THE WORLD'S BIGGEST MUSEUM
Hello.
From Murmansk in North Russia to Ushuaia in South Patagonia,
every movie buff in the world knows the French Cinémathèque.
It's an extraordinary place that's both intellectual and mainstream.
Until recently, this Cinémathèque was in the Palais de Chaillot at Trocadéro.
Since 2005, it has been in this building
designed by North American architect, Frank Gehry.
We're in the Bercy neighborhood just opposite the large library.
And, let me tell you, it's a unique place.
Why? Because movies are salvaged and restored here.
And at the same time, there are retrospective screenings
and people converge here every day because they love seeing old movies.
That's the French Cinémathèque.
Let's go visit a mythical and legendary place. This way.
SET MODEL BY ERICH KETTELHUT GERMANY, 1927
Hello, Serge Toubiana.
We're on the fifth floor of the French Cinémathèque
in a temporary exhibition room. We're going to talk about the past.
There was an extraordinary person, a kid, a little older than 20,
who, in 1936, set about salvaging movies.
His name was Henri Langlois.
Henri Langlois was a young movie buff.
He was born in Izmir in Turkey and quickly came to France.
He was passionate about cinema and a bit of a pioneer.
What's his dream and wish? - His wish was...
CEO OF THE FRENCH CINÉMATHÈQUE
The Cinémathèque was created in 1936,
a few years after the first talkie.
He was furious that the cinema industry was destroying silent movies
because they were no longer of any use.
He thought: "Silent movies are great, we must keep hold of them.
"We must salvage them and steal copies as they'll destroy everything."
And the industry did. - Why? To save money?
To save money because nobody thought in terms of memories.
A movie was released exclusively for the first time
and afterwards, the movie was of no use.
Look at all this.
Who would think of collecting plates of magic lamps
dating back to the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries?
Henri Langlois, because he was concerned about the past
and recreating the history of moving image, still image, etc.
So, like some kind of crazy hoarder,
he accumulated treasures.
The Cinémathèque owes him a lot.
With Langlois and this early Cinémathèque,
we see something unique emerging.
There's no equivalent of the French Cinémathèque in the world.
There are some. - I mean, back then.
The big difference here from other cinémathèques,
is that young people came here in the late 1940s and early 1950s,
to watch movies all day. People like Truffaut, Godard,
Rohmer, Chabrol, Rivette, etc.
The core figures of the French New Wave that will appear in the late 1950s.
These young people were from the Cinémathèque.
For them, the Cinémathèque, was their film school.
That's the big mythology surrounding the place.
They all owe it to the place
for introducing them to cinema and giving them a passion for it.
OPTICAL THEATER PRESENTER
Listen to this. I'm putting the receiver to my tie microphone. Can you hear it?
It's you, Claudia.
What possessed you to become the French Cinémathèque audio guide?
I was asked to do it in Italian
so that visiting non-French-speaking Italians can understand what they see.
And so I did it.
It's tragic. - Why is it tragic?
Because this great actress has had to resort to these lengths to survive!
It's adorable that you've done this. It's very touching to hear your voice.
Italian visitors must be blown away.
Do you hear that?
I can't hear a thing. - You can hear it here.
Thanks for being here.
Is it a place that you knew and often came back to?
Yes, very often. I was even here two days ago.
There are movie screenings here and I come here a lot.
I love the Cinémathèque.
Here you're among people who know your filmography better than you do.
That's true. Sometimes I don't remember it.
Because I've made 130 movies. - 130 feature films?
Yes. I've been in the industry for 51 years.
What's your attachment to this place?
It's a place where you watch movies but it's not like other movie theaters.
It's quite an anachronistic place.
That's what's good, because we also hold debates here.
We had a round table discussion on Moravi a few days ago,
we make movies here and you look around. That's what's good.
It's multicultural. That's what's interesting.
What are your nicest memories of filming?
