Federico Fellini

Federico Fellini (Italian: Federico Fellini) was an Italian film director. He was the recipient of five Academy Awards.

Federico Fellini was born on 20 January 1920 in Rimini. His parents, Urbano Fellini (1894–1956) and Ida Barbiani (1896–1984), were married in 1918 in Rome, after which they moved to Rimini, where his father began working as a traveling salesman. Federico had two siblings: Riccardo (1921–1991) and Maria Maddalena (1929–2002).

Federico grew up as a sickly child. As a child, Fellini liked to put on performances: he made masks, painted dolls, and sewed costumes. He was greatly impressed by a circus that came to town on tour.

Federico received a classical education, graduating from a monastery school in Fao. In 1937 he moved to Florence, where he studied to become a reporter while working part-time as a caricaturist for his friend Demos Bonini’s firm “Febo.” In 1938 Fellini came to Rome. He lived near the railway station, in furnished rooms, alongside Chinese merchants, thieves, and prostitutes. For his thinness, Federico earned the nickname “Gandhi.” At that time he made a living by drawing for newspapers and magazines, writing texts for vaudeville, advertising, and small radio productions.

From 1938 to 1942 Fellini published in the renowned humor magazine Marc’Aurelio, known for its anti-fascism. About seven hundred of his works were published before he was offered screenplay assignments.

To avoid military service, Federico had to pretend to be ill.

In 1943, amusing programs about the lives of lovers Chico and Pauline, written by Federico Fellini, were broadcast on a Rome radio station. Soon he was offered the chance to bring these stories to the screen, and Fellini took on the production. One of the performers was the charming Giulietta Masina. She became Federico Fellini’s only wife. He called her his main source of inspiration.

A few weeks after the wedding, Giulietta became pregnant, but after an accidental fall