Nancy Cartwright, the voice of Bart Simpson on the long-running animated television series, has made her first movie as a screenwriter and producer, a charming drama about the love of movies and youthful passion. “In Search of Fellini” reimagines a whirlwind adventure Ms. Cartwright once had to try to meet the Italian director Federico Fellini. With the help of her longtime collaborator and co-writer, Peter Kjenaas, and the first-time director Taron Lexton, Ms. Cartwright creates a Felliniesque fantasy of her own. 

In the movie, Lucy (Ksenia Solo) is a sheltered 20-year-old who inherited her mother’s idealistic view of romance and appreciation of feel-good movies. After her mother (Maria Bello) falls ill, Lucy finds solace at a festival of Fellini films and discovers movies with dark endings and sexual scenes that she had never seen before. She resolves to find the man of her cinematic dreams in Italy.