Giovanni Pastrone
Giovanni Pastrone, also known by his artistic name Piero Fosco , was an Italian film pioneer, director, screenwriter, actor and technician.
Pastrone was born in Montechiaro dAsti. He worked during the era of the silent film and influenced many important directors in the international cinema, such as David Wark Griffith, in his Birth of a Nation and Intolerance .
Source: Wikipedia