& Costume”

By Ryan Calabretta - Sajder calabret@uark.edu

Eugenia Paulicelli Talks

January 20, 1920, marked the 100th anniversary of Italian film genius Federico Fellini’s birth. Paired with La settimana della lingua italiana nel mondo (October 19-25, 2020), numerous schools and universities and consulates and culture institutions celebrated the fame of the auteur director through film screenings, lectures, and roundtables. Even though many events have occurred relating to Fellini and Italian cinema over the last few weeks, there has yet to be any two similar events, underscoring how rich Fellini’s opus truly is.

The University of Arkansas organized a three-part homage to the Italian director: Eugenia Paulicelli’s “Federico Fellini: Film, Fashion, Costume (Wednesday, October 21, 2020), Shelleen Greene’s “The Temptations of Dottor Antonio: Whiteness and Fellini’s Cinematic Imaginary” (Wednesday, November

7, 2020), and Rebecca Bauman’s “The Fellini Brand: Marketing Appropriations of the Fellini Name” (Monday, November 9, 2020).

Federico Fellini has become one of the most recognized, and probably to a certain extent criticized director of all-time. Many film critics including Fellini scholar Peter Bondanella, have argued that without support from noted film critics abroad, particularly Andre Bazin, Fellini’s genius would have never received the attention it truly deserved. As a cartoonist, Fellini began his career, worked his way into and up through the cinematic system, first as a screenwriter, then assistant director, and finally director. He has directed 21 feature films, plus other, shorter films produced in various collections and a handful of commercials. His films span 40 years, as well as various cinematic movements. He has won the Palme d’Or for La dolce vita, has been nominated for 12 Academy Awards, winning four Oscars for the category of “Best Foreign Language Film,” the most for any director in the history of the Academy. In 1993, Fellini received the Lifetime Achievement Award, being the second Italian to be presented it, and one of only five currently.

Dr. Eugenia Paulicelli, Professor of Italian, Comparative Literature, and Women’s Studies, teaches at Queens College and The Graduate Center of the City University of New York. Beyond the realm of Italian and Women’s Studies, Dr. Paulicelli is an expert on the theory and history of fashion, not only within Italy but also internationally. She has created and directs the first academic program on the interdisciplinary study of fashion, its cultures, history, and industry based at the CUNY Graduate Center. She has received numerous recognitions–awards and grants–for her teaching and research. She has many booklength manuscripts revolving around fashion and other aspects of Italian Studies, the most recent being Moda e cinema in Italia. Dal muto ai giorni nostri with Mondadori.

“Federico Fellini: Film, Fashion, Costume” welcomed over one hundred participants virtually. Paulicelli’s talk focused on three noteworthy Fellini films: La dolce vita (1960), Giulietta degli Spiriti (1965), and Roma (1972), although she also explored 8 ½ (1963) and even Fellini Satyricon (1969). Paulicelli examined the situation of fashion and its evolution within Italy as well as outside, and how this historical moment inspired a variety of cultural moments in Italy. She introduced the participants to the various fashion trends present in Fellini’s day and drew clear connections on how and why the designs inspired Fellini.

Dr. Paulicelli spent great length addressing Fellini’s conceptualization of costuming and his strong relationships with his costume designers, for example, Piero Gherardi (Oscar for “Best Costume Design” for La dolce vita) and Danilo Donati (Oscar for “Best Costume Design” for Fellini’s Casanova), as well as others. She concluded her lecture by discussing the lasting influence Fellini’s costuming left on Italian fashion and fashion at large. She presented over 100 PowerPoint slides from which she openly described, compared, and analyzed fashion through the lens of the camera and society at large. Her lecture inspired widespread participation from the audience, and the Q&A session lasted roughly 30 minutes. It was a great success.

The Fellini Series, “Celebrating Federico Fellini–Il Centenario di Federico Fellini” would not have been possible without the generous support, both financial and intellectual, by the Consulate of Italy, Houston, and its Consul General, Federico Ciattaglia, who also offered welcoming remarks to the event. Additional thanks to Valeria Rumori, Director of the Italian Cultural Institute in Los Angeles, and her entire staff for the amazing publicity job. The events were hosted and organized by the Italian Program at the University of Arkansas.

If you missed Dr. Paulicelli’s lecture, is it available here: https://youtu.be/f6KTsSf42K4 . If you are interested in Dr. Greene’s lecture, it too is available virtually here: https://youtu.be/154yLCPGP24