The Miskatonic Institute of Horror Studies of London Brings A RESTORATION OF ‘NOSFERATU’ (1922) on April 19

If you are intrigued by the process of film restoration then this show-and-tell lecture is what you need in your life. This highly involved lecture will illustrate many of the issues encountered and (with varying degrees of success) resolved in a digital restoration of Murnau’s NOSFERATU. It’s a can’t miss an opportunity to learn all about the troubles surrounding the film’s physical reconstruction and digital restoration.

The lecture will begin with a description of the original production and the technology used to make the film. You’ll dive deep into the troubled history complicated by the film’s physical reconstruction and how it impacted the digital restoration. The reconstructed master print was made from many disparate elements because there simply wasn’t a single negative available. You will examine scenes and shots in a side-by-side comparison of the unrestored reconstructed print and the digitally restored version of the same material.

You will get a better grasp of restoration with this investigation by looking at the many problems faced by any restoration team when not all the original elements are available. You will examine the use of VFX tools, grain management, tinting processes and photochemical to digital translation issues when restoring motion pictures.

The talk will primarily explore the complex and subjective issues currently floating around in many analog-versus-digital discussions of film and how those opinions can influence the determination of what the restored version should look like if the goal is to replicate the original projected image at the time of the first release. Can digital restorations generate valid preservation copies of photo-chemical materials? Join the lecture and find out!