---
name: "Federico Fellini"
canonical: "https://film.one/person/federico-fellini"
fi1m_id: "federico-fellini"
imdb_id: "nm0000019"
tmdb_id: 4415
wikidata_id: "Q7371"
roles: ["Writer","Director"]
born: "20 January 1920"
died: "31 October 1993"
reviewed_on_fi1m: 8
average_fi1m_score: 86
average_as: "writer"
average_over: 2
updated: "2026-09-26T16:47:07.221302+00:00"
licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL."
---

# Federico Fellini

## Identity

Federico Fellini

- **Canonical:** https://film.one/person/federico-fellini
- **Type:** Person
- **Fi1m ID:** federico-fellini
- **IMDb ID:** nm0000019
- **TMDB ID:** 4415
- **Wikidata ID:** Q7371
- **Same entity:** https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Federico_Fellini, https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q7371, https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000019/, https://www.themoviedb.org/person/4415

Writer and director. Born 20 January 1920 in Rimini, Emilia-Romagna, Italy. Died 31 October 1993.

## Details

- **Work:** Writer, Director
- **Born:** 20 January 1920, Rimini, Emilia-Romagna, Italy
- **Died:** 31 October 1993
- **Active:** 1945–1973
- **Also known as:** Il Maestro, FeFe, フェデリコ・フェリーニ, 费德里柯·费里尼, เฟเดรีโก เฟลลีนี, 페데리코 펠리니, فيديريكو فليني, فدریکو فلینی
- **Titles on Fi1m:** 8: 6 directing, 2 writing
- **Frequently works with:** [Brunello Rondi](https://film.one/person/brunello-rondi.md), [Ennio Flaiano](https://film.one/person/ennio-flaiano.md), [Tullio Pinelli](https://film.one/person/tullio-pinelli.md), [Angelo Rizzoli](https://film.one/person/angelo-rizzoli.md), [Anouk Aimée](https://film.one/person/anouk-aimee.md), [Giulietta Masina](https://film.one/person/giulietta-masina.md), [Giuseppe Amato](https://film.one/person/giuseppe-amato.md), [Magali Noël](https://film.one/person/magali-noel.md)
- **Academy Awards:** 1 Oscar (1 won · 12 nominated)
- **Average Fi1m score:** 86, as writer, over 2 titles
- **Fi1m score by decade:** 1940s 86 (2), 1950s 88 (1), 1960s 78 (4), 1970s 82 (1)
- **Elsewhere:** https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Federico_Fellini, https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q7371, https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000019/, https://www.themoviedb.org/person/4415

## Streaming the US now

- **HBO Max:** [*8½*](https://film.one/film/812.md) (91), [*Rome, Open City*](https://film.one/film/rome-open-city.md) (89), [*Paisan*](https://film.one/film/paisan.md) (84), [*Amarcord*](https://film.one/film/amarcord.md) (82), [*Juliet of the Spirits*](https://film.one/film/juliet-of-the-spirits.md) (68)

For United States; add `?region=XX` for another country.

## Fi1m on Federico Fellini

> Federico Fellini makes awkward people worth caring about, and we rate him highly for it. His wandering stories can be funny and moving, though the parties and visions sometimes last longer than our patience.

In *8½* (1963), a film director arrives at a spa and cannot manage either his rest or his next picture. A producer wants answers about a rocket launch tower; a mistress needs another hotel. Fellini makes the failure to get anything done funny, while allowing the screenplay to circle the same anxieties. We would send a stranger to it, despite the corridors, auditions and encounters eventually beginning to repeat.

That interest in troublesome company was there in his screenwriting for Roberto Rossellini's *Rome, Open City* (1945), alongside Sergio Amidei and Rossellini himself. Aldo Fabrizi's comic ease as the priest makes room for laughter within the war drama. In *Nights of Cabiria* (1957), Giulietta Masina gives the heroine an awkward exuberance that prevents her becoming merely someone to pity, although Fellini presses her suffering too hard. By *La Dolce Vita* (1960), the story wanders through celebrity life in Rome, with Marcello Mastroianni keeping its agreeable, compromised central man worth following.

