How did the locations in La strada reflect the film’s characters?

In the 1954 film La strada, director Federico Fellini utilized specific landscapes to mirror the internal states of his protagonists. The film was shot on desolate locations between Viterbo and Abruzzi, featuring mean villages and flinty, harsh roads.1

These bleak settings were intentionally chosen to reflect the moral aridity of the character Zampanò, a brutish and phoney itinerant strong man played by Anthony Quinn. By contrast, this harsh environment served to throw into relief the sweet, forgiving nature of Gelsomina, the waif played by Giulietta Masina.1