Restored by The Film Foundation’s World Cinema Project and Cineteca di Bologna in collaboration with Bahram Beyzaie. Funding provided by the Hobson/Lucas Family Foundation.
The World Cinema Project (WCP) preserves and restores neglected films from around the world. To date, 54 films from Africa, Asia, Eastern Europe, Central America, South America, and the Middle East have been restored, preserved and exhibited for a global audience. The WCP also supports educational programs, including Restoration Film Schools; intensive, results-oriented workshops allowing students and professionals worldwide to learn the art and science of film restoration and preservation. All WCP titles are available for exhibition rental by clicking "Book This Film."
MAURITANIA | 1970
SOLEIL Ô
OH, SUN!
Director: Med Hondo
WRITTEN BY: Med Hondo
EDITING: Michèle Masnier, Clément Menuet
DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY: François Catonné, Jean-Claude Rahaga
STARRING: Robert Liensol, Théo Légitimus, Gabriel Glissand, Mabousso Lô, Alfred Anou, Les Black Echos, Ambroise M’Bia, Akonio Dolo
COUNTRY OF PRODUCTION: Mauritania
LANGUAGE: French with English subtitles
COLOR INFO: Black and White
RUNNING TIME: 98 minutes
PRODUCTION COMPANY: Grey Films, Shango Films
SET DESIGNER: Med Hondo
Restored by Cineteca di Bologna at L’Immagine Ritrovata laboratory in collaboration with Med Hondo. Restoration funded by the Hobson/Lucas Family Foundation and The Film Foundation’s World Cinema Project.
This restoration is part of the African Film Heritage Project, an initiative created by The Film Foundation’s World Cinema Project, the Pan African Federation of Filmmakers and UNESCO – in collaboration with Cineteca di Bologna – to help locate, restore, and disseminate African cinema.
I identify with Med Hondo in terms of anger and I share his obsession with history and self-reliance.
--Haile Gerima
When I wrote my script I did not have an audience in mind, I was living in France and experiencing what being a minority felt like. I had to yell and free myself. Writing the script of Soleil Ô was an authentic act of rage and liberation.
Once the script was ready, I gathered a crew of technicians and a team of African actors. Then I went to see some film processing companies and told them “Here I am, I don’t have a penny in my pocket but I want to make a film, let me have some raw film, I will reimburse you on an installment plan, and if I fail to do so you can put me in jail.” They agreed. The film cost $ 30,000 and it took almost two years to shoot because my actors were not always available.
There are different perceptions of an image. Soleil Ô is crystal clear and is neither intellectual nor sophisticated. It has often happened that those who understood it best were illiterate. When it was shown in Algeria, because the audience was completely able to identify with the film, the proletarians explained it to the intellectuals.
My main character could be a garbage collector, a student, or a teacher. His status does not prevent him from being affected in the same manner by the general conditions of history within a racist society. To be a Black expatriate is an identity. Soleil Ô derives from the African oral tradition. It depicts a unique reality. There is no dichotomy between style and content; here it is the content which imposes a style. I wanted to describe several people through one person instead of using a group of people. In my country, when people talk about a specific issue, they may digress and come back to their initial topic. Black cultures have a syntax which has nothing to do with Cartesian logic or that of other civilizations.
-- Med Hondo
NOTES ON THE RESTORATION:
The restoration of Soleil Ô was made possible through the use of a 16mm reversal print, and 16mm and 35mm dupe negatives deposited by Med Hondo at Ciné-Archives, the audiovisual archive of the French Communist Party, in Paris.
The reversal print was scanned at 4K and digital restoration eliminated dirt, scratches and mold. Despite excellent photographic quality overall, a few sequences appear slightly out-of-focus; this is true to the original cinematography.
A vintage 35mm print preserved at the Harvard Film Archive was used as a reference. Color grading was supervised by cinematographer François Catonné.
