Restored by Filmoteca de Catalunya in 4K, the film Apartado de Correos 1001 (P.O. Box 1001) will be presented in a free open-air screening event at the Plaza de Salvador Seguí on Sunday 17 July 2022 at 22:00, as part of A Season of Classic Films. The film will also be free-to-view worldwide between 18 and 19 July.

This film is a great classic of Barcelona’s cinema noir. An echo of the Hollywood thrillers in the context of the Franco regime.

The film was shot on location: on the streets and at popular venues of 1950s Barcelona city centre, especially the neighbourhood where the cinema theatre of Filmoteca de Catalunya is located nowadays. How does this film from the fifties connect to the realities of the neighbourhood today? Filmoteca has conceived a physical and virtual itinerary that connects films linked to the area of Raval. The result is a collaborative map to understand how cinema produces reality and reality produces cinema. The map is available to pick up at the Filmoteca or in a digital version. Audiences can follow the itinerary in the way that suits them best (fragmented, complete, with or without company…) and are encouraged to share snapshots using the tag #FilmoRutaRaval. An organised walk will take place before the film screening, upon registration.

Apartado de Correos 1001 (P.O. Box 1001) | Spain, 1950, 90’, fiction

Director: Julio Salvador. Producer: Emisora Films. With: Tomás Blanco, Modesto Cid, Elena Espejo, Guillermo Marín, Conrado San Martín. Script: Julio Coll, Antonio Isasi-Isasmendi. Cinematography: Federico G. Larraya. Music: Ramón Ferrés. Physical characteristics of first release: 16mm, 90’, B&W, sound, Spanish. Film copy screened during A Season of Classic Films: New restoration. DCP 4K, 90’, Spanish. Subtitles available: English, French. Copyright: Video Mercury Films, SAU.

Barcelona, 1950. A man is murdered in the street in front of a police station. Two agents of the criminal brigade, a skilled veteran and an eager young one, are in charge of the investigation. We follow them on their journey to a thrilling climax in a local amusement park.

A Season of Classic Films: Celebrating film heritage across Europe

A Season of Classics Films is a series of free film screenings and parallel activities across Europe designed to attract younger audiences to our shared cinematic cultural heritage. The programme looks to raise awareness of the work of European film archives, connecting the public with cinema history and the significance of film preservation. Most of the films are premiere digital restorations and some screenings include live performances and educational interactive sessions. All films are available with English subtitles. Additionally, French or other subtitles are in some cases available. This is an initiative of the Association des Cinémathèques Européennes (ACE) with the support of the EU Creative Europe MEDIA programme.

For dates and access links of the upcoming free screenings in cinemas across Europe and online, please follow ACE’s website and social media pages on Instagram | Facebook | Twitter.

ABOUT THE ASSOCIATION DES CINÉMATHÈQUES EUROPÉENNES (ACE)

The Association of European Cinematheques (Association des Cinémathèques Européennes – ACE) is an affiliation of 49 European national and regional film archives. Its role is to safeguard the European film heritage and make the rich audiovisual records collected and preserved by the various film archives accessible to the public. ACE members are non-profit institutions committed to the FIAF Code of Ethics.

Follow ACE news on social media  Instagram | Facebook | Twitter

ACE presents the 3^rd edition of A Season of Classic Films, which includes cinema and online screenings of restored films and parallel events organised by 22 European film archives between June and December 2022.

Opening night is Thursday 9 June (International Archives Day) and will start with the world premiere of the restored Face to Face (1966) by the Greek Film Archive. The film is about a timid young man hired to give English lessons to the daughter of a nouveau riche family. The screening will take place at Lais Open Air Cinema in Athens, while free online access is available for one day starting at 20:00 (Paris time) on 9^th June.

On Friday 10 June, the programme continues with the restored Croatian comedy Blue 9. The film will be presented by the Croatian state archive – Croatian cinematheque at the main cinema room of the Archives and it will be free-to-view online from 10 to 17 June.

Both online screenings offer worldwide access with English subtitles.

