We are only scratching the surface. The first festivals were in depth retrospective of Linder, Mack Sennett, Thomas Ince, animated cartoons, Italian comedians but the focus broadened. Last October, attention went to rare Soviet and Hungarian films as well as the work of director Herbert Brenon and animator Gregory La Cava, and there was an array of other surprising films from a variety of countries. The peak volume was in 1995, the centenary of motion pictures, when the festival showed 600 films, including the first French and English documentaries, Chinese melodramas and the work of Henry King and Max Fleischer. We have many dishes being prepared in the kitchen, and we don't serve them until they're ready.
Quality is our major concern.
Emergencies developed four years ago, when money seemed to be drying up and Livio Jacob's persuasive skills were taxed to new limits. J. Paul Getty came through as a major backer, and new respect was forged between the festival and the town. The latest worry, that the Teatro Verdi might be razed, seems to have passed, and attendance keeps growing. He doesn't want success to damage quality. It isn't quite a revolution, although renaissance is a good word.