The original 16mm magnetic tracks were used for the audio restoration. After digitization, the soundtrack was cleaned and background noise reduction eliminated all noticeable wear marks; particular attention was devoted to the specific dynamics and features of the original soundtrack, namely percussion and chants. Reel 4 as well as the main and end titles were missing, so these were restored using the original 35mm soundtrack. The latter was also used to replace the 16mm mag tracks in the parts where the mix differed slightly from the vintage 35mm print.
IRAN | 1974
STRANGER AND THE FOG, THE
GHARIBEH VA MEH
Director: Bahram Beyzaie
WRITTEN BY: Bahram Beyzaie
EDITING: Bahram Beyzaie
DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY: Mehrdad Fakhimi, Firooz Malekzadeh
STARRING: Parvaneh Massoumi, Khosrow Shojazadeh, Manuchehr Farid, Esmat Safavi, Sami Tahassoni, Valiyollah Shirandami, Reza Yaghuti, Esmaeel Poor Rez, Mohammad Pour Reza
COUNTRY OF PRODUCTION: Iran
LANGUAGE: Farsi version with English subtitles
COLOR INFO: Color
RUNNING TIME: 140 minutes
NOTES ON THE RESTORATION:
THE STRANGER AND THE FOG was restored in 4K using the original camera and sound negatives and was carried out at L'Immagine Ritrovata in 2023. Color grading was supervised by Bahram Beyzaie. With special thanks to Ehsan Khoshbakht and Mozhdeh Shamsai.
TAIWAN | 1985
TAIPEI STORY
QING MEI ZHU MA
Director: Edward Yang
WRITTEN BY: Edward Yang, Hou Hsiao-hsien, Chu T’ien-wen
DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY: Yang Wei-han
PRODUCER: Hou Hsiao- hsien, Lin Rong-feng
STARRING: Hou Hsiao-hsien (Lung), Tsai Chin (Chin), Lai Teh-nan (Chin's father), Chen Su-fang (Mrs. Mei), Wu Nien-Jen (Taxi driver), Ko I-Chen (Architect), Ko Su-wun (Gwan)
COUNTRY OF PRODUCTION: Taiwan
LANGUAGE: Madarin with English subtitles
COLOR INFO: Color
RUNNING TIME: 119 minutes
PRODUCER: Hou Hsiao- hsien, Lin Rong-feng
Restored by The Film Foundation’s World Cinema Project at Cineteca di Bologna/L’immagine Ritrovata laboratory in association with the Cinémathèque Royale de Belgique and Hou Hsiao-hsien.
INDIA | 1978
THAMP
CIRCUS TENT, THE
Director: Aravindan Govindan
WRITTEN BY: Aravindan Govindan
EDITING: A Ramesan
DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY: Shaji N. Karun
PRODUCER: K. Ravindranathan Nair
STARRING: Nedumudi Venu, Jalaja, V. K. Sreeraman, Bharath Gopi
COUNTRY OF PRODUCTION: India
LANGUAGE: Malayalam with English subtitles
COLOR INFO: Black and White
RUNNING TIME: 129 minutes
PRODUCER: K. Ravindranathan Nair
Restored by Film Heritage Foundation, The Film Foundation’s World Cinema Project, and Cineteca di Bologna at Prasad Corporation Pvt. Ltd.’s Post - Studios, Chennai, and L’Immagine Ritrovata Laboratory, and in association with General Pictures, National Film Archive of India and the family of Aravindan Govindan. Funding provided by Prasad Corporation Pvt. Ltd. and Film Heritage Foundation.
NOTES ON THE RESTORATION:
THAMP was restored using the best surviving element: a Dupe Negative struck from a 35mm print preserved at the National Film Archive of India.
