The most obvious way neorealist films differed from their predecessors was that neorealist films were shot on location. A second way neorealist films differed from their predecessors was in their use of post-production sound. Because of the difficulty and expense of filming on location, Italian neorealist directors, beginning with Rossellini in Open City, shot their films silent, dubbing in the dialogue and sound effects later. Aside from their look, Italian neorealist films also seem more real than Hollywood films or the films made under Mussolini's regime because of the kinds of stories they tell.

Neorealist scenarios focus on common, even banal events in the lives of working-class people. Neorealist stories also tend to end abruptly, without closure, with loose ends dangling and problems unresolved, also making them more like life and less like fictions. The actors who play the leading roles in neorealist films, moreover, are often non professional actors or stage actors who are cast because they look like ordinary people, so they give the appearance of being authentic, not glamorous stars "playing" at representing real people.