BFI Film on Film Festival 2023

In the making for over a year, the British Film Institute presents the first ever Film on Film Festival hosted at the BFI Southbank from the 8th till the 11th of June 2023. Not only is it their goal to help celebrate film, the products made by genius filmmakers, but the film itself: “celluloid with sprocket holes”. Every film at the festival is projected on film. Nitrate, 3D, 16mm, new 35mm prints, and 70mm formats were shown. Along with the films and shorts being shown at the festival, BFI also held free talks and workshops that were available on a first come first serve basis. I attended two screenings on day one of the festival, and two workshops and one screening on day two.

Day 1 – Opening Night: A Dog Called Discord and Mildred Pierce

The opening night special presentation was the combination showing of Mildred Pierce (Curtiz, 1945) and the world premiere of A Dog Called Discord (Jenkin, 2023). Opening the screening was Robin Baker discussing why it is important to preserve film and still show it to audiences. He also mentioned that the festival is in no way trying to get rid of the digital filmmaking and projecting, but to preserve film. Then, Mark Jenkin said a few words to introduce his short film before the two films began.

Commissioned by the BFI, Mark Jenkin created A Dog Called Discord with an old film reel he found and worked on, so he was able to see the image. His 22-minute short film, shot on 35mm explores his fascination with film and the magic it creates. In this film, the audience was taken through Jenkin’s process of restoring this found footage of the dog we later find out to be named Discord. Film creation and preservation processes are also filmed and shown to the audience. Shot and projected on 35mm, it was lovely to be able to see all the flaws and flickers from the film reel itself. In my opinion, it adds to the art.

Playing straight after A Dog Called Discord, the screening of Mildred Pierce (1945) changed from a 35mm nitrate projection to just 35mm. This was due to a problem with the nitrate projector and a worry for staff and audience safety. The 35mm print was part of BFI’s 100 newly created 35mm prints and its showing was the premiere showing. Adapted from the James M. Cain novel, Michael Curtiz directs this film-noir woman’s picture. Academy Award winner Joan Crawford stars as titular Mildred Pierce who proves she can become independent and successful even after being left by her unfaithful husband. The movie is one that can be watched in any medium. However, if one is interested in the art of film, the 35mm projection adds to the film-noir style and the time period of the film.

Day 1 – All About My Mother

Part of the “New 35mm Prints” section of the festival, Pedro Almodóvar’s All About My Mother (1999) was created from a preserved Filmoteca Española internegative and sound negative by Pathé, El Deseo. The print was made at ANIM, Cinemateca Portuguesa using a photochemical workflow and subtitles by Criterion at Titrafilm. Another addition to the films on film making me appreciate the medium and the film more. Incredibly enjoyable and important, All About My Mother focuses on the connection between art and the real world. Cecilia Roth plays Manuela, mother who loses her son in a horrible car accident when chasing down an actress he is a fan of. Through many twists, and luck of fate, Manuela connects with people from her sons’ father’s and her own past. Almodóvar uses the art of film to share emotion with the audience in the most beautiful way. Seeing this film even just on the big screen, but in 35mm print, clearly makes the art come across in the way it was meant to be seen.

Day 2 – Film and Digital: Understanding the Differences

The first event I attended on day two of the Film on Film Festival was a talk on film and digital mediums. Hosted by BFI’s Technical Delivery Manager Douglas Weir and Head of Conservation Kieron Webb was a 90-minute watch and discuss over the different media and forms we experience. Showing clips and shorts from the archive, Weir and Webb walked the audience through some of the differences that can be seen between the mediums. Citizen Kane (Welles, 1941) was shown, as well as Snow (Jones, 1983) and the audience was even shown a bit of Dance Craze (Massot, 1981) on both film and digital restoration. Listening to the two presenters talk about what could be seen while the films were being projected and shown allowed me to understand the two mediums better and spot the differences easier.

Day 2 – Keeping Film on Film

I was lucky enough to be able to get a seat at the panel of experts discussing keeping film on film. This hour discussion centered around the filmmaking process from start (getting the film itself) to the projection of the film in cinemas with film projectors. On the panel sat international guests representing film laboratories, archives and cinemas. The BFI’s own Fiona Maxwell led the panel which included Antonio Rasura from Kodak, Sonji Clarke from Cinelab, Davide Pozzi from L’Immagine Ritrovata Group, Mike Pogorzelski from the Academy of Motion Picture Arts, Brian Meacham from Yale University Archives, and freelance projectionist Alexa Raisbeck. Maxwell led the discussion greatly, starting at the beginning of the film creation process with Rasura, asking him questions about Kodak and the 10-year future plan the company hopes will surpass. When Clarke spoke on behalf of Cinelab, she discussed the processes that occur when filmmakers and producers want to create a film. She even shared that the Cannes Film Festival winner for this year was a film shot on 35mm. After the filmmakers film their film, the process of the retrieval and processing goes to Pozzi’s group. He shared an online interactive simulation of his facilities where the viewer can see a 360-degree view of the facility and watch the process occur. Pogorzelski and Meacham both discussed how the archives came to be and how interesting and important it is to preserve the films of the past for future audiences and for safekeeping. Before opening up to audience questions, Raisbeck talked about how she learned to be a projectionist, how much work goes into the job, and the industry’s need for more film projectionists. Even though this is not even close to everything that was discussed during the panel, these few major points shared with the right people could do so much. After listening to this panel, I myself became more interested in the entire process and film itself, how it is made, processed and even how projectors work.

Day 2 – In the Mood for Love

My final viewing at the Film on Film Festival was Wong Kar Wai’s 2000 film In the Mood for Love shown on 35mm. This 35mm print was created through Criterion, Jet Tone and Block2 Distribution from the 4K restoration files and presented with Cinema Rediscovered. In the Mood for Love is a heartbreaking story of two neighbours, Chow Mo-wan (Tony Leung Chiu Wai) and Su Li-zhen (Maggie Cheung Man-yuk), who learn their partners are cheating on them with each other. Through spending time together, the two begin to develop feelings for one another. Wong uses a specific style of filmmaking, beautiful, intriguing shots, that when paired with the score, keep the audience hooked. The picture quality received with the 35mm projection also adds to the feel of the film. Wong builds up such tension between the characters and the events that occur throughout the film, leaving us wondering what will happen.

The Festival Overall…

Now that I have attended even just two days of this fabulous Film on Film Festival, I can say that I want to see more film projections and learn more about the art form as well. It is difficult to put into words the different experience one gains from watching a film projected on film compared to projections through a digital projector. From the three films I had the pleasure of watching to the two talks I listened to, the BFI has piqued my interest in celluloid with sprocket holes and the mechanics of it all.