The Filippo Meli Museum of Photography is named after Filippo Meli (1889–1965), a priest, art historian, and scholar born in Ciminna.

Some works of art transcend their own medium and become inseparable from the places where they were created. One such masterpiece is The Leopard (Il Gattopardo), Luchino Visconti’s celebrated film adaptation of the novel by Giuseppe Tomasi di Lampedusa. For almost three months, the small inland Sicilian town of Ciminna was transformed into the fictional village of Donnafugata.

To commemorate the fiftieth anniversary of the film’s release, curator Giuseppe Cusmano created the exhibition “The Set of The Leopard in 300 Images”, featuring photographs taken during the production of the film, including rare behind-the-scenes images from the Titanus archives, now preserved by Reporters-Associati & Archivi and the National Museum of Cinema in Turin.

The exhibition includes previously unpublished photographs of many members of the cast, including:

  • Burt Lancaster (Prince Don Fabrizio Salina)
  • Claudia Cardinale (Angelica Sedara)
  • Alain Delon (Tancredi Falconeri)
  • Paolo Stoppa (Don Calogero Sedara)
  • Mario Girotti (later known as Terence Hill)
  • Rina Morelli
  • Sergio Reggiani
  • Ottavia Piccolo
  • Romolo Valli
  • Pierre Clémenti
  • Leslie French
  • Ida Galli
  • Lucilla Morlacchi
  • Pino Caruso

Also displayed are photographs of the liturgical vestments and silverware used during the celebrated Te Deum scene.

The exhibition highlights how the cinematic project has become an integral part of Ciminna’s artistic, historical, and cultural heritage. The town still preserves twelve historic churches (out of the forty-eight that existed until 1911) as well as the catacombs of the Confraternity of the Holy Name of Jesus, remarkable testimonies to over five centuries of local history.

The museum also organises guided tours to the principal filming locations, including:

  • Piazza Piersanti Mattarella – arrival and departure of Count Chevalley.
  • Via Collegio – Prince Paolo and Count Chevalley walking towards the palace.
  • Piazza Matrice – the Prince’s Palace and the arrival of the carriages.
  • Piazza Matrice – the polling station during the plebiscite and the Mayor’s house.
  • Church of Saint Mary Magdalene – the arrival in Donnafugata and the filming of the