I know that it's a stupid question,
but you must have one memory that stands out from the rest
when you think of filming and all the terrific directors you've met.
I more or less started out with Visconti
in Rocco and His Brothers. I had a tiny role.
It was an incredible encounter, because I thought he hadn't even noticed me
until one day, he started shouting. Luchino only ever spoke to me in French.
He said: "You're killing me, Cardinale."
After that, he wanted me for The Leopard, Sandra and Conversation Piece, etc.
So, Visconti was really a master to me.
What's your favorite movie? One that you're not in.
Oh boy! Let me think.
Marlon Brando, On the Waterfront.
It's the first movie I ever saw. And Brigitte Bardot.
Because you're the brunette Bardot and she's the blond Cardinale.
We made a movie together, BB versus CC, called, The Legend of Frenchie King.
We had a blast.
When you see this movie, it's full of joy.
Was it also fun for you?
Absolutely. All the paparazzi were there and expecting a cat fight.
They were disappointed as we got on really well.
Brigitte was a legend. I adore her.
Didn't you get fed up of filming? Didn't it get on your nerves?
No, on the contrary. You should never throw in the towel.
Otherwise, you grow old.
It's important to keep going.
I'm still working now.
We've put on our white gloves. Let me introduce Véronique Rossignol.
Véronique is the manager of the movie library.
This is an incredible place that, via extremely precious archives,
tells the story of the movie projector, which starts with a photographer.
Photographers like... - Eadweard Muybridge.
What does he do? Is he 19th century?
He's a late 19th century photographer interested in the moving body.
He photographs moving men and animals
and records it on a film reel.
You can already see that this Muybridge is
preoccupied with, if not tormented by the concept of movement.
You can already feel that film is present in his shots.
Now, ladies and gents, we're going to talk about
a second, very important figure for early cinema:
Georges Méliès.
Late 19th century, 1896?
In 1896, illusionist, Georges Méliès, who works at the Robert Houdin Theater,
becomes interested in cinema after getting his hands on a Lumière camera.
He starts filming everyday scenes.
He realized that you could create special effects with it.
Méliès cast himself in most of the movies.
He has an imagination like Jules Verne. - Totally.
Is that a photo of a set? - He's a visionary,
as he thought up everything you could do with a camera.
Now for something completely different.
We're going to look at the screenplay of a great French script supervisor.
Is that a screenplay?
It's the shooting script of Alfred Hitchcock's To Catch a Thief.
Sylvette Baudrot was the script supervisor.
She started out with Jacques Tati, working on Monsieur Hulot's Holiday.
Take a look here.
She then worked with Alfred Hitchcock on To Catch a Thief.
Sylvette Baudrot is the script supervisor,
To Catch a Thief is the original title
of this movie that was directed by Alfred Hitchcock.
When was it made? - In 1954.
It's been autographed for Sylvette Baudrot by Cary Grant.
And here's Alfred Hitchcock's autograph.
And here you can see Cary Grant and... - Grace Kelly.
Look at all these magazines featuring Brigitte Bardot.
It's incredible. They're from the 1950s and 1960s.
This gives you an idea of what a huge star she was.
It's insane how many front covers she appeared on.
Ciné-Révélation, Ciné Monde, Ciné Monde...
There was something incredible back then.
Like in Mon Film, for example.
Inside a cinema magazine, you could find...
The photo-story of the movie.
It was told in comic strip format. - It's unbelievable.
And God Created Woman with Brigitte Bardot and Curd Jürgens.
Curd Jürgens is saying: "Temptation. I said that I might give you a car."
People don't necessarily go to the cinema but they find their movie in here.
Yes, those, who didn't go to see the movie can see it in a way.
And those who did go, can see all the key scenes again.
Fernandel is in all these.
The cinema press was already falling into the celebrity culture trap.
Look at this. "Has Jean Gabin pursued Michèle Morgan?"
