Fellini's directorial debut, Variety Lights (1950), introduced the distinct style and unique vision that made many of his subsequent films instant classics. Four of Fellini's works received the Oscar for Best Foreign Film -- La Strada (1956), Nights of Cabiria (1957), 8½ (1963) and Amarcord (1974) -- and his films were nominated for a total of 12 Academy Awards. Other notable works in his oeuvre include the hallucinatory masterpiece La Dolce Vita (1960), the whimsical Juliet of the Spirits (1965) and the decadent cult favorite Fellini Satyricon (1969).

Hailed as one of the best directors of the 20th century, he received a Lifetime Achievement Oscar in 1993, the same year he died.