Claudia Cardinale and Henry Fonda in Once Upon a Time in the West (Sergio Leone, 1968)

© DR / Coll. Christophe L

 

To films, with love!

The Lumière Institute is holding its first annual film festival from 13 to 18 October, with support from the Greater Lyon Urban Community and the Rhône-Alpes Region.  It’s also sponsored by the Rhône General Council, the city of Lyon, the French culture ministry and the National Cinematography Centre (CNC).

We want to stage a festival worthy of the city where the Lumière brothers invented their cinematograph.  But also one that’s a bit different, one entirely devoted to the history of film, for both enthusiasts and the general public. Lyon has after all been a crossroads throughout its history.

 

Passion for film

It’s important to pass things on, to help people discover, by giving, inviting and showing.  But also to love, to give people a taste, and encourage dreams and make them come true.  The Lumière Institute, headed by Bertrand Tavernier, has been doing this since it was founded and its mission is to show the public the finest examples of this great art.   The Institute was asked to stage the annual festival and it took shape in the course of many meetings and discussions.
 
In the birthplace of the Lumière cinematograph, we must fully honour the classics of film, cinema's 114-year history and its great directors, actors and actresses.  We want to revisit the history of the cinema through retrospectives, tributes and events.
 
The Festival is especially important because the industry’s technology has changed greatly in the past 20 years – the way new films are made, old ones restored, the switch from traditional to digital production – and nobody quite knows what the future will look like. Old films are now available again and cinema’s heritage is stronger.  This is the context of the Festival.

 

The birthplace of cinema celebrates films, their history and their makers

Each year Lyon will invite the world of film to celebrate its vitality and its history.  The Festival will draw on worldwide cinema to highlight once again how our love of film is an important part of the cultural memory that all people share.
 
The possibilities are endless, with retrospectives, tributes, the history of cinema, restored copies and reissues of old films.  The view of film history from the Institute, in Lyon’s rue du Premier-Film, is probably the best in the world.
 
A different kind of festival then.   With films chosen but not competing, without juries but with directors, actors and others.  The Festival will be dedicated to the pleasures of film and the generous passing on of its story, embracing both enjoyment and respect.
 

Great films of yesteryear sponsored by today’s big names

 
The films shown will be new or restored copies and will be introduced by directors, actors and actresses, scriptwriters and producers.  The films can thus be seen as they never have been before – in the best possible technical condition and presented by a true lover of cinema. A simple approach that will make the Festival a beacon for film-lovers and a meeting-place for creators, an event to satisfy hard-core fans and experts and also the general public.

 

A festival open to all in Greater Lyon

The Festival isn’t just for a select group.  It'll be accessible everywhere, a firm goal throughout our planning, and people in the 57 towns of Greater Lyon will be taking part.  Many cinemas, community and concert halls have signed up for more than 150 events.  That’s the spirit of Lyon!