Πρόσωπο με Πρόσωπο [Prosopo me Prosopo] (Face to Face) | Greece, 1966, 84’, fiction

Director-Producer: Roviros Manthoulis. With: Costas Messaris, Eleni Stavropoulou, Theano Ioannidou, Lambros Kotsiris, Alexis Georgiou, Mary Gotsi. Script: Roviros Manthoulis, Kostas Mourselas. Cinematography: Stamatis Trypos. Music: Nikos Mamangakis. Editing: Panos Papakyriakopoulos. Physical characteristics of first release: 35mm, 1:1.66, 24fps, 84’, B&W, sound, Greek. Film copy screened during A Season of Classic Films: Restoration premiere. DCP 4K (physical screening) and ProRes (online screening), 84’, Greek. Subtitles: English. Copyright: Roviros Manthoulis.

The main story of the film is about a poor English teacher who tutors the daughter of a rich family and flirts with both the daughter and her mother. Manthoulis presents a bitter satire of the new bourgeoisie which was profiting from the rapid economic growth in the 1960s but also presents a unique portrait of Athens experiencing a rapid and poorly planned urban development.

Only a few weeks after filmmaker Roviros Manthoulis passed away, this screening also serves as a tribute to his acclaimed work. Manthoulis played a crucial role in the renewal of Greek cinema in both documentary and fiction film. In the beginning of April, he was informed about how the restoration of his film Face to Face was going and of the great impression it made to the colleagues at the laboratory of Imagine Ritrovata in Paris – he was happy but also very modest. He died on April 21st, exactly 55 years after his film was first screened in Hyeres Festival. It was enthusiastically received by both the public and the critics and, as a result, it was screened at the Cannes Film Festival. Manthoulis then made statements against the Greek military junta (1967-74) that were broadcast worldwide and the film was banned by the colonels.

The image and sound restoration have been carried out in 4K based on the original 35mm negatives, preserved at the Greek Film Archive vaults. The film will be screened during the 12^th Avant Garde Film Festival in Athens, following a roundtable discussion on film restoration including film experts Cecilia Barrionuevo, Ehsan Khoshbakht, Céline Ruivo, Elena Tammacarro, and Marian Vujovic as well as the inauguration of the Greek Film Archive’s exhibition “Magical Images”.

Plavi 9 (Blue 9) | Yugoslavia, 1950, 93’, fiction

Director: Krešo Golik. Producer: Jadran film. With: Irena Kolesar, Jugoslav Nalis, Antun Nalis, Ljubomir Didić, Tješivoj Cinotti, Šime Šimatović, Josip Daneš, Stane Sever, Veljko Maričić. Script: Geno Senečić, Hrvoje Macanović, Krešo Golik. Cinematography: Nikola Tanhofer and Slavko Zalar. Music: Bruno Bjelinski. Editing: Radojka Ivančević. Physical characteristics of first release: 35mm, 93’, B&W, optical sound, Croatian. Film copy screened during A Season of Classic Films: New restoration. DCP 2K, 93’, Croatian. Subtitles: English. Copyright: Jadran film (until the end of 2000); authors rights.

The film Blue 9 depicts adventures in the world of football with all the challenges and glory this game offers. The main striker of the city football team, Fabris, is a selfish individualist convinced of his irreplaceability. He is also a womanizer who tries to seduce young Nena, a hardworker and successful swimmer. Nena is close to the underwater welder Zdravko, a talented football striker who wears a jersey with a blue 9.

The basic formula of this film is part of the agitprop, which dealt with one of the foundations of the socialist system – physical education. The ideological engagement did not prevent the film from becoming a big hit in cinemas, mainly due to attractive footage of sport competitions, girls in bathing suits, and the fashionable life of football stars. Blue 9 is regarded as the first Yugoslav film to escape from the war narrative and set its plot in the everyday life.

A Season of Classic Films: Celebrating film heritage across Europe

A Season of Classics Films is a series of free film screenings and parallel activities across Europe designed to attract younger audiences to our shared cinematic cultural heritage. The programme looks to raise awareness of the work of European film archives, connecting the public with cinema history and the significance of film preservation. Most of the films are premiere digital restorations and some screenings include live performances and educational interactive sessions. All films are available with English subtitles. Additionally, French or other subtitles are in some cases available. This is an initiative of the Association des Cinémathèques Européennes (ACE) with the support of the EU Creative Europe MEDIA programme.