SENEGAL | 1973
TOUKI BOUKI
Director: Djibril Diop Mambéty
WRITTEN BY: Djibril Diop Mambéty
EDITING: Siro Asteni
DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY: Pap Samba Sow, Georges Bracher
MUSICAL DIRECTOR: Joséphine Baker, Mado Robin, Aminata Fall
SOUND: El Hadji Mbow
FROM: GTC Paris
STARRING: Magaye Niang (Mory), Mareme Niang (Anta), Aminata Fall (Tante Oumy), Ousseynou Diop (Charlie)
COUNTRY OF PRODUCTION: Senegal
LANGUAGE: Wolof with French and English subtitles
COLOR INFO: Color
RUNNING TIME: 88 minutes
PRODUCTION COMPANY: Cinegrit
Restored in 2008 by Cineteca di Bologna/L’Immagine Ritrovata laboratory, in association with The Film Foundation’s World Cinema Project and the family of Djibril Diop Mambéty. Restoration funded by Armani, Cartier, Qatar Airways and Qatar Museum Authority.
Touki Bouki is a prophetic film. Its portrayal of 1973 Senegalese society is not too different from today’s reality. Hundreds of young Africans die every day at the Strait of Gibraltar trying to reach Europe (Melilla and Ceuta). Who has never heard of that before? All their hardships find their voice in Djibril’s film: the young nomads who think they can cross the desert ocean and find their own lucky star and happiness but are disappointed by the human cruelty they encounter. Touki Bouki is a beautiful, upsetting and unexpected film that makes us question ourselves. What a pleasure and what an achievement for Martin Scorsese’s Foundation to give Djibril Diop Mambéty a second life. To all those who support cinema: bravo! –Souleymane Cissé, May 2008
NOTES ON THE RESTORATION:
Touki Bouki has been digitally restored at 2K resolution using the original 35 mm camera and sound negatives provided by the director’s son Teemour Diop Mambéty and preserved at the GTC in Paris. Digital restoration brought the film’s original chromatic elements to light. At the end of the digital process a new 35 mm internegative was produced.
Image: © Courtesy of Teemour Diop Mambéty
MOROCCO | 1981
TRANCES
EL HAL
Director: Ahmed El Maanouni
WRITTEN BY: Ahmed El Maanouni
EDITING: Jean-Claude Bonfanti
DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY: Ahmed El Maanouni
PRODUCER: Izza Génini
MUSICAL DIRECTOR: Nass El Ghiwane
STARRING: Nass El Ghiwane
COUNTRY OF PRODUCTION: Morocco
LANGUAGE: Arabic
COLOR INFO: Color
RUNNING TIME: 87 minutes
PRODUCTION COMPANY: OHRA/SOGEAV
PRODUCER: Izza Génini
Restored in 2007 by Cineteca di Bologna/L’Immagine Ritrovata laboratory, in association with The Film Foundation’s World Cinema Project, Ahmed El-Maanouni, and Izza Genini. Restoration funded by Armani, Cartier, Qatar Airways and Qatar Museum Authority.
“It was in 1981 while I was editing a film, The King of Comedy. We worked at night so no one would call us on the telephone and I would have television on, and one channel in New York at the time, around 2 or 3 in the morning, was showing a film called Transes. It repeated all night and it repeated many nights. And it had commercials in it, but it didn’t matter. So I became passionate about this music that I heard and I saw also the way the film was made, the concert that was photographed and the effect of the music on the audience at the concert. I tracked down the music and eventually it became my inspiration for many of the designs and construction of my film The Last Temptation of Christ. […] And I think the group was singing damnation: their people, their beliefs, their sufferings and their prayers all came through their singing. And I think the film is beautifully made by Ahmed El Maanouni; it’s been an obsession of mine since 1981 and that is why we are inaugurating the Foundation with Trances.” –Martin Scorsese, May 2007
NOTES ON THE RESTORATION:
Notes on the restoration
The restoration of Transes used the original 16mm camera and sound negative provided by producer Izza Génini. The camera negative was restored both photochemically and digitally and blown-up to 35mm format. The sound negative was restored to Dolby SR and digital.
