Il Cinema Ritrovato
Eighth Edition
October 24 - 26, 2024
This year the School of Film and Television is proud to present Il Cinema Ritrovato on Tour as part of LMU's Family Weekend. SFTV is excited to share our passion for cinema with LMU families and friends.
For the eighth time, Il Cinema Ritrovato on Tour will return to LMU to present renowned heritage films from France, Italy, Spain, Germany, and the United States, all digitally restored. The titles have been carefully chosen by Carla Marcantonio, Associate Dean of SFTV and Associate Professor of Film, Television, and Media Studies and Guy Borlée, Il Cinema Ritrovato’s festival coordinator.
What is Il Cinema Ritrovato?
Il Cinema Ritrovato is a film festival that has been playing in Bologna, Italy for the past 38 years. In Italian, “ritrovato” refers to something that is found anew. In this spirit, the festival is dedicated to the restoration and preservation of historical films – from 1895 to the 1990s.
This past summer, a group of LMU students participated in the fourth iteration of SFTV’s summer study abroad program for which the festival serves as anchor. The marquee nighttime screenings in Piazza Maggiore draw anywhere between 3,000 to 6,000 spectators. For today’s digital-native generation, no class lecture or screening can convey the significance of film history as effectively as the immersive experience of being surrounded by a vibrant community of cinephiles from around the world.
This year, our students submitted proposals for a film they would curate for our “at-home” festival. The two selected are cult classics, one that will be announced on September 20, and Black Sunday (La Maschera del Demonio, Mario Bava, Italy, 1960), a giallo film (Italian horror-thriller genre).
The horror genre will be amply represented this year with two classic silent films, The Golem (Der Golem: wie er in die welt kam, Paul Wegener and Carl Boese, Germany, 1920) and cinema’s first vampire film, the newly restored Nosferatu (F.W. Murnau, Germany, 1922), a tinted version with additional footage. To lighten things up, we have programmed Buster Keaton’s Battling Butler (1926), a slightly lesser-known film by this genius of physical comedy, which he both stars in and directs. The screening will take place outdoors, on the Drollinger Family Stage, and will feature live musical accompaniment. We will kick-off the evening with a restored short from Georges Méliès, The Infernal Cauldron (Le Chaudron Infernal, France, 1903, 2min) with music composed by LMU President, Timothy Law Snyder.
Rounding off our film selection is a gem unearthed from film history’s vaults – Smog, a film directed by Franco Rossi, which premiered at the Venice Film Festival in 1962. Smog had not screened in 60 years when it screened again at Il Cinema Ritrovato in 2022. In essence a forgotten film (now primed for rediscovery), it was the first Italian film shot in its entirety in Los Angeles and it was the first film to employ the famous Stahl House as its setting. Smog stars Enrico Maria Salerno alongside Annie Girardot and Renato Salvatori—and is as much a document of European attitudes toward American culture as it is of 1960s L.A. and its iconic architecture.
Last and, of course, not least, our “at-home” festival closes with a double-feature starring two great divas of Hollywood’s classical period, Greta Garbo and Marlene Dietrich in two of their iconic roles from Shanghai Express (Josef von Sternberg, US, 1932) and Queen Christina (Rouben Mamoulian, US, 1933). The double-feature will be introduced with a brief talk and a screening of Cecilia Barriga’s “Meeting of Two Queens” (Spain, 1991) – an experimental video essay that uses clips from their films in order to imagine a romance between the two actresses who claimed to never have met (a precursor to modern day fancams found on social media platforms).
Let us know you're coming by RSVPing on LEO! Non-LMU guests who cannot access LEO, can RSVP here.
We look forward to seeing you at the movies!
Thursday, October 24, 2024:
Rediscovered Classics
Nosferatu
Start time: 12:30 P.M.
Location: Mayer Theater
"Nosferatu" is the first cinematic adaptation of Bram Stoker’s Dracula. It was an unauthorized adaptation and all copies of the film were ordered to be destroyed. The film survived, nonetheless. "Nosferatu" still contains some of the most ingenious special effects in early cinema as well as perhaps the first of the horror genre’s “jump scares.” It also features cinema’s first great monster. This silent masterpiece pioneered techniques and established horror tropes that have been used ever since.
There will be live musical accompaniment performed by composer, Wayne Barker.
The department of Film, TV, and Media studies is pleased to present this screening for Prof. Miranda Banks' Art of Cinema class. All are welcome!
Germany, 1922, B&W, 94 minutes
Director: F.W. Murnau
Cast: Max Schreck
Restored by Friedrich-Wilhelm Murnau-Stiftung at the L’imagine ritrovata laboratory.
Rediscovered Classics
Smog
Start time: 3:05 P.M.