Fellini wrote *8½* with Ennio Flaiano, Tullio Pinelli and Brunello Rondi, and the same four writers wrote *Juliet of the Spirits* (1965). The move from a blocked director to Giulietta Masina's distracted wife exposes a weakness. Guido has work to avoid; Giulietta has too little to do while the film supplies another vision or another visit. The fantasies need no warning or explanation, but the repeated excursions through her marriage and memories leave the second hour shapeless.

In *Juliet of the Spirits*, cinematographer Gianni Di Venanzo's pale villa and deep red interiors make those excursions worth looking at. Piero Gherardi's sets and extravagant hats help, though we eventually become more interested in the furnishings than in Giulietta. Editor Ruggero Mastroianni moves fluently between memory and the present without solving that problem. Nino Rota's organ and brass suit the parties, but his music keeps intruding in the bedroom.

*Satyricon* (1969), written with Bernardino Zapponi, pushes that imbalance further: the buildings and costumes hold our interest longer than the central pursuit. *Amarcord* (1973), written with Tonino Guerra, gives the interruptions a better purpose by letting a whole town compete for attention. We laughed at its public gatherings because each fresh face brought another attempt to outdo the neighbours. The sexual jokes grow repetitive, but the crowded scenes keep finding new people worth watching. Start with *8½*; for a warmer evening, try *Amarcord* and forgive a few long anecdotes.

## Biography

Federico Fellini was an Italian film director and screenwriter. Born in Rimini in 1920, he began his career in the 1940s as a screenwriter and assistant director, including work on Roberto Rossellini's *Rome, Open City* (1945). He directed his first feature, *Variety Lights*, in 1950.

Fellini is known for films including *La Strada* (1954), *Nights of Cabiria* (1957), *La Dolce Vita* (1960), *8½* (1963) and *Amarcord* (1973). He frequently collaborated with actor Marcello Mastroianni and his wife, actress Giulietta Masina. Four of his films won the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film.

He received the Palme d'Or for *La Dolce Vita* and an honorary Academy Award for lifetime achievement in 1993, the year of his death in Rome.

*Sources: britannica.com, imdb.com, bfi.org.uk.*

## On Fi1m (8)

### Directed (6)

- *Amarcord* (1973), Fi1m 82, Screenplay, Story, Director — [page](https://film.one/film/amarcord.md)
- *Satyricon* (1969), Fi1m 65, Screenplay, Story, Director — [page](https://film.one/film/satyricon.md)
- *Juliet of the Spirits* (1965), Fi1m 68, Story, Director, Screenplay — [page](https://film.one/film/juliet-of-the-spirits.md)
- *8½* (1963), Fi1m 91, Story, Screenplay, Director — [page](https://film.one/film/812.md)
- *La Dolce Vita* (1960), Fi1m 88, Director, Story, Screenplay — [page](https://film.one/film/la-dolce-vita.md)
- *Nights of Cabiria* (1957), Fi1m 88, Story, Screenplay, Director — [page](https://film.one/film/nights-of-cabiria.md)

### Wrote (2) — the average rests on these

- *Paisan* (1946), Fi1m 84, as Man in Crowd (uncredited) — [page](https://film.one/film/paisan.md)
- *Rome, Open City* (1945), Fi1m 89, Assistant Director, Screenplay — [page](https://film.one/film/rome-open-city.md)

## Complete filmography (64)

Every credit, newest first. Titles without a page can be requested for review on the HTML page.