For dates and access links of the upcoming free screenings in cinemas across Europe and online, please follow ACE’s website and social media pages on Instagram | Facebook | Twitter.

ABOUT THE ASSOCIATION DES CINÉMATHÈQUES EUROPÉENNES (ACE)

The Association of European Cinematheques (Association des Cinémathèques Européennes – ACE) is an affiliation of 49 European national and regional film archives. Its role is to safeguard the European film heritage and make the rich audiovisual records collected and preserved by the various film archives accessible to the public. ACE members are non-profit institutions committed to the FIAF Code of Ethics.

Follow ACE news on social media  Instagram | Facebook | Twitter

The third edition of ‘A Season of Classic Films’ was presented today at the EU Pavilion in Cannes when ACE (Association des Cinémathèques Européennes) reveals details of the new programme running June to December 2022 in European cinemas and online.

A Season of Classic Films

‘A Season of Classic Films’ is a series of free screenings designed to attract younger audiences to our shared cinematic cultural heritage. The programme looks to raise awareness of the work of European film archives, connecting the public with cinema history and the significance of film preservation. Most of the films are new digital restorations, and some screenings include dynamic elements such as live music performances and educational interactive sessions. All films are available with English subtitles.

Twenty-two film archives from 21 European countries (all ACE members) will participate in the classic film season, and each archive has selected a film or film compilation from their own collection to restore and present.

Joint Restoration Grant

Additionally at the event in Cannes, ACE presented the Joint Restoration Grant of €50,000 awarded for the restoration of the film Life of a Shock Force Worker (1972). The jury, comprising filmmaker Sergei Loznitsa, Pordenone Silent Film Festival director Jay Weissberg and director of the Cinema-Fiction Department of ARTE Claudia Tronnier, selected the film from a raft of proposals submitted by European film archives.

Four partner institutions from Slovenia, Croatia, Austria and Bosnia are joining forces to restore Life of a Shock Force Worker, a wonderful example of Yugoslavian New Cinema. Inspired by daily life in a coal mine, the film critiques the political regime of the era, all the time illustrating the state ideology of comradeship and unity. It further offers a clearer and more nuanced view of Yugoslavian film history, one of the blind spots on the map of European film heritage, and at the same time touches upon the pertinent matter of propaganda in our post-truth era.

“Large parts of the Yugoslavian film heritage have so far been underserved,” the jury writes of its choice. “Life of a Shock Force Worker has strong imagery, but it is in desperate need of colour grading since the original has faded with time. A key asset is that ACE and the four partner institutions responsible for this restoration project will collaborate with DoP Karpo Godina.”

During the war in Bosnia in the 1990s, film director Bahrudin Bato Čengić deposited a 35mm print of the film at the Slovenian cinematheque, while the image and sound negatives remain at the Croatian state archive. Post-restoration, the film will be offered in a new 2K edition with the support of the EU Creative Europe MEDIA programme and the Ministry of Culture of Republic of Slovenia.

Cinema and online screenings

This year’s ‘A Season of Classic Films’ promises to offer very much an in-person series of events and presentations within European cinemas. Most of the films will also be available online to allow for a greater reach to international audiences, building up on the experience gained during the previous edition.

“The second edition of A Season of Classic Films took place when most of our public venues were closed for long periods of time,” says ACE President Sandra den Hamer, also Director of Eye Filmmuseum. “Nevertheless, European cinematheques actively connected with their audiences through online screenings, new streaming platforms and/or hybrid events. ‘A Season of Classic Films’, as a joint project, again strengthened the collaboration and solidarity between the participating film institutions.”

The Cannes ‘A Season of Classic Films’ presentation took place on May 23 at the EU Pavilion. The event was moderated by Paulina Reizi (Eye Filmmuseum, Coordinator of A Season of Classic Films). Speakers and special guests included Sandra den Hamer (President of ACE and director of Eye Filmmuseum), Sergei Loznitsa (Filmmaker), Claudia Tronnier (Director of the Cinema-Fiction Department at ARTE) and Jay Weissberg (Director of the Pordenone Silent Film Festival).