Image: © Courtesy of OHRA-Izza Génini
SRI LANKA | 1973
TREASURE, THE
NIDHANAYA
Director: Lester James Peries
WRITTEN BY: Tissa Abeysekera
EDITING: Lester James Peries, Edwin Leetin, Gladwyn Fernando
DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY: M.S. Anandan
ADAPTED BY: G. B. Senanayake
MUSICAL DIRECTOR: Premasiri Khemadasa
ART DIRECTOR: J.A. Vincent Perera
STARRING: Gamini Fonseka, Malani Fonseka, Saman Bokalawala, Francis Perera, Mapa Gunaratne, Shanthi Lekha, Trilicia Gunawardene, Thilakasiri Fernando, J.B.L. Fernando, Thalatha Gunasekera, Kumarasinghe Appuhamy, K.L. Coranelis Appuhamy, Barry Whittington, Wijeratne Warakagoda
COUNTRY OF PRODUCTION: Sri Lanka
LANGUAGE: Sinhala
COLOR INFO: Black and White
RUNNING TIME: 108 minutes
PRODUCTION COMPANY: P.E.E. Anthonypillai for Ceylon Studios
Restored in 2013 by Cineteca di Bologna/L'Immagine Ritrovata laboratory, in association with The Film Foundation’s World Cinema Project, Lester James and Sumitra Peries, the National Film Archive of India, the National Film Corporation of Sri Lanka, Cinemas Ltd. Additional restoration elements provided by Degeto Films. Restoration funded by Doha Film Institute.
Nidhanaya is based on a dark tale by G.B. Senanayake and is considered a milestone film that people, even abroad, admire the most, albeit it is atypical of Lester James Peries’ customary family dramas. The story revolves around a psychotic killer yet is an underlying serious political study on the degradation of a class of society. In 1972 this film won the Silver Lion of St Mark at the 33th Venice International Film Festival and was selected as one of the outstanding films of the year, receiving a Diploma at the London Film Festival. It was also voted as the best film of the first 50 years of Sri Lankan cinema.
My most controversial film is Nidhanaya, which received a very positive reception at the Venice Film Festival. The most accurate critics highlighted that, despite its setting in 1911, this film holds a strong social and political value in denouncing the system. The character is trapped between two cultures: the Western/British one and his culture of origin—he is lost between two worlds. Unable to adapt to either one or the other, he absorbs the worse elements of the two cultures; the society changes and he goes insane.
- Lester James Peries
NOTES ON THE RESTORATION:
The restoration of Nidhanaya was made possible through the use of two key elements: a 35mm positive print struck from the original camera negative and held by Degeto Film, and a combined dupe negative preserved at the National Film Archive of India.
The prints were scanned at 4K resolution. After scanning, the image was stabilized and cleaned, and all wear marks were eliminated. Image grading recovered the richness of the original cinematography. The soundtrack was also digitally cleaned and background noise reduction was applied to reduce imperfections without losing the dynamic features of the original. The digital restoration produced a new 35mm internegative.
The World Cinema Foundation would like to thank the following individuals and organizations for their support: G R Padmaraj and Cinemas Ltd, National Film Corporation of Sri Lanka, National Film Archive of India, Shivendra Singh Dungarpur, Ravindra and Sam Randeniya, and Hubert Niogret.
Special thanks to Lester James Peries and Sumitra Peries for facilitating the restoration process.
Image: © Courtesy of National Film Corporation of Sri Lanka
HUNGARY | 1939
TWO GIRLS ON THE STREET
KÉT LÁNY AZ UTCÁN
Director: André De Toth
WRITTEN BY: Tamás Emod, Rezsö Török
EDITING: Zoltán Kerényi
DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY: Károly Vass
ADAPTED BY: André De Toth
PRODUCER: Béla Lévay
FROM: Hungarian National Film Archive
PRODUCTION DESIGN: Gizella Langermann
STARRING: Bella Bordy (Torma Vica), Mária Tasnádi Fekete (Kártély Gyöngyi), Piroska Vaszary Pletyus (as Vaszary Piri), Gyula Csortos (Filc bácsi), Andor Ajtay, Csiszár István, Károly Kovács, Lali
COUNTRY OF PRODUCTION: Hungary
LANGUAGE: Hungarian with French and English subtitles
COLOR INFO: Black and White
RUNNING TIME: 85 minutes
PRODUCTION COMPANY: Hunnia Filmgyár
PRODUCER: Béla Lévay
Restored in 2010 by Cineteca di Bologna/L'Immagine Ritrovata laboratory, in association with The Film Foundation’s World Cinema Project and Magyar Nemzeti Filmarchívum. Restoration funded by Armani, Cartier, Qatar Airways and Qatar Museum Authority.
