The SFSFF 2007 - Day 3

The third and final day of this year’s series began with More Amazing Tales from the Archives. Dr. Patrick Loughney, curator of motion pictures at George Eastman House, discussed the ongoing preservation of various early formats at GEH, including their design, use, and display.

Mike Mashon, Director of the Library of Congress Motion Picture Broadcasting and Recorded Sound archives in Culpeper Virginia was next and detailed his organizations plans to digitize the entire archive, a daunting task to say the least, beginning with the Star Wars Christmas Special, " I don’t care if they fire me." Mashon stated the initial focus of this project would be items that are in public domain. This could potentially result in the on-demand access of many films within a relatively short period of time.

The program concluded with Rob Stone from the UCLA Film and Television Archive, who offered a fascinating and personal description of the mixed program, the virtually forgotten format in which silent films were originally presented. He discussed his organizations ongoing efforts to preserve rare movie trailers and various overlooked fragments, some of which amazingly still find their way into the trash. Stone humorously noted the archive work code for dumpster diving, 0994. As he began his segment, Stone described theater give-aways, a common occurrence, including one program he attended as a boy in which he won the board game Chutes and Ladders. His brother retrieved the game when Stone was too shy to leave his seat. By the end of his talk (and following what must have been some lightning-quick action by SFSFF staffers), Stone was belatedly awarded with a copy of the game.

Retour De Flamme (Saved from the Flames)

Sunday, July 15, 12:45 p. m., The Castro, San Francisco

Without a doubt, the most entertaining personal appearance on this year’s program was that of guerilla film preservationist and showman Serge Bromberg. Beginning with a pyrotechnic demonstration in which he ignited a strip of cellulose nitrate film on stage, Bromberg stepped to the piano providing accompaniment for a wonderful collection of rare French short films.
Featured subjects included the works of Georges Méliès, newsreel footage of the great 1910 Paris flood, 1906 and 1907 versions of the Gaston Velle film Voyage autour d'une étoile (A Voyage Around a Star), and the following two selections:

Le Cochon Danseur (1907)

This utterly delightful Pathé short must have produced a chorus of giggles from younger Parisian moviegoers. Released in 1907, the four-minute film presents nothing more than two dancers, passing through a curtain to perform on stage. One happens to be a pretty young girl dressed in the style of the Folies Bergère. The other is wearing an enormous tuxedoed pig costume, complete with large rolling eyes and protruding tongue. The girl proceeds to remove the tuxedo, replacing it with a frilly white dress and hat while the pig bashfully attempts to cover up. The porcine hoofer gleefully bares its teeth while flexing its snout in grinning close-ups as the two dance and spin in circles for the camera in this very simple but hilarious and silly French tidbit.

Les Hallucinations d’un Pompier (1928)

After indulging in alcoholic refreshments, a Parisian fireman visualizes a city populated by naked women. First in the café where he is drinking, then in the street and even the fire station he sees beautiful girls, much to his delight, oblivious to their lack of clothing in this now anonymous seven minute short. What elevates this amusement beyond the status of any ordinary stag film is the brief but rare and undocumented inclusion of American sensation Josephine Baker. The fireman descends into the Paris Metro and Baker suddenly appears, dancing on the platform.

Miss Lulu Bett (1921)

Sunday, July 15, 3:35 p. m., The Castro, San Francisco

Miss Lulu Bett, directed by William DeMille, is the story of a painfully shy girl who becomes her sister's servant.
An opportunity to experience The Mont Alto Motion Picture Orchestra, in a live performance of the score which accompanies this film on dvd was truly wonderful.

A Cottage on Dartmoor (1929)

Sunday, July 15, 6:00 p. m., The Castro, San Francisco

The afternoon concluded with the presentation of Anthony Asquith’s dark tale of murderous obsession, A Cottage on DartmoorK. Pianist Stephen Horne was on hand to perform his original score composed for the BBC. In a moment of great live theater, Horne reached inside the piano to rake his fingernails over the strings at a point of particular tension in the film. Afterward he commented, "It’s hell on my fingers. I think I need a manicure!"

Next … The unbelievable finale, and a series wrap-up.