The question that Vedettes magazine was asking in March 1941.
POPE COSTUME WORN BY RINGO STARR IN KEN RUSSELL'S LISZTOMANIA
THE YOUNG GIRLS OF ROCHEFORT
Now children, this program is taking a serious turn
because here, we're looking at the Donkey Skin costume.
Donkey Skin is very important to my daughter.
It's a legendary movie by Jacques Demy from 1970.
Plus, there's the magic wand. I'll take a photo for my little Suzanne.
There you go.
Now she'll suddenly have some respect for her father.
If you like costumes and objects
relating to the history of cinema, movie sets and studios, then follow me.
This is the stuff dreams are made of: the French Cinémathèque storeroom.
LOLA MONTÈS BY MAX OPHULS STARRING MARTINE CAROL
… full of love and tenderness.
I don't know what the matter is, my life is churning around in my head.
This is Lola Montès's dress
worn by Martine Carol.
COSTUME AND OBJECT COLLECTION MANAGER
It's a 1955 movie by Max Ophuls.
It's the wedding dress. It's quite a surprising design,
as the leaves are made out of plastic.
It's very delicate.
Martine Carol was very elegant and dainty.
It's a take on the corset.
Sunday, at the small village church.
Rainy evenings, an hour of harpsichord.
Among our recent acquisitions,
you have Gérard Depardieu's collections.
He was generous enough to give us about three rails like this.
Here you see a costume that's probably from a Vatel movie.
You can recognize the workmanship on this type of costume.
In our collection we have the Queen Margot costume,
which was worn by Adjani.
We also have quite a rich collection of objects
as it is very diverse.
It varies from objects used in the movies,
to sculptures representing actors,
directors and producers.
Here you have two statuettes that are effigies of Rudolph Valentino.
We have recent acquisitions, such as models.
Some set designers still work with scale models.
Here you have Little Nicolas.
We have four models from this movie.
She was still working with this fiddly model system.
This one is cardboard and feathers.
It allowed her to visualize the scenery as a whole.
I need to keep my voice down. Let me introduce Élodie.
You're in charge of youth cultural activities at the Cinémathèque.
Yes, all the activities for children who come to explore the Cinémathèque...
YOUTH ACTIVITY MANAGER
… in their free time.
We must keep our voices down because they're in a workshop.
Are they adding sound to their movies?
These children come here for eight sessions on consecutive Wednesdays.
They're our most loyal moviegoers.
They've made short films and today they're adding sound.
They're going to do a kind of voiceover
explaining what they wanted to show in their movies.
This looks like a secret cave or something similar.
You're going to start in that bar.
I imagine you can already see some children developing a vocation,
or taking an interest and developing a passion for image and sound techniques.
Yes, these children, definitely.
Because, instead of playing football,
they've chosen to spend their school year with us.
They are enthusiastic kids.
We mostly want them to become good moviegoers.
Moviegoers who will enjoy and learn about cinema and go to see movies.
You'll encourage their vocation. Truffaut started out small.
I'm meeting Laurent Mannoni,
the Scientific Director of Cinémathèque property.
Here we're looking at
projectors and cameras
that aren't in the first flush of youth.
The Cinémathèque stores an incredible collection of 4,000 machines,
SCIENTIFIC DIRECTOR OF PROPERTY
dating from the 18th century to present day.
These machines have been collected since the Cinémathèque began.
This is a legendary item.
It's the Lumière brothers' cinematograph.
This machine was designed in 1895.
It will lead to the first steps of animated photography
and launch the cinematography industry.
We have four models at the Cinémathèque. This one is equipped with a projector.
It is distinguished by the fact that it can project movies.
It can create movies and you can also print film with it.
Can the viewers hear its legendary gentle sound?
Incredible!
Here you have two really historic items:
Georges Méliès's first camera that dates back to 1896
and his first projector that dates back to 1897.
So, with this camera... - He made his first movies.