ABOUT THE ASSOCIATION DES CINÉMATHÈQUES EUROPÉENNES (ACE)

The Association of European Cinematheques (Association des Cinémathèques Européennes – ACE) is an affiliation of 49 European national and regional film archives. Its role is to safeguard the European film heritage and make the rich audiovisual records collected and preserved by the various film archives accessible to the public. ACE members are non-profit institutions committed to the FIAF Code of Ethics.

Follow ACE news on social media

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/acefilmeu/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/acefilmeu

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AssociationdesCinemathequesEuropeennes

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I6t1DuueXow

Lichtspiel / Kinemathek Bern joins the second edition of A Season of Classic Films with a compilation of unique short films that takes viewers to a journey to the various regions of Switzerland. The compilation consists of eight newly digitised films, presenting aviation pioneers in the 1920s to progressive women in the 1960s. The films will premiere on Thursday 2 September at 20:00 CEST in a special free-admission event at Lichtspiel’s premises in Bern and via live stream with English subtitles. An introduction by Brigitte Paulowitz, Head of Film Collections and Restorer at Lichtspiel, will provide the context to the films.

 Watch Travel through Switzerland

A Season of Classic Films is an initiative of the Association des Cinémathèques Européennes (ACE) with the support of the EU Creative Europe MEDIA programme to raise awareness of the work of national and regional film archives, connecting the public with cinema history and the preservation of film heritage. Twenty-two European film institutions are taking part this year offering free access to films from their precious collections. This screening is organised by Lichtspiel / Kinemathek Bern.

Reise durch die Schweiz (Travel through Switzerland) | Switzerland, 1920-1961, 102′

1. Basler Flugtag. 12. September 1920. Advertisement, 1920, 9’, silent.
2. [Familienferien Tessin]. Amateur film, 1930, 14’, silent.
3. Hollywood Ball im Kursaal, 13. August 1932. Documentary, 1932, 16’, silent.
4. [Generalversammlung SLV vom 30.11.1949 in Baden und Herr Speck]. Documentary, 1932, 7’, silent.
5. Printemps neige et ski à Grindelwald. Documentary, 1947, 12’, sound.
6. Lambretta. Advertisement, 1950, 4’, sound.
7. Wer mit der Zeit geht. Documentary, 1953, 17’, sound.
8. Frauen im helvetischen Mosaik. Documentary, 1961, 23’, sound.

The short films have been digitised, based on original film elements preserved by Lichtspiel / Kinemathek Bern, with the support of A Season of Classic Films.

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Cinemateket / The Norwegian Film Institute joins A Season of Classic Films with the restored film Ung flukt (Edith Carlmar, 1959), a teen rebellion drama with Liv Ullmann in her debut role, with a free special cinema screening event on Wednesday 25 August at 18:00 CEST at Cinemateket in Oslo, while the film will be free-to-view worldwide between 26 August and 2 September, with English subtitles.

 Watch Ung flukt here (26 August – 2 September)

The digital restoration was carried out by the National Library of Norway in 2018 and has drawn attention internationally to the work of Edith Carlmar, the number one female director in Norwegian post-war cinema. Carlmar was not only Norway’s first female director, but she made what is considered to be the country’s first film noir (Death Is a Caress). Together with her husband Otto Carlmar, she founded the film company Carlmar Film AS, where he produced and she directed one brilliant film after another. She directed ten films in ten years and Ung flukt is her last feature film.

Speaking about the restored film, Head of Cinemateket Jan Langlo said, “The restored version of Ung flukt (The Wayward Girl) was selected for Berlinale Classics in 2019. This generated quite a lot of interest in both this film and other films by Edith Carlmar, and there are several retrospectives of her films being planned at international festivals in 2021 and 2022. New viewers recognise Ung flukt as a surprisingly vital film, with a vibrant Liv Ullmann in her screen debut.” 

A Season of Classic Films is an initiative of the Association des Cinémathèques Européennes (ACE) with the support of the EU Creative Europe MEDIA programme to raise awareness of the work of national and regional film archives, connecting the public with cinema history and the preservation of film heritage. Twenty-two European film institutions are taking part this year offering free access to films from their precious collections. This screening is organised by Cinemateket / The Norwegian Film Institute.

