Paolo Cherchi Usai to Receive the Mel Novikoff Award at the 47th San Francisco International Film Festival

Paolo Cherchi Usai will receive the Mel Novikoff Award at the 47th San Francisco International Film Festival (April 15–29). Named for the pioneering San Francisco art and repertory film exhibitor, Mel Novikoff (1922–1987), the Award acknowledges an individual or institution whose work has increased the public’s awareness and enjoyment of film. The Novikoff Award will be presented to Paolo Cherchi Usai on Monday, April 26 at 8 pm at the Pacific Film Archive, followed by an onstage interview conducted by University of California, Berkeley film teacher Russell Merritt. Cherchi Usai will be present to receive the award and to introduce the screening of archival treasures from the George Eastman House collection. For this special program Cherchi Usai and his colleague Edith Kramer, senior curator and director of the Pacific Film Archive, have selected seven short films made between 1902 and 1928.

As senior curator of the Motion Picture Department at George Eastman House, director of the L. Jeffrey Selznick School of Film Preservation, associate professor of film at the University of Rochester and co-founder of the Pordenone Silent Film Festival, Cherchi Usai’s dedication and expertise have influenced and inspired archivists, preservationists and film aficionados around the world. Earlier this year he was awarded the title of Chevalier de l’Ordre des Arts et des Lettres by the French government for his outstanding contributions to film preservation, museum development and film culture. Cherchi Usai’s book Silent Cinema, previously titled Burning Passions, has become a veritable handbook for those interested in film preservation and restoration. His second book, The Death of Cinema, addresses the profound issues raised by the decay of film and the growing digitization of media. The goal of his work is to make our film heritage known to a wider audience.

The Mel Novikoff Committee members include: Francis J. Rigney (Chairman), Helena R. Foster, Martin Foster, Maurice Kanbar, Philip Kaufman, Edith Kramer, Tom Luddy, Gary Meyer, Peter Scarlet and George Gund III (ex-officio). Previous recipients of the Mel Novikoff Award are Manny Farber (2003), David Francis (2002), Cahiers du Cinéma (2001), San Francisco Cinematheque (2001), Donald Krim and David Shepard (2000), Enno Patalas (1999), Adrienne Mancia (1998), Judy Stone (1997), Film Arts Foundation (1997), David Robinson (1996), Institut Lumière (1995), Naum Kleiman (1994), Andrew Sarris (1993), Jonas Mekas (1992), Pauline Kael (1991), Donald Richie (1990), USSR Filmmakers’ Association (1989) and Dan Talbot (1988).

The 47th San Francisco International Film Festival runs April 15-29, 2004 at the AMC Kabuki 8 Theatres "The Home of the Festival," the Castro Theatre, the Pacific Film Archive Theater in Berkeley and the Century Cinema 16 Mountain View. Tickets for San Francisco Film Society members will be available on March 23 and for the general public on March 30. To purchase tickets and for ticket information log on to www.sffs.org, call 925.275.9490, or visit the Main Box Office, located in the atrium of the AMC Kabuki 8 Theatres at 1881 Post Street or the Satellite Box Office at Crocker Galleria, 50 Post Street, second floor, opening on March 30. For up-to-date Festival information log on to www.sffs.org or call 415.931.FILM.

The 47th San Francisco International Film Festival (April 15-29, 2004) is presented by the San Francisco Film Society, a nonprofit arts and educational organization dedicated to celebrating international film and the moving image.