Films Restored By The Film Foundation

This Senegalese road movie is a chaotic, beautiful masterpiece of African cinema. By 2008, only one print existed in the world, and it was being eaten by termites in a warehouse in Dakar. The Film Foundation airlifted the reels to Bologna, Italy. The restoration revealed a vibrant, punk energy—scenes of cow slaughter and motorcycle riding that had been muffled by decades of dirt. Now in the Criterion Collection, it has inspired a new generation of African filmmakers.

The Film Foundation does not stop at restoration. It created , an educational curriculum taught in over 50,000 U.S. classrooms, introducing students to visual literacy and film history. It also partners with The Criterion Channel , Kanopy , and repertory cinemas worldwide to ensure restored films are screened publicly, not locked in vaults. films restored by the film foundation