Ung flukt (The Wayward Girl) | Norway, 1959, 95′

Director: Edith Carlmar. Producer: Otto Carlmar. Cast: Liv Ullmann, Atle Merton, Rolf Søder, Nanna Stenersen, Randi Brænne, Tore Foss. Physical characteristics of first release: 35mm, 95’, B&W, mono sound, Norwegian. Film copy screened during A Season of Classic Films: DCP, 95’, B&W, sound, Norwegian. Available subtitles: English. Copyright: Norwegian Film Institute.

Ung flukt is based on a book by Nils Johan Rud and tells the story of 17-year-old Gerd, the illegitimate daughter of a single working mother. Gerd, played by Liv Ullmann in her first lead role, has fallen into delinquency. After she spends a brief stint in police custody, Gerd’s boyfriend, a student, disobeys his parents and takes her away to the country to protect her from bad influences.

• Wednesday 25 August, 18:00, Cinemateket Dronningens gate 16 0152 Oslo. With English subtitles. Introduced by Hege Jaer, Curator at Cinemateket. Reserve your free ticket here!
• Thursday 26 August – Wednesday 2 September. Watch free online here, worldwide access, English subtitles.

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Cinémathèque suisse will present the new 4K restoration of Derborence, a landmark work by the Swiss filmmaker Francis Reusser (1942-2019), during two free special screenings, one at the Locarno Film Festival (12 August) and one at the Festival international du film alpin des Diablerets (14 August).

The digital restoration was carried out by the Cinémathèque suisse in the Color Grade laboratory, with the support of RTS. The special free screening events are offered by A Season of Classic Films, an Association des Cinémathèques Européennes (ACE) initiative with the support of the EU Creative Europe MEDIA programme and in partnership with Cinémathèque suisse.

Twenty-two film institutions from all over Europe, including the Cinémathèque suisse, are taking part this year in A Season of Classic Films. The initiative offers free access to restored European films, connecting the public with cinema history and the preservation of film heritage.

Derborence | Switzerland/France, 1985, 99′

Director: Francis Reusser. Producer: Jean-Marc Henchoz, Claude Stadelmann. Cast: Isabel Otero, Jacques Penot, Maria Machado, Jean-Marc Bory, Bruno Cremer. Music: Maria Carta / Sound Design: François Musy / Cinematography: Emmanuel Machuel / Film Editing: Christine Benoît and Francis Reusser / Production Design: Jean-Marc Stehlé / Costume Design: Rose-Marie Melka. Physical characteristics of first release: 35mm, 99’, colour, sound, French. Film copy screened during A Season of Classic Films: New restoration. DCP, 99’, colour, sound, French. Copyright: Les productions JMH, Marion’s Films, Sagittaire production.

The lives of two newlyweds, Antoine, an alpine shepherd, and Thérèse, are overturned when a landslide swallows the mountain pasture where Antoine is working. Believed to be dead by everyone, Antoine suddenly returns home. In this adaptation of Charles Ferdinand Ramuz’s novel, Francis Reusser has crafted a sensual alpine western, which competed in Cannes in 1985 and received the César for the best French-language film the following year.

• Thursday 12 August, 15:00, PalaCinema 1, 74 Locarno Film Festival. With English subtitles. Introduced by Emmanuelle de Riedmatten, Jean Reusser and Frédéric Maire. Reserve your free ticket here!
• Saturday 14 August, 13:30, Festival International du Film Alpin des Diablerets (FIFAD 2021). Closing screening event, more information here.

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This summer the big screen of Piazza Maggiore will light up again, a restart expected by an entire community. On the occasion of the ‘Sotto le stelle del cinema’, Fondazione Cineteca di Bologna will present the new 4K restoration of Comizi d’amore (Love Meetings, Pier Paolo Pasolini, 1965) during two free special screenings with English subtitles on Monday 28 June.

The film has been restored at the L’Immagine Ritrovata laboratory, by Cineteca di Bologna, in collaboration with Compass Film and with the support of MiC and A Season of Classic Films, an initiative of ACE – Association des Cinémathèques Européennes within the Creative Europe MEDIA programmme of the European Commission. Twenty-two film institutions from all over Europe, including the Fondazione Cineteca di Bologna, are taking part this year in A Season of Classic Films. The initiative offers free access to restored European films, connecting the public with cinema history and the preservation of film heritage.

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