Education

FILM RESTORATION SUMMER SCHOOL
FIAF SUMMER SCHOOL - BOLOGNA 2012

Film restoration online theory course :
distance learning, M ay 9th to June 20th (on Wednesdays)
Theory lectures and Il Cinema Ritrovato film festival: Bologna, June 23rd through June 30th
Restoration practice classes:
Bologna, July 2nd through July 13th

1. Introduction

Work in progress
In 2012 the Film Restoration / FIAF Summer School is being held for the fifth time. Once again the Fédération Internationale des Archives du Film (FIAF) and the Association des Cinémathèques Européennes (ACE) have combined their efforts with Cineteca di Bologna and L’Immagine Ritrovata film restoration and conservation laboratory to organize the Film Restoration / FIAF Summer School 2012, held annually since 2007.
After the success of previous editions, FIAF, ACE, Cineteca di Bologna and L’Immagine Ritrovata are looking forward to running a new training course in the field of film restoration. Like previous Summer Schools, the 2012 course is aimed at specialists and film archive staff. During the participant selection process, priority will be given to those working in FIAF and ACE member institutions.
A total of 143 participants have taken part in previous years, representing 47 countries (Algeria, Austria, Belgium, Brazil, Canada, China, Colombia, Croatia, Cuba, Egypt, Estonia, Finland, France, Georgia, Germany, Greece, Holland, Iceland, India, Iran, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Japan, Jordan, Kenya, Lebanon, Luxembourg, Macedonia, Mexico, Morocco, New Zealand, Nigeria, Norway, Poland, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, Thailand, Tunisia, Turkey, United Kingdom, USA).

Why does FIAF SUMMER SCHOOL focus on restoration?
While there are many private and state film archives, specialized laboratories are quite few in number. Every year a considerable number of titles are restored by numerous film archives. Therefore, it appears necessary for today’s curators and their staff to be trained in the use of the newest digital equipment for the preservation and restoration of film heritage, and to learn about digital strategies for access to material. Furthermore, all students who are interested in working in a film archive and/or film restoration laboratory in
the near future should develop highly specialized digital and photochemical skills to enter this field.

IL CINEMA RITROVATO FILM FESTIVAL
Film restoration gives us the fantastic opportunity of bringing films back to the big screen and to the audience, as such presenting and exhibiting restored films is an active part of the restoration process. For this reason the Film Restoration / FIAF Summer School project takes place mainly in Bologna, in conjunction with Il Cinema Ritrovato film festival, a true meeting place for researchers and experts (http://www.cinetecadibologna.it/cinemaritrovato2012). In 2011 Il Cinema Ritrovato film festival involved over 50 film archives from all over the world, and had an audience of over 67,000. The connection between learning about digital and photochemical restoration and an event such as Il Cinema Ritrovato film festival is a close one, as while it is important to put restoration into practice and to learn how to restore a film it is equally as important to understand how films, restored by different archives, can be exhibited today.

Targets and final aim
The project’s main objective is to teach and update participants on how to restore and preserve a film through the use of photochemical and new digital technologies. Participants will have the chance to experience everyday work in a highly specialized laboratory; they will follow every step of the process through all departments, from beginning to end. Film Restoration / FIAF Summer School 2012 participants are expected to develop and practise a specific set of skills: operating all digital and photochemical equipment in an archive and/or laboratory; following a complete restoration workflow; performing all the primary necessary operations needed to restore a film; evaluating the state of conservation of a film and choosing the best practice to restore, reconstruct and preserve it. After completing the Film Restoration Summer School participants will:
- know how a film can be restored using new digital and analog technologies in a modern, flexible work environment;
- be able to manage a complete restoration workflow;
- know how to choose the best format to restore a film and have it digitized from film support to 35mm, DCP, HD and SD broadcasting until DVD support;
- be able to discuss each step of a restoration project in detail with a restoration laboratory;
- know the various approaches to restoration of different FIAF archives;
- know how to manage a film restoration project budget.

Finally, past editions of the Film Restoration / FIAF Summer School have proved to be an excellent meeting ground for people working in the same field. It represents a great opportunity for participants to initiate collaborations on possible future restoration projects.