André De Toth was a great filmmaker, we are indebted to him for a number of extraordinary films (dating back to his first Hungarian works) and many masterpieces. He fought to make ambitious films and refused to work under a studio contract, thus showing a rare desire for freedom […] One day, following a screening of Round Midnight, De Toth told me, “You made me cry. And it’s hard to cry when you only have one eye.” He comforted and supported me. He was never bitter, he would never have said something like: “Cinema was better when I was making films”. He remained curious, open-minded; he battled for the American Cinematheque on Hollywood Boulevard […] “We’re like passengers driving at full speed on the new highways of communication”, he wrote. “It’s the same road since 1895, only it’s slippier because of the sweat and the blood and with more cracks: each of them a broken dream. These past hundred years have been terrible, yet we’ve enjoyed every single minute of them. As long as this fever, this love for making films survives, nothing will ever change.” On his sets, one big sign read, “Drama should occur in front of the camera, not behind it”, another, “Technology will never replace brains and intelligence”.
(Bertrand Tavernier)
NOTES ON THE RESTORATION:
The restoration of Két Lány Az Utcán used the original 35mm camera and sound nitrate negatives preserved at the Magyar Nemzeti Filmarchívum (Hungarian National Film Archive). The digital restoration produced a new 35mm internegative.
Image: © Courtesy of Magyar Nemzeti Filmarchívum (Hungarian National Film Archive)
SENEGAL | 1976
VOYAGE AUX ANTILLES DU PRÉSIDENT SENGHOR
Director: Georges Caristan
COUNTRY OF PRODUCTION: Senegal
LANGUAGE: French with English subtitles
COLOR INFO: Black and White
RUNNING TIME: 17 minutes
Restored by The Film Foundation’s World Cinema Project and Cineteca di Bologna at L’Immagine Ritrovata laboratory, in collaboration with the Ministère de la Culture et du Patrimoine Historique de Sénégal – Direction du Cinéma. Restoration funded by the Hobson/Lucas Family Foundation.
This restoration is part of the African Film Heritage Project, an initiative created by The Film Foundation's World Cinema Project, the Pan African Federation of Filmmakers and UNESCO―in collaboration with Cineteca di Bologna―to help locate, restore, and disseminate African cinema.
NOTES ON THE RESTORATION:
The 4K restoration was completed using a 16mm print preserved by the Direction du Cinéma in Senegal. With special thanks to Tiziana Manfredi and Marco Lena.
BURKINA FASO | 1986
YAM DAABO
Director: Idrissa Ouédraogo
WRITTEN BY: Idrissa Ouédraogo
EDITING: Arnaud Blin
DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY: Jean Monsigny
STARRING: Moussa Blogo, Aoua Guiraud, Assita Ouedrago, Fatima Ouedrago, Omar Ouedrago, Salif Ouedrago , Rasmané Ouedraogo
COUNTRY OF PRODUCTION: Burkina Faso
COLOR INFO: Color
RUNNING TIME: 80 minutes
Restored by The Film Foundation’s World Cinema Project and Cineteca di Bologna at L’Immagine Ritrovata laboratory, in collaboration with Les Films de la Plaine and the family of Idrissa Ouédraogo.
Restoration funded by the Hobson/Lucas Family Foundation.
This restoration is part of the African Film Heritage Project, an initiative created by The Film Foundation's World Cinema Project, the Pan African Federation of Filmmakers and UNESCO―in collaboration with Cineteca di Bologna―to help locate, restore, and disseminate African cinema.
NOTES ON THE RESTORATION:
YAM DAABO was restored in 4K using the 16mm original camera negative and magnetic sound. Color grading was finalized with the help of director of photography Sekou Ouedraogo.
