As a young man in Rome in the 1940s, Federico Fellini first made a name for himself as a journalist and caricaturist before becoming a full-time screenwriter. In 1950, he made his directorial debut with Variety Lights − a moderate success, but film historians recognize Fellini's strong signature right from the start, which he refined in subsequent films.
Like many other directors, Fellini drew the scenes to be shot − an early stage of the storyboard. But Fellini, who was conspicuous for his drawing talent even as a child, drew whimsically, decadently, in idiosyncratic ways. The drawings were more than the planning of sequences, they conveyed the mood of the scenes and were part of the character development on an equal footing with the screenplay. As early as the 1980s, the special nature of Fellini's sketches was recognized and exhibitions were organized to illuminate his working process.
For the first time in many years, the works are now being shown again on a larger scale; there are around 200 in the Folkwang exhibition. The focus is on the films Amarcord (1973), Casanova (1976), The City of Women (1980) and And the Ship Sails On (1983), from which film stills and excerpts are juxtaposed with the sketches. The drawings, some quickly sketched, others worked out in detail, can be viewed until February 20, 2022. From summer 2022, the show will then be on view at the Kunsthaus Zürich.
