Emerging from a Roman working-class milieu, Citti spent his youth painting and doing day-labour before being spotted at 26 by Pier Paolo Pasolini, who cast him in the title role of the director’s debut film Accattone. The performance earned him a BAFTA nomination for Best Foreign Actor and a Nastro d'Argento nod, establishing him as a striking non-professional talent.
Pasolini then employed him…
