Cinemateca de Cuba celebrates 60 years of being founded

An extensive program of cultural activities was presented here today by the Cinemateca de Cuba to celebrate the 60th anniversary of its foundation, a date that will be celebrated next February 6.

The activities, which will take place throughout the year, began with a series of films dedicated to honoring the centennial of the birth of Italian filmmaker Federico Fellini.

According to the organizers, this is the biggest retrospective produced on the island about the director's work, which includes all his feature films and some documentaries of his own.

During the day the entity will offer a chronological review of all the important moments in the history of cinema, said today in a press conference the specialist and programmer of the Cinemateca, Antonio Mazon.

From February, more than 20 classics filmed since the cinema's foundation in 1895 until 1924 will be presented, a period that includes works of great importance, he said.

Mazon said that on February 6, the anniversary date, the most complete version of Georges Méliès' Journey to the Moon and the final, restored copy of French director Jean Vigo's L'Atalante will be presented.

This month's program will also include restored copies of two important titles by Tomas Gutierrez Alea: 'La muerte de un burcrata' and the documentary 'El arte del tabaco.'

The institution will also open its doors to all the international events that will take place throughout the year, including the Week of the French-speaking world, the French Film Festival, the European Film Exhibition and the Spanish Film Festival.

Founded in 1960 under the auspices of the Cuban Institute of Film, Art and Industry, the Cinemateca de Cuba remains a stable archive that preserves and disseminates the Cuban film heritage.