Short film 'Il Moro' tells story of Alessandro de' Medici, the first Black head of state in modern Western Europe

The short film 'Il Moro' (20 minutes), directed by Daphne Di Cinto, recounts the true story of Alessandro de' Medici, the first Black head of state in modern Western Europe. Born in 1510 to a Moorish servant and Pope Clement VII (or possibly Lorenzo de' Medici), he became Duke of Florence. The film stars Alberto Boubakar Malanchino as Alessandro, Paolo Sassanelli as Pope Clement, Balkissa Maiga as his mother, and Andrea Melis as Ippolito de' Medici. Di Cinto, an Italian screenwriter, director, actress, and producer known for playing the Duchess of Hastings in Netflix's 'Bridgerton', discovered the story by chance and decided to make the film. After the film gained international recognition, Di Cinto petitioned the Municipality of Florence to acknowledge Alessandro's burial in the Medici Chapels. In November 2023, a panel was added to his tomb in the New Sacristy of the Basilica of San Lorenzo, finally naming him. The film highlights the erasure of Afro-Italian and Afro-European presence from official history.