrid Bergman via fashion—a blue velvet dress evoking Blue Velvet and earrings her mother had worn.

While she is less known for pithy maxims, many of her interviews express themes about authenticity, nature, aging, and experimentation.

Lessons & Legacy

1. Forge your own path—even with a storied lineage.
   Rossellini inherited immense film pedigree, yet she branched into modeling, science, short films, and ecology to define her own voice.

2. Embrace interdisciplinarity.
   Her work spans cinema, performance art, biology and conservation, showing how creative and scientific minds can coexist.

3. Use art to shine light on nature and behavior.
   Through Green Porno and similar projects, she made scientific concepts accessible, playful, and thought-provoking.

4. Aging with dignity.
   Her resistance to cosmetic alteration and insistence on aging naturally sends a strong message about beauty, identity, and self-acceptance.

5. Sustain passion over decades.
   From her early roles to her current artistic and ecological projects, Rossellini continues evolving rather than resting on past fame.

Conclusion

Isabella Rossellini is a rare figure whose career refuses easy pigeonholing. Actress, model, director, conservationist, performer—she has navigated multiple disciplines with courage, curiosity, and integrity. Her artistry is enriched by her scientific sensibility; her public life is marked by authenticity and reinvention. As she continues to act, create, and shepherd nature projects, her life remains an evolving canvas of creativity and purpose.