See newly restored classic films at Cinematek’s Restored Festival

Possessing more than 47,000 films, the Royal Belgian Film Archive (Cinematek) in Brussels boasts one of the world’s oldest and largest film collections.

Don’t miss an opportunity to see highlights of Cinematek’s eclectic archive in Restored, a festival running from 20 to 30 November.

Founded in 1938, the city-centre library and cosy cinema is exceptional for its wide range of films, from shorts and features to  all kinds of documentaries, including non-commercial ones.

The collection enables the archive to navigate between the artistic expression of author-filmmakers, accessible entertainment for a broad audience and scientific research with a historical and social slant.

To meet these goals, it has three main functions: conservation of the collection, promoting research based on the collection and programming films for a varied audience.

The Restored programme fulfills all of these missions by presenting a diverse selection of films that have undergone careful restoration: cult movies, classics, and rare works and movies that were thought to have been lost forever.

Over 10 days, 28 meticulously-restored films will be screened, dating from the 1920s to the 2000s, and originating from around the world.

They include La Vie Est Belle (1987), a wild comedic story of a village farmer who makes his way to Kinshasa in DRC to make it in the music world, only to find that city life is not at all what he expected.

From Japan, comes Nobody Knows (2004), the heart-rending story of four children in Tokyo abandoned in an empty apartment by their mother, and who owe their survival to the self-sacrifice of their eldest sibling.

And from Belgium and France, audiences are treated to Marquis (1989), a tale of sex, lust and the French Revolution. It’s based on the life of the Marquis de Sade and played by actors in animal masks and by Claymation characters.

Cinematek
Rue Baron Horta 9
Brussels

Photos: (main image) Django; The Norrtull Gang. Sorry! Our prize giveaway has now closed and the winners have been notified.