- *Naples to New York* (2024), Story
- *Fellini by Fellini* (2023), Actor
- *Morceaux de Cannes* (2021), Actor
- *How Strange to be Named Federico* (2013), as Sé stesso (materiale d'archivio)
- *Hollywood sul Tevere* (2009), Actor
- *Fellini's TV Advertisements* (2003), Director
- *The King of Ads* (1991), Director
- *The Voice of the Moon* (1990), Director, Screenplay
- *Intervista* (1987), as Federico Fellini (uncredited) · Director, Story, Screenplay
- *Ginger and Fred* (1986), Director, Story, Screenplay
- *Pesto kai tha ginei* (1985), series, as Guest
- *Il tassinaro* (1983), as Federico Fellini
- *And the Ship Sails On* (1983), Director, Screenplay, Story
- *La dolce vita 20 anni dopo* (1980), Actor
- *City of Women* (1980), Director, Screenplay, Story
- *Orchestra Rehearsal* (1979), Director, Screenplay, Story
- *Fellini's Casanova* (1976), Director, Screenplay
- *We All Loved Each Other So Much* (1974), as Federico Fellini · Thanks
- *Amarcord* (1973), Screenplay, Director, Story — Fi1m 82, [page](https://film.one/film/amarcord.md)
- *Roma* (1972), Screenplay, Director, Story
- *The Clowns* (1970), as Federico Fellini (uncredited) · Director, Screenplay
- *Fellini: The Director as Creator* (1970), Actor
- *Satyricon* (1969), Screenplay, Director, Story — Fi1m 65, [page](https://film.one/film/satyricon.md)
- *Fellini: A Director’s Notebook* (1969), Screenplay, Director
- *Sweet Charity* (1969), Original Story
- *Spirits of the Dead* (1968), Director, Adaptation, Screenplay
- *Toby Dammit* (1968), Director
- *Juliet of the Spirits* (1965), Director, Story, Screenplay — Fi1m 68, [page](https://film.one/film/juliet-of-the-spirits.md)
- *Zavoli racconta Fellini* (1964), as Federico Fellini
- *8½* (1963), Screenplay, Director, Story — Fi1m 91, [page](https://film.one/film/812.md)
- *Boccaccio '70* (1962), Screenplay, Director
- *The Temptation of Dr. Antonio* (1962), Director, Screenplay
- *La Dolce Vita* (1960), Director, Story, Screenplay — Fi1m 88, [page](https://film.one/film/la-dolce-vita.md)
- *Fortunella* (1958), Screenplay, Story
- *Nights of Cabiria* (1957), Director, Screenplay, Story — Fi1m 88, [page](https://film.one/film/nights-of-cabiria.md)
- *The Swindle* (1955), Director, Story, Screenplay
- *La Strada* (1954), Director, Screenplay, Story
- *Where Is Freedom?* (1954), Second Unit Director
- *Love in the City* (1953), Director, Writer
- *I Vitelloni* (1953), Screenplay, Director, Story
- *The Bandit of Tacca del Lupo* (1952), Adaptation, Story
- *The White Sheik* (1952), Director, Screenplay, Story
- *Position Wanted* (1951), Screenplay
- *The City Defends Itself* (1951), Screenplay, Story
- *The Flowers of St. Francis* (1950), Screenplay
- *The Ways of Love* (1950), as The Stranger
- *Variety Lights* (1950), Director, Story, Screenplay, Associate Producer
- *The Path of Hope* (1950), Story, Screenplay
- *The Mill on the Po* (1949), Screenplay
- *In the Name of the Law* (1949), Screenplay
- *City of Pain* (1949), Screenplay
- *L'Amore* (1948), as The Tramp (segment "Il miracolo") (uncredited) · Story, Assistant Director
- *Without Pity* (1948), First Assistant Director, Screenplay, Story
- *Il passatore* (1947), Screenplay
- *Flesh Will Surrender* (1947), Screenplay
- *Paisan* (1946), as Man in Crowd (uncredited) · Screenplay, Story, First Assistant Director, Dialogue — Fi1m 84, [page](https://film.one/film/paisan.md)
- *Rome, Open City* (1945), Assistant Director, Screenplay — Fi1m 89, [page](https://film.one/film/rome-open-city.md)
- *Chi l'ha visto?* (1945), Story, Screenplay
- *The Last Wagon* (1943), Screenplay
- *The Peddler and the Lady* (1943), Adaptation
- *Quarta pagina* (1942), Writer, Screenplay
- *There's Room Up Ahead* (1942), Screenplay, Story
- *Interviews for "INTERVISTA"*, Actor
- *The Thousand Miles*, Author

