March 2023
In 1979, the French actor and director Pierre Clémenti was invited to participate in San Sebastian Festival’s New Directors section with his film New Old (1979). The references to his visit in the archive are extensive. As well as featuring in a series of iconic photographs, those showing his entrance to the Victoria Eugenia Theatre on Ocaña’s arm, file 1979-1980.0914 of the General Archive also contains the correspondence that led to his invitation. The file opens with a number of standard documents: in August 1979, the general secretary Pilar Olascoaga asked Clémenti, on two occasions, to send material for inclusion in the catalogue: the production credits, three passport photographs, a biography and a filmography. There appears to have been no answer. Some time later, the correspondence resumed in October 1979, when the moviemaker informs in friendly tones that his film suffered serious damage when screened in San Sebastian and asks the festival to cover the cost of a new colour copy. From here on, the correspondence becomes embroiled in exchanges between Olascoaga and the Pompidou Centre (co-producer of the film) on the costs of the new copy. The general secretary asks, again insistently repeating her request on two occasions, that Clémenti send the damaged film so that the insurance company can assess the damage and make the corresponding payment. Yet again the archive shows no signs of a reply from Clémenti, although there is an entry, in March 1980, in the shape of a hand-written note on a promotional postcard for the film Steppenwolf (Fred Haines, 1974). And three passport photographs.
Full description sheet
File
Communication with the director Pierre Clémenti
Identity statement area
ID: 15118
Catalogue number: AO1979-1980.0914
Location: M02.B06.C02
Classification scheme: 4.1.4. International directors
Title: Communication with the director Pierre Clémenti
Date of creation: 1979
Level of description: Composite documentary unit
Extent and medium of the unit of description: 1979 – 1980
Context area
Producer: San Sebastian International Film Festival
Content and structure area
Places: France
Conditions of access and use area
Conditions governing access: Conditions governing access
Conditions governing reproduction: Conditions governing reproduction
Control area
Preservation: Anna Ferrer, Andrea Sánchez
Cataloguing: Edurne Arocena (Ereiten)
Other documents of the month
[+]
Interview with the competition organisers prior to the 16th edition in 1968 (1968) San Sebastian Festival Archive. [+]
[+]
Letter from Luis Gasca to Jorge Luis Borges on the occasion of his participation in the round table discussion ‘Latin American Literature and Cinema’ (1981) San Sebastian Festival Archive. [+]
[+]
Actress Gina Lollobrigida presenting the San Sebastian Award for Best Female Performance to the distributor Procinor for “A Woman Under the Influence” (1975) San Sebastian Festival Archive. [+]
[+]
The actress Josefa Flores González, better known as Marisol or Pepa Flores, at the Hotel María Cristina (1960) San Sebastian Festival Archive. [+]
[+]
Anne Bancroft at the Victoria Eugenia Theatre’s boxes entrance during the presentation of the film “The Miracle Worker” (Arthur Penn) (1962) San Sebastian Festival Archive. [+]
[+]
Letter from Nelly Kaplan to Francisco Ferrer on the invitation to the festival (1962) San Sebastian Festival Archive. [+]
[+]
Regulations of the II Cartago International Film Festival (1968) San Sebastian Festival Archive. [+]
[+]
Letter from Josefina Molina to the Festival organisers (1978) San Sebastian Festival Archive [+]
[+]
Letter from Diego Galán to film director Jafar Panahi (1998) San Sebastian Festival Archive. [+]
[+]
Program for the 11th edition of the Festival International de Films de Femmes de Créteil et du Val de Marne (1989) San Sebastian Festival Archive. [+]
[+]
Letter from Wolf Kochmann to Pilar Olascoaga on the death of Bette Davis (1989) San Sebastian Festival Archive. [+]
[+]
Letter from Luis Buñuel to the Mayor of San Sebastián Antonio Vega de Seoane (1960) San Sebastian Festival Archive. [+]
[+]
Letter sent by Antonio de Zulueta y Besson to the Cineclub Irún accepting to collaborate with them (1960) San Sebastian Festival Archive. [+]
[+]
Letter from underground filmmaker Antoni Padrós to Pilar Olascoaga (1977) San Sebastian Festival Archive. [+]
