'Felliniana': Seattle series examines filmmaker's extraordinary vision

"When you visit Italy," Fran Lebowitz once wrote, "you realize that Fellini makes documentaries." She wasn't entirely kidding.

More than any other filmmaker, Federico Fellini seemed to capture the essence of Italy — or at least a heightened-reality Italy that goes deep beneath the surface of daily life. Whether he was dramatizing the lives of celebrities or street people, in ancient or 20th-century Rome, there was usually an element of the fantastic in his stories.

At the same time, this surreal edge was mixed with a bracing dose of reality. In "Juliet of the Spirits," a dreamy housewife backs into the realization that her husband is straying. In "La Strada," a brute belatedly discovers his feelings for the simple woman who loved him. In "Nights of Cabiria," an ever-hopeful prostitute loses everything but her life.

This contrast between life's miracles and catastrophes could be felt even in the films he wrote or co-directed in the 1940s and early 1950s, and it strengthened as he took over the director's reins. Fellini died 10 years ago, and his last few movies were barely released in the United States, yet there is still no question what one means by describing a film or an experience as "Fellini-esque."

"Felliniana: Seattle's International Celebration of Fellini's Cultural Legacy," which takes place this month at the Henry Art Gallery, Meany Hall and other locations, is a collection of art, music and celluloid that demonstrates this extraordinary vision. All events are open to the public.

Organized by the College of Arts and Sciences of the University of Washington, it is focused today at the Seattle Art Museum, which will show the director's first Oscar winner, "La Strada" (7:30 p.m.), while beginning a three-week exhibit of vintage Fellini film posters.

Seven more Fellini films will be shown at the museum: "Nights of Cabiria," Tuesday; "8-1/2," Wednesday; "Juliet of the Spirits," Friday; "Satyricon," next Sunday; "Amarcord," Oct. 20; "Casanova," Oct. 26; and "Ginger and Fred," Oct. 27. All are 35mm prints, and most will be introduced by UW professors. Tickets are $6 for members, $7 for nonmembers.

Fellini's 1987 film, "Intervista," which reunites his "La Dolce Vita" stars, Anita Ekberg and Marcello Mastroianni, will be screened free at 7:30 p.m. Oct. 28 at the Husky Union Building auditorium, with a commentary by Gianfranco Angelucci. He worked on the screenplay of "Intervista" and made a couple of Fellini documentaries.

"Lost Ending: Some Mysteries on 8-1/2" will be shown at 7:30 p.m. Oct. 30 at the Henry Art Gallery, with commentary by the director, Mario Sesti. Tickets are $8 for members, free for students and $10 for the public.

Beginning Friday and running through Dec. 15, the Henry Art Gallery will present "The Gladiator Nun: Fellini's Women," a collection of original drawings by the director. It's on loan from the Fondazione Federico Fellini in Rimini.

"The Beautiful Confusion: Fellini and Secchiaroli on the Set of 8-1/2," an exhibit that runs Oct. 20-Nov. 30 at the Suzallo Library at the UW, is made up of photographs from the collection of Tazio Secchiaroli, a reporter-cameraman who worked with Fellini.

A multimedia presentation, including scores from Fellini films composed by Nino Rota and Nicola Piovani, is scheduled at 7:30 p.m. Oct. 29 at Meany Hall on the UW campus. The music will be performed live by San Francisco's Orchestra Nostalgico, and UW faculty pianist Craig Sheppard will play a Chopin piece. Also part of the program are reminiscences by Piovani, Angelucci and Barbara Steele. Tickets are $6 for students, $25 for the public.

Steele, who appeared in "8-1/2" and later became an Emmy-winning television producer ("The Winds of War"), will be interviewed on stage at a Halloween benefit party, 7:30 p.m. Oct. 31 at The Big Picture. The program also includes a reception and another screening of "8-1/2." Tickets are $75.

Tentatively scheduled to be in town that weekend is Jane Campion, the Oscar-winning New Zealand filmmaker who made "The Piano" and the upcoming "In the Cut." She and other filmmakers and scholars, among them Peter Bondanella, Millicent Marcus and Peter Brunette, have been asked to participate in conferences to be held Oct. 28-Nov. 1.

"Felliniana" will also include video installations and undergraduate courses on Fellini and Martin Scorsese.

John Hartl: johnhartl@yahoo.com