## Gallery

- ![Federico Fellini](https://film.one/media/person/59989/gallery-a661cf3d57b3.jpg) Federico Fellini — Walter Albertin, World Telegram staff photographer, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons (https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/97/Federico_Fellini_NYWTS_2.jpg/1280px-Federico_Fellini_NYWTS_2.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail)
- ![Roma, via Margutta: Memoria di Federico Fellini e Giulietta Masina sulla casa in cui abitarono (2008)](https://film.one/media/person/59989/gallery-233cc19837ac.jpg) Roma, via Margutta: Memoria di Federico Fellini e Giulietta Masina sulla casa in cui abitarono (2008) — Lalupa, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons (https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/1b/Campo_Marzio_-_memoria_di_Fellini_e_Masina_a_via_Margutta_1110570.JPG/1280px-Campo_Marzio_-_memoria_di_Fellini_e_Masina_a_via_Margutta_1110570.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail)
- ![Les jours qui suivirent l'annonce du décès de Fellini, une foule bigarrée vient rendre hommage au cinéaste dans le studio 5 de Cinecittà. De chaque côté du cerc (1993)](https://film.one/media/person/59989/gallery-c88f4b53e8d0.jpg) Les jours qui suivirent l'annonce du décès de Fellini, une foule bigarrée vient rendre hommage au cinéaste dans le studio 5 de Cinecittà. De chaque côté du cerc (1993) — Ioxy-xx, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons (https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/db/Chapelle_ardente_de_Federico_Fellini.jpg/1280px-Chapelle_ardente_de_Federico_Fellini.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail)
- ![Salle consacrée à Federico Fellini à Cinecittà à Rome (Italie). (2014)](https://film.one/media/person/59989/gallery-cd73a302d0fa.jpg) Salle consacrée à Federico Fellini à Cinecittà à Rome (Italie). (2014) — Gzen92, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons (https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/03/Cinecitt%C3%A0_-_Salle_consacr%C3%A9e_%C3%A0_Federico_Fellini.jpg/1280px-Cinecitt%C3%A0_-_Salle_consacr%C3%A9e_%C3%A0_Federico_Fellini.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail)
- ![Federico Fellini](https://film.one/media/person/59989/gallery-a6b62391e498.jpg) Federico Fellini — Image via TMDB
- ![Federico Fellini](https://film.one/media/person/59989/gallery-c37a61415d30.jpg) Federico Fellini — Image via TMDB
- ![Federico Fellini](https://film.one/media/person/59989/gallery-66747beaf610.jpg) Federico Fellini — Image via TMDB
- ![Studio n°5, principalement utilisé par Federico Fellini (2011)](https://film.one/media/person/59989/gallery-319c7164c4f5.jpg) Studio n°5, principalement utilisé par Federico Fellini (2011) — JRibaX, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons (https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/ff/Cinecitt%C3%A0_-_Teatro_5.jpg/1280px-Cinecitt%C3%A0_-_Teatro_5.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail)
- ![Federico Fellini, Alfred Hitchcock, Luis Buñuel y Lucrecia Martel mural en Cinemateca, Montevideo, Uruguay en 2022.](https://film.one/media/person/59989/gallery-5da68a367876.jpg) Federico Fellini, Alfred Hitchcock, Luis Buñuel y Lucrecia Martel mural en Cinemateca, Montevideo, Uruguay en 2022. — Marinna, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons (https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/f9/Cinemateca_Uruguaya_mural.jpg/1280px-Cinemateca_Uruguaya_mural.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail)
- ![Federico Fellini](https://film.one/media/person/59989/gallery-2558b510d0e1.jpg) Federico Fellini — Image via TMDB

