IL CINEMA RITROVATO
DVD AWARDS 2011
VIII edition
Jurors: Lorenzo Codelli, Alexander Horwath, Mark McElhatten, Paolo Mereghetti, Jonathan Rosenbaum, Peter Von Bagh.
BEST DVD 2010 / 2011
Segundo de Chomón 1903-1912 (Filmoteca de Catalunya [ICIC]/Cameo Media s.l.) EL Cine de La Fantasia. A production by Cameo and Filmoteca Catalunya.
The first edition of a long awaited series devoted to the great Spanish master of magic films, hand coloring and technical special effects. Offering 114 minutes of 31 astonishing titles, complete with a 111-page tri-lingual book containing an informative essay by Jean M. Minguet and credits on each film and the 12 different archives that provided restored prints. (http://www.cameo.es/portal/tabid__13173/consulta__De%20Chomon/default.aspx)
BEST SPECIAL FEATURES (BONUS)
The Night of the Hunter (Criterion: www.criterion.com)
For the invaluable and detailed film record of Charles Laughton directing his only feature, drawing from the more than eight hours of outtakes discovered by Bob Gitt and including fascinating rehearsals in which Laughton acts out some of the roles himself.
MOST ORIGINAL CONTRIBUTION TO FILM HISTORY
Orphans 7 – A Film Symposium (New York University’s Orphan Film Symposium, www.orphanfilmsymposium.blogspot.com)
For bringing to the attention of DVD watchers a rich and fascinating area of film history: so-called “ephemeral” films, including amateur films, activist filmmaking, industrial films, etc., with magnificent, in-depth commentary.
BEST REDISCOVERY OF A FORGOTTEN FILM
Awarded jointly to Max Davidson (www.edition-filmmuseum.de) and Female Comedy Teams (www.edition-filmmuseum.de)
Two priceless collections of silent and early sound slapstick comedies from the Hal Roach studio that highlight neglected and relatively unknown corners of American cultural history as well as film history.
BEST BOX SET
Awarded jointly to 3 Silent Classics by Josef von Sternberg (www.criterion.com) and La Naissance de Charlot – The Keystone Comedies 1914 di Charlie Chaplin (Lobster – Arte – BFI – Cineteca di Bologna – Flicker Alley/UCLA: www.franceculture.com). The first of these is a collection of three important early features by von Sternberg, along with excellent audiovisual essays, the second is the long-awaited release of the first and most explosive stage of Chaplin’s creative career.
BEST BLU-RAY
The BBS Story (Criterion: www.criterion.com)
For the courage of bringing a little-known but very important chapter of American film history to the medium of Blu-Ray—a box set including five features, including The Last Picture Show, Easy Rider, and The King of Marvin Gardens.
***
Because the jurors would like to stress that none of us is in a position to know all the important DVD releases, even though all of us have encountered important examples that were not nominated for awards but deserve to be far better known, each of us has selected a release or series of releases in this category.
Lorenzo Codelli has selected the DVD collection of the Korean Film Archive, launched in 2004 and available at koreafilm.org/publica/dvds.asp, all of which have English subtitles and exceptional extras.
Alexander Horwath has selected the series of films directed by Leo Hurwitz included on six DVDs that are released by Film Centrum in Sweden (www.filmcentrum.se)
Mark McElhatten has selected Jose Val del Omar’s Elemental de España, a 5-DVD box set with films from 1931 to 2010, with English subtitles and a booklet in Spanish and English. Produced by Cameo with the Archivo Maria Jose Val de Omar and Gonzalo Saenz de Buruaga and the Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofia (www.valdelomar.com/home.php)
Paolo Mereghetti has selected Jean-Paul Le Chanois’ L’école buissonière, released in France by Doriane Films (www.dorianefilms.com)
Jonathan Rosenbaum has selected Alexander Dovzhenko’s Earth, released in the United Kingdom by Mr Bongo Films (www.mrbongo.com)
And Peter von Bagh has selected Werner Schroeter’s Der Tod der Maria Malibran & Eika Katappa, released in Germany by www.edition-filmmuseum.de