One of the most important films in Italian cinema history, Men Of The Depths can make a claim to being the first neo-realist film. Francesco De Robertis was a naval officer and a writer preoccupied with the problems of screen drama. He believed in direct cinema, in using non-professional actors and in avoiding all elements of theatrical melodrama. Uomini Sul Fondo was shot entirely on board a submarine, and is a semi-documentary of an accident at sea and the brave response of the crew to the threat.