## Awards

### Academy Awards — 1 won, 12 nominated

- 1977: Best Writing, Adapted Screenplay (nominated), for *Fellini's Casanova*
- 1976: Best Writing, Original Screenplay (nominated), for *Amarcord*
- 1976: Best Director (nominated), for *Amarcord*
- 1971: Best Director (nominated), for *Satyricon*
- 1964: Best Director (nominated), for *8½*
- 1964: Best Writing, Original Screenplay (nominated), for *8½*
- 1962: Best Director (nominated), for *La Dolce Vita*
- 1962: Best Writing, Original Screenplay (nominated), for *La Dolce Vita*
- 1958: Best Writing, Original Screenplay (nominated), for *I Vitelloni*
- 1957: Best International Feature Film (won)
- 1957: Best Writing, Original Screenplay (nominated), for *La Strada*
- 1950: Best Writing, Original Screenplay (nominated), for *Paisà*
- 1947: Best Writing, Adapted Screenplay (nominated), for *Rome, Open City*

### BAFTA Film Awards — 6 won

- 1985: Best Production Design (won), for *Fellini's Casanova*
- 1981: Best Production Design (won), for *Fellini's Casanova*
- 1980: Best Production Design (won), for *Fellini's Casanova*
- 1979: Best Production Design (won), for *Fellini's Casanova*
- 1978: Best Production Design (won), for *Fellini's Casanova*
- 1977: Best Production Design (won), for *Fellini's Casanova*

### Cannes Film Festival — 2 won

- 1962: Palme d'Or (won), for *La Dolce Vita*
- 1961: Palme d'Or (won), for *La Dolce Vita*

