Rediscovering the Big Screen

Five-day festival brings restored cinematic gems to UMD.

By Jessica Weiss '05 | Maryland Today

The hush of anticipation as the lights dim. A ripple of laughter at a perfectly timed joke. The rich scent of buttered popcorn. There’s something singular about watching a film in a theater—a shared experience that’s easy to forgo in an era of digital streaming, where movies are always within reach but often watched alone.

Beginning Wednesday, “Il Cinema Ritrovato on Tour” invites University of Maryland cinephiles and newcomers alike to rediscover that magic, offering six timeless gems the way they were meant to be seen: together, on the big screen. The five-day festival, presented by the programs of Italian and cinema and media studies, is inspired by Il Cinema Ritrovato, the renowned film festival in Bologna, Italy, where thousands gather each year to celebrate cinematic history.

UMD’s festival features free screenings on campus, as well as at the National Gallery in Washington, D.C., and AFI Silver Theatre and Cultural Center in Silver Spring. Among this year’s highlights are the 1972 Italian political thriller “Slap the Monster on Page One,” the 1986 burlesque musical comedy “Golden Eighties” and the 1965 Soviet-era Ukrainian masterpiece “Shadows of Forgotten Ancestors,” widely regarded as the most internationally acclaimed Ukrainian film in history. Organizers—together with Il Cinema Ritrovato en Bologna—selected films that were recently restored and that feel especially relevant to the present moment.

“Whether you study cinema or have never thought much about it before, the experience of these films is going to be astounding,” said Mauro Resmini, associate professor of cinema and media studies and Italian in the School of Languages, Literatures, and Cultures (SLLC). “We want to recreate that festival atmosphere so everyone can enjoy these spectacular films.”

Il Cinema Ritrovato is known for presenting films restored by the Immagine Ritrovata laboratory in collaboration with the Cineteca di Bologna, one of the world’s foremost film restoration centers. Home to the archives of cinematic icons like Charlie Chaplin and Pier Paolo Pasolini, the Cineteca has breathed new life into thousands of films since the 1960s. Il Cinema Ritrovato on Tour extends this legacy to audiences worldwide, bringing a slice of Cineteca’s film history to universities and festivals without requiring a trip to Italy. Now in its fifth edition, the UMD tour is the only such event in the mid-Atlantic.

Read the full story in Maryland Today.