Location: Mayer Theater
This screening highlights the spirit of what “ritrovato” means: Smog is a re-discovered film that had disappeared from public view for 60 years. This recently restored film tells the story of an Italian man stranded in Los Angeles for 24-hours is not only the first Italian film shot entirely in LA, it provides a fascinating historical glimpse of Los Angeles in 1961.
Motion Picture Curator for the UCLA Library Film & Television Archive, Todd Wiener, will give a short presentation on the restoration of the film.
Journalist Luca Celada will give a short presentation on the cultural and historical context of the film.
The department of Film, TV, and Media studies is pleased to present this screening for Prof. Jacob Bohrod's Documentary Film/Media class. All are welcome!
Italy, 1962, B&W, 101 minutes
Director: Franco Rossi
Cast: Enrico Maria Salerno, Annie Girardot, Renato Salvatori, Susan Spafford.
Rediscovered Classics
Buster Keaton's Battling Butler
Outdoor Screening!
Live Music!
Start time: 7:00 P.M.
Location: Drollinger Stage
This evening is sponsored by the College of Communication and Fine Arts on the Drollinger Family Stage.
This screening will highlight a tradition of the Il Cinema Ritrovato film festival: silent films screened outdoors with live musical accompaniment. This year’s selection is a lesser-known (yet no less hilarious) film by the incomparable master of physical comedy, Buster Keaton.
There will be live musical accompaniment performed by composer, Wayne Barker.
Introduction: Carla Marcantonio
US, 1926; 77 minutes
Director: Buster Keaton
Cast: Buster Keaton, Snitz Edwards, Sally O’Neal
Restored in 2017 by Cineteca di Bologna in collaboration with Cohen Film Collection at L’Immagine Ritrovata laboratory.
The screening will be led by a silent short by George Melies, The Infernal Cauldron, with musical accompaniment composed by LMU President Timothy Law Snyder.
France, 1903; 2 minutes
Director: Georges Méliès
Cast: Georges Méliès, André Deed
Friday, October 25, 2024:
Rediscovered Classics
Der Golem, Wie Er In Die Welt Kam (The Golem, As it Came Into the World)
Start time: 12:45 p.m.
Location: Mayer Theater
In collaboration with BCLA's Jewish Studies Program.
In 16th-century Prague, a rabbi creates the Golem - a giant creature made of clay. Using sorcery, he brings the creature to life in order toprotect the Jews of Prague from persecution.
There will be live musical accompaniment performed by composer, Wayne Barker.
Germany, 1920, 86 minutes
Directors: Paul Wegener, Carl Boese
Cast: Paul Wegener, Albert Steinruck, Lyda Salmonova
Note: This screening plays in conjunction with the Jewish Studies lecture What Do You Know about the Golem? following the screening 2:45pm-3:45 p.m. Location is TBD.
From Bologna to LA:
Students' Selections
Feature 1 of 2: Time Masters
Start Time: 6:00 p.m.
Location: Mayer Theater
Time Masters is a 1982 animated sci-fi film by René Laloux, who is best known for the animated classic Fantastic Planet. The film introduces us to Piel, a young boy who finds himself stranded on a far-off, hornet-infested planet called Perdide after the deaths of his parents. In another part of the galaxy, an interstellar pilot named Jafar plans a rescue mission. He is joined by an exiled prince and princess, an eccentric old man with expert knowledge of Perdide, and two alien stowaways who have telepathic powers. As they make their way across space to save the boy, they encounter danger, sabotage, and a mysterious planet full of angels. Will they reach Piel before it is too late?
Introduction: Presented by SFTV students Zack Cunningham (Animation), Zach LaBeaux (Production), and Collin Bridge (Production) from the Bologna Summer Abroad cohort ‘24.
France-Switzerland-West Germany, 1982, (79 minutes)
Director: René Laloux
Cast: Sady Rebbot (voce di Claude), Frédéric Legros (voce di Piel), Jean Valmont (voce di Jaffar), Yves Marie (voce di Matton)
_post.jpg)
Feature 2 of 2: Black Sunday
Start time: 8:15 p.m.
Location: Mayer Theater
This film was selected and will be introduced by students from SFTV’s summer study abroad program in Bologna, Italy.
Italian director Mario Bava’s first feature film Black Sunday has proven itself to be an important icon to the horror genre by being one of the most influential and hauntingly potent gothic horror films ever put to screen. Anchored by an iconic dual-performance from scream queen Barbara Steele, Black Sunday pulls the viewer into an unreal world in 1800s Russia with witches, vampires, and a chilling atmosphere that will subsist long after the credits roll. It is a classic tale of revenge from beyond the grave and served as an instrumental influence on many horror sub-genres including the Italian giallo and the American slasher. Unlike other horror films from the early 1960s, few can match Bava’s compelling narratives, barbaric violence, and sexual undertones, and even fewer still resonate with audiences as deeply as Black Sunday does today over six decades after its release.
