Early Colour Film Restoration at the BFI National Archive

Abstract

The BFI National Archive holds the largest and most comprehensive collection of colour film material in the UK including many rare examples of British and international colour systems. Dating from as early as 1902 these materials encompass a whole range of techniques, processes and devices, often long defunct, that make the film restorer’s job a real challenge. Curating such a large and complex body of work has historically been both rewarding and frustrating in equal measure. But the inevitable compromises that come in trying to bring these films back to the screen are well tempered by the fascination that the history and development of colour technology holds. The time is right for us at the BFI to survey our strategy with regard to our colour materials for a number of reasons. First, and most important, with regard to early materials, time marches on and none of these films are getting any younger. The original film elements, some of which are over a hundred years old, are becoming more brittle, warped and difficult to handle. Improved passive conservation, in which the film is kept at a low temperature and controlled humidity to slow down the rate of inevitable chemical decay, is a priority for archives faced with deteriorating nitrate and acetate collections but restoration work is also essential. If we are to revive the colour schemes of our earliest films rather than preserving just a monochrome copy as a record of its content, we need to act now. Secondly new digital technology is making this more of a possibility for the film archives, at a price, but inevitably with every new way of working there are issues raised about the definitions and ethics of ‘restoration’. Thirdly, there does seem to be a genuine interest in, and demand for, colour archive films from television companies, DVD and Internet publishers as well