The Cinémathèque française preserves over 150 films by Georges Méliès, some of which were rediscovered by Henri Langlois, thanks to the regularly printed copies, and some from the acquisition of prestigious sources or from particularly generous donors such as Madeleine Malthête Méliès. In anticipation of the museum dedicated to the filmmaker-illusionist (which will open at the Cinémathèque française in January 2021), more than 20 films are currently being restored from the most significant prints of our collections. One of the most precious museum pieces is the hand-painted nitrate print of La Fée Carabosse ou le Poignard fatal. This particularly fragile film was digitised with great care in 8K at the CNC laboratory and then restored in 4K to reveal the beauty of the images of the period. The opening titles were taken from a more recent safety print. L’Immagine Ritrovata laboratory then carried out the color grading to reproduce the colours hand-painted directly onto the film. This restoration is distinguished by the photographic and pictorial quality of the original base and highlights the originality of this inspired work.

Hervé Pichard