### Other awards — 59 won

- Moscow International Film Festival awards 1993: Moscow International Film Festival awards (won), for *Intervista*
- Academy Honorary Award 1991: Academy Honorary Award (won)
- Moscow International Film Festival awards 1991: Moscow International Film Festival awards (won), for *Intervista*
- Praemium Imperiale 1990: Praemium Imperiale (won)
- European Film Academy Lifetime Achievement Award 1989: European Film Academy Lifetime Achievement Award (won)
- Moscow International Film Festival awards 1989: Moscow International Film Festival awards (won), for *Intervista*
- Moscow International Film Festival awards 1988: Moscow International Film Festival awards (won), for *Intervista*
- David René Clair 1987: David René Clair (won), for *Ginger and Fred*
- David René Clair 1986: David René Clair (won), for *Ginger and Fred*
- David di Donatello for Best Original Script 1985: David di Donatello for Best Original Script (won), for *And the Ship Sails On*
- Nastro d'Argento for the director of the best film 1985: Nastro d'Argento for the director of the best film (won), for *And the Ship Sails On*
- Sant Jordi Prize 1985: Sant Jordi Prize (won), for *And the Ship Sails On*
- David di Donatello for Best Original Script 1984: David di Donatello for Best Original Script (won), for *And the Ship Sails On*
- Nastro d'Argento for the director of the best film 1984: Nastro d'Argento for the director of the best film (won), for *And the Ship Sails On*
- Sant Jordi Prize 1984: Sant Jordi Prize (won), for *And the Ship Sails On*
- Nastro d'Argento for the director of the best film 1981: Nastro d'Argento for the director of the best film (won), for *City of Women*
- Bodil Awards 1975: Bodil Awards (won), for *Amarcord*
- David di Donatello for Best Director 1975: David di Donatello for Best Director (won), for *Amarcord*
- French Syndicate of Cinema Critics Awards 1975: French Syndicate of Cinema Critics Awards (won), for *Amarcord*
- Kinema Junpo 1975: Kinema Junpo (won), for *Amarcord*
- Nastro d'Argento for Best Screenplay 1975: Nastro d'Argento for Best Screenplay (won), for *Amarcord*
- Nastro d'Argento for Best Subject 1975: Nastro d'Argento for Best Subject (won), for *Amarcord*
- Nastro d'Argento for the director of the best film 1975: Nastro d'Argento for the director of the best film (won), for *Amarcord*
- New York Film Critics Circle Awards 1975: New York Film Critics Circle Awards (won), for *Amarcord*
- SESC Film Festival 1975: SESC Film Festival (won), for *Amarcord*
- Bodil Awards 1974: Bodil Awards (won), for *Amarcord*
- David di Donatello for Best Director 1974: David di Donatello for Best Director (won), for *Amarcord*
- French Syndicate of Cinema Critics Awards 1974: French Syndicate of Cinema Critics Awards (won), for *Amarcord*
- Kinema Junpo 1974: Kinema Junpo (won), for *Amarcord*
- Nastro d'Argento for Best Screenplay 1974: Nastro d'Argento for Best Screenplay (won), for *Amarcord*
- Nastro d'Argento for Best Subject 1974: Nastro d'Argento for Best Subject (won), for *Amarcord*
- Nastro d'Argento for the director of the best film 1974: Nastro d'Argento for the director of the best film (won), for *Amarcord*
- New York Film Critics Circle Awards 1974: New York Film Critics Circle Awards (won), for *Amarcord*
- SESC Film Festival 1974: SESC Film Festival (won), for *Amarcord*
- French Syndicate of Cinema Critics Awards 1973: French Syndicate of Cinema Critics Awards (won), for *Roma*
- Kansas City Film Critics Circle Awards 1966 1966: Kansas City Film Critics Circle Awards 1966 (won), for *Juliet of the Spirits*
- Sant Jordi Prize 1966: Sant Jordi Prize (won), for *Juliet of the Spirits*
- Bodil Awards 1964: Bodil Awards (won), for *8½*
- Kinema Junpo 1964: Kinema Junpo (won), for *8½*
- Moscow International Film Festival awards 1964: Moscow International Film Festival awards (won), for *8½*
- Nastro d'Argento for Best Screenplay 1964: Nastro d'Argento for Best Screenplay (won), for *8½*
- Nastro d'Argento for Best Subject 1964: Nastro d'Argento for Best Subject (won), for *8½*
- Nastro d'Argento for the director of the best film 1964: Nastro d'Argento for the director of the best film (won), for *8½*
- David di Donatello for Best Director 1962: David di Donatello for Best Director (won), for *La Dolce Vita*
- Nastro d'Argento for Best Subject 1962: Nastro d'Argento for Best Subject (won), for *La Dolce Vita*
- David di Donatello for Best Director 1961: David di Donatello for Best Director (won), for *La Dolce Vita*
- Nastro d'Argento for Best Subject 1961: Nastro d'Argento for Best Subject (won), for *La Dolce Vita*
- David di Donatello for Best Director 1958: David di Donatello for Best Director (won), for *Nights of Cabiria*
- Nastro d'Argento for the director of the best film 1958: Nastro d'Argento for the director of the best film (won), for *Nights of Cabiria*
- Sant Jordi Prize 1958: Sant Jordi Prize (won), for *Nights of Cabiria*
- Blue Ribbon Awards for Best Foreign Film 1955: Blue Ribbon Awards for Best Foreign Film (won), for *La Strada*
- Bodil Awards 1955: Bodil Awards (won), for *La Strada*
- Grand Jury Prize of the Venice Film Festival 1955: Grand Jury Prize of the Venice Film Festival (won), for *La Strada*
- Kinema Junpo 1955: Kinema Junpo (won), for *La Strada*
- Nastro d'Argento for Best Screenplay 1955: Nastro d'Argento for Best Screenplay (won), for *La Strada*
- Nastro d'Argento for the director of the best film 1955: Nastro d'Argento for the director of the best film (won), for *La Strada*
- Grand Jury Prize of the Venice Film Festival 1954: Grand Jury Prize of the Venice Film Festival (won), for *I Vitelloni*
- Nastro d'Argento for the director of the best film 1954: Nastro d'Argento for the director of the best film (won), for *I Vitelloni*
- Silver Lion 1953: Silver Lion (won)

*From Wikidata, which records wins more completely than nominations.*

---
© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Canonical: https://film.one/person/federico-fellini