Federico Fellini

Federico Fellini , 1920-93, Italian film director. After World War II he wrote screenplays for such neorealistic films as Rossellini 's Open City and Paisan. He began directing in 1950 and quickly abandoned neorealism in favor of professional actors and scripted tales of almost fablelike simplicity that express a basically humanistic outlook.

He enjoyed international acclaim with I Vitelloni (1953), La Strada (1954; Academy Award), Nights of Cabiria (1957; Academy Award), La Dolce Vita (1960), and 81/2 (1963; Academy Award), the latter two widely considered his black-and-white masterpieces. Filmed in color beginning with Juliet of the Spirits (1965), his movies became a celebration of life in all its beauties and grotesqueries while also exploring Fellini's wildly imaginative dream life. These later works, including Fellini Satyricon (1969), Amarcord (1973; Academy Award), City of Women (1980), Ginger and Fred (1984), and Voices of the Moon (1990), feature international casts of distinctive faces and camera gymnastics that substitute for traditional drama.

Bibliography: See his tape-recorded autobiography (with C. Chandler) I, Fellini (1995); his Three Screenplays (tr. 1970); biography by H. Alpert (1986, repr. 1998); study by G. Salachas (tr. 1969); Fellini: I'm a Born Liar (documentary film dir. by D. Pettigrew, 2002).

Fellini, Federico (1920–93) Italian film director. Fellini's full directorial debut was The White Sheik (1952). His next film, I Vitelloni (1953), established the elements of satire, autobiography, and humanism common to many of his films. La Strada (1954) won an Academy Award for best foreign film. Fellini won a second Oscar for Le notti di Cabiria (1957). He won two more Oscars for 8sQ (1963) and Amarcord (1974). His last film was Voices of the Moon (1990).