Introduction
A director whose name loomed large over his films, Federico Fellini was one of the great Italian filmmakers in modern cinema. From early classics such as La strada (1954) via arthouse sensations such as La dolce vita (1960) and 8½ (1963), his work is an exuberant affirmation of life and art.
Here are some of his most memorable quotes:
On seeing films
“Going to the cinema is like returning to the womb; you sit there, still and meditative in the darkness, waiting for life to appear on the screen.”
On making films
“Even if I set out to make a film about a fillet of sole, it would be about me.”
On films and dreams
“Talking about dreams is like talking about movies, since the cinema uses the language of dreams; years can pass in a second and you can hop from one place to another. It's a language made of image. And in the real cinema, every object and every light means something as in a dream.”
On being faithful
“It's easier to be faithful to a restaurant than it is to a woman.”
On realism
“Realism is a bad word. In a sense everything is realistic. I see no line between the imaginary and the real.”
On censors
“Censorship is advertising paid by the government.”
On beginnings and endings
“A good opening and a good ending make for a good film provided they come close together.”
On artists
“The artist is the medium between his fantasies and the rest of the world.”
“What is an artist? A provincial who finds himself somewhere between a physical reality and a metaphysical one. It's this in-between...this frontier country between the tangible world and the intangible one -- which is really the realm of the artist.”
On hype
"Hype is the awkward and desperate attempt to convince journalists that what you've made is worth the misery of having to review it."
Highlighted works
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A brutish travelling strongman (Anthony Quinn) acquires a waif-like young assistant (Giulietta Masina) before taking to the road in Federico Fellini’s acclaimed neo-realist fable.
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Federico Fellini triumphantly conjured himself out of a bad case of creative block with this autobiographical magnum opus about a film director experiencing creative block.
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Federico Fellini returned for inspiration to his own childhood in 1930s Rimini for this colourful comedy-drama about life in a small seaside town under Fascist rule.
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Federico Fellini’s epic charts a week in the life of a tabloid journalist (Marcello Mastroianni) as the excesses of modern Roman life go on around him.
Filmography
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Director
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Director
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Director
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Director
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Director
2003
[Director]
2003
FEDERICO FELLINI MIT DEN AUGEN DER ANDEREN
[Subject of Film]
2003
archive
2002
[Subject of Film]
2001
[Subject of Film]
2000
FELLINI RACCONTA - UN AUTORITRATTO RITROVATA
[Subject of Film]
1993
MOMENTOUS EVENTS: RUSSIA IN THE 90S
Director
1993
Real Dreams Into the Dark with Federico Fellini
[Subject of Film]
interviewee1992
Director
1992
[Subject of Film]
1992
[Subject of Film]
on-screen participant1990
Director
Screenplay/Treatment by1990
interviewee
1987
Director
Written by
[himself]1987
[Subject of Film]
1987
WALT DISNEY DUE CHIACCHIERE CON FEDERICO FELLINI
[Script]
[Interviewee]1987
Interviewee
1986
Director
1985
Director
Screenplay
From a story by1985
BELLISSIMO: IMMAGINI DEL CINEMA ITALIANO
on-screen participant
1984
Director
1983
Director
Story/Screenplay1983
[Subject of Film]
on-screen participant1983
himself
1983
DIRETTORI FOTOGRAFIA : ROTUNNO
interviewee
1980
Director
Story/Screenplay1979
Director
Story/Screenplay
[voice of interviewer]1979
interviewee
1978
Wizards, Clowns and Honest Liars
[Subject of Film]
on-screen participant1977
[Subject of Film]
on-screen participant1976
Il CASANOVA DI FEDERICO FELLINI
Director
Screenplay
Art Direction Conception1974
himself
1974
interviewee
1972
Director
Story/Screenplay1972
Director
Original Story/Screenplay
[himself]1970
Director
Script
himself1970
Interviews with Rossano Brazzi and Federico Fellini
cast member
1969
Director
Story/Screenplay
Art Direction Created by (Ideazione)1969
Fellini - A Director's Notebook
Director
Written by
[himself]1969
Ciao, Federico (Production Material)
on-screen participant
1969
Fellinicon (Production Material)
on-screen participant
1968
Based upon the Screenplay by
1967
Director [3]
Screenplay [3]1966
interviewee
1965
Director
Created ('Ideato') by
Screenplay
Story1965
ANTONIONI, STORIA DI UN AUTORE
cast member
1963
Director
Created by (Ideato da)
Screenplay
Story1962
Director [2]
Screenplay [2]1961
[Subject of Film]
on-screen participant1960
Director
Story/Screenplay
Story1957
Director
Story/Screenplay1957
Script
1955
Director
Story/Screenplay1954
Director
Story/Screenplay1953
Director
Screenplay
Story by1953
Director [4]
Screenplay [4]1952
Director
Screenplay
From a story by1952
[From a story by]
1951
Script
1950
Director
Associate Producer
Screenplay
Story1950
In collaboration with
1950
Script
Original Story1949
Screenplay
From a story by
St. Joseph, the shepherd1949
Script
1949
Script
1948
Assistant Director [2]
Screenplay [2]
From a story by [2]
St Joseph, the shepherd1947
Screenplay
1947
Il DELITTO DI GIOVANNI EPISCOPO
Screenplay
1946
1st Assistant Director
Screenplay/Dialogue
Story1945
Screenplay/Dialogue in collaborat'n with
Sight & Sound magazine
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Reviews, interviews and features from the international film magazine.
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