He created his first special effects with this camera.
It's a very important, unique piece and it's the only model ever made
and a crucial part of cinema history.
The two pieces are very touching because they arrived here in 1939,
donated by Georges Méliès's widow,
and they mark the beginning of the Cinémathèque's machine collection.
A projector too.
He used this projector in his theater,
the Robert Houdin Theater, on the big boulevard.
Thanks to this projector and this pod containing 15 to 30 meters of film,
he could project his very first movies that were one minute long
but which were already full of poetry and magic.
May I grab hold of this camera? - Of course.
When I arrived, I saw a camera that is completely
surprising in appearance with this fancy aluminum, what's that all about?
This is a very modern and extraordinary camera.
It's the Cinex Bourdereau from 1925, made from engine turned aluminum.
It's the first portable electric camera from well before the French New Wave.
It worked like this. You looked into the viewfinder.
The batteries were attached to your belt, of course,
and you could film very fast sequences outdoors like this,
following movement for 1920's fiction movies.
Silent movies? - Yes.
It's wonderful. It looks incredible!
Ladies and gents, now you're going to see something incredible.
A coin.
This is the precursor of the jukebox.
It's a German machine. What year is it from?
The late 19th century.
It could accompany the first movies that were projected by Will Day,
a famous collector whose collection we are fortunate to have here.
So, this machine was in the cinema.
As soon as the movie starts, it plays background music.
Movies were short so records were played too.
Listen to this!
COAT WORN IN A TRIP TO THE MOON BY GEORGES MÉLIÈS
HEAD FROM THE MOVIE PSYCHO, A GIFT FROM ALFRED HITCHCOCK TO H. LANGLOIS
Welcome to the Epstein projection room.
Let's go and meet the person that presides
over the French Cinémathèque, filmmaker, Costa-Gavras.
Thanks for coming.
What's your oldest memory of the French Cinémathèque?
Did you often hang out in the movie theaters?
It had a small room with wooden seats.
CINÉMATHÈQUE PRESIDENT
When you stood up, they made a lot of noise.
And I saw the movie by...
Von Stroheim, that was called Greed.
I was deeply moved by this movie. It was very long, two and a half hours,
and it doesn't have a happy end.
Eric von Stroheim. - Yes. A great figure.
Going back to the legendary 1960s,
what was the ambience like in the Cinémathèque at the Chaillot?
Were you terrorized for nights?
Did they say: "That filmmaker is crap, he doesn't get it."
Was it full of that? - Especially in discussions afterwards.
For example, Langlois got Buster Keaton here for the first time.
Buster Keaton had an enormous crowd at the Cinémathèque.
The guy started crying, as he was totally unknown in America.
He didn't understand why the French knew him and were so passionate about him.
It was miraculous at the time. - That's a touching story.
Buster Keaton was unknown in the US but highly acclaimed here.
His movies had disappeared and they were found in America
here and there, just by chance, in private homes
and they were able to put them onto cassette and DVD and even copy them.
COPY RESTORED AT GEORGE EASTMAN HOUSE LOULOU BY PABST, STARRING LOUISE BROOKS
Look at this magic moment. Do you recognize Louise Brooks?
In a few minutes, there'll be a cinema screening with live music here,
like back in the days of silent movies,
with this English pianist, Neil Brand, in the orchestra pit.
We're in the exact ambience and climate
COMPOSER
of the magic that happened here from 1915 and into the 1930s.
Watch.
Here we are in the Cinémathèque library.
Here, there are thousands of references: rare books
and rare DVDs about the history of cinema.
You should see the delighted faces of these great American filmmakers
and these great American actors who come here
and wonder: "Where the hell are we?
"We're in a museum but also, a place that's alive."
The great American filmmaker, Martin Scorsese, said:
"The French Cinémathèque is our spiritual home."
See you next week.
Subtitles: Babel Subtitling - babelSUB.be