
During August, the British Film Institute will present a series of films celebrating 75 years since Sofia Scicolone began her career in Italian cinema, later known as Sophia Loren. Although she may have been persuaded by her manager and future husband Carlo Ponti to change her name, she refused directors’ attempts to modify her facial characteristics, particularly her “large nose and mouth that didn’t match,” as she recollected. She proudly declared, “I like my face,” and swiftly became Italy’s first female international box office star and the first non-English actor to receive an Oscar for her performance in Two Women. The lesson here: embrace your own unique self, even if it’s imperfect.