Introduction: Presented by SFTV students Nate Lee (Production) and Cromwell Estes (Screenwriting) from the Bologna Summer Abroad cohort ‘24.
Italy, 1960, 87 minutes
Director: Mario Bava
Saturday, October 26, 2024:
Divas of the Silver Screen: Double-Feature!
Greta Garbo and Marlene Dietrich
Meeting of Two Queens
Start time: 1:00 p.m.
Location: Mayer Theater
In collaboration with BCLA's Women's and Gender Studies Department
Introduction to the double-feature followed by a short-film by Chilean video artist Cecilia Barriga. Cast as lovers, clips from Garbo’s and Dietrich’s signature roles are remounted in silent film style vignettes to tell a burgeoning tale of desire and destiny.
Introduction: Carla Marcantonio
Spain, 1991, B&W, 14 minutes
Director: Cecilia Barriga
Cast: Greta Garbo, Marlene Dietrich
Shanghai Express
Start time: 1:40 P.M. (Screening)
Location: Mayer Theater
US; 1932; 82 minutes
Director: Josef von Sternberg
Cast: Marlene Dietrich (Shanghai Lily), Clive Brook (Donald Harvey), Anna May Wong (Hui Fei)
The fourth collaboration between Marlene Dietrich and Josef von Sternberg, set at the time of the Chinese Civil War. “Shanghai Lily” (Dietrich) and her Chinese maid Hui Fei (Anna May Wong) set off from Beijing on the Shanghai Express. The film showcases one of Dietrich’s most famous lines, “It took more than one man to change my name to Shanghai Lily.” It’s an opulent film brimming with exoticism and erotism. DP Lee Garmes won an Oscar for best cinematography. The film became Dietrich and von Sternberg’s greatest success.
Restoration courtesy of Park Circus.
Please join us for a light reception on the Howard Fitzpatrick Pavilion Patio after the screening!
Queen Christina
Start time: 3:20 P.M. Reception Communication Arts Patio)
Start time: 4:15 P.M. Screening
Location: Mayer Theater
US; 1933; 99 minutes
Director: Rouben Mamoulian
Cast: Greta Garbo, John Gilbert, Ian Keith
Greta Garbo plays the Swedish Queen Christina, (1626-1689) raised like a boy and, at the age of six crowned King of Sweden. In spite of her fondness for a lady in waiting (and one of the few same sex kisses in classic Hollywood), she falls in love with the Spanish envoy. Garbo revels in her character’s love of country and her androgyny, as Christina insists, “I shall die a bachelor.” Both a comedy and a melodrama, the genre-switching in the film matches its play with gender.
Introduction: Gloria Shin, Instructor of Film and Television Media Studies.
Please join us for a light reception on the Communication Arts Patio before the screening at 3:20 p.m.
Acknowledgements
Curators
- Carla Marcantonio, LMU School of Film and Television
- Guy Borlée, Cineteca di Bologna
- In collaboration with Mikki Kressbach and students from LMU's Bologna Study Abroad Program
In Partnership with
- Dean Bryant Alexander, College of Communication and Fine Arts
- Dean Richard Fox, Bellarmine College of Liberal Arts
- Department of Film, Media, and TV Studies
- LMU Greek Cinema Week
- And with the support of the Italian Cultural Institute in Los Angeles
In Collaboration with
- Jewish Studies Program
- Department of Women's and Gender Studies Department
- Department of Modern Languages and Literatures
- Thomas & Dorothy Leavey Center for the Study of Los Angeles
We would like to Acknowledge
- Dean Joanne Moore, School of Film and Television
- Miranda Banks, Department of Film, TV, and Media Studies
- Stacy Barnes, LMU University Advancement
- Jacob Bohrod, Department of Film, TV, and Media Studies
- Richard Hadley, Department of Film, TV, and Media Studies
- Mikki Kressbach, Department of Film, TV, and Media Studies
- Will Mack, SFTV Post-Production Systems Administrator
- Jenny Manriquez, SFTV Academic Affairs Associate
- Xam Martin, SFTV Theater Services Technician
- Stephen Ujlaki, Department of Screenwriting
- Zoe Young, SFTV Theater Services Administrator
Cineteca di Bologna
- Gian Luca Farinelli, Director
- Andrea Meneghelli, Head of Film Archive
- Carmen Accaputo, Access and Shipping
- Alessandro Criscitiello, Assistant Coordinator for Il Cinema Ritrovato
This event is made possible by a generous gift from Lynne Scarboro.
Sponsors
