Lumière Fest Debates Classic Doc Distribution Keys: Restoration, Milestone Titles, Art School Subs, Tik Tok, Instagram
variety.comLise Pedersen When a classic film industry meets at a market, what do they debate. One issue is maybe paramount these days: Distribution.
The distribution of classic documentaries was at the heart of discussions at the Lumière Film Festival’s International Classic Film Market (MIFC) in Lyon, France on Oct.
18. Industry members ran through the challenges they face in bringing not just doc, but heritage doc, to the audience – a “niche within a niche,” according to Gérald Duchaussoy, who oversees programming and coordination for the MIFC.
For Catherine Bizern, managing and artistic director of doc fest Cinéma du Réel(CdR), heritage documentaries have their place in a booming classic film market. “The key to getting classic docs back into theaters lies in restoration,” she says. “Instead of organizing retrospectives of forgotten movies that would be shown in poor-quality copies only once at our festival, it’s more interesting to support film restoration and support the release of good quality, restored films in theaters and on platforms.” With this in mind, CdR launched the European Classic Documentary Film Rendez-vous in 2020, where film restoration project coordinators get to showcase their projects to industry professionals.
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