The analog Cinema: 8 | 16 | 35 HoF Classics on Film

The combination of numbers 8 I 16 I 35 makes the heart of every cinema fan beat to unattainable heights. We hear the rattling of the projectors in the movie theatre and perhaps remember the one or other film break. Most of the time it only took a few minutes to get back to continue, because the projectionists had to glue the film in a flash.

And what a logistical effort it was to send the film prints around the world. This was accompanied by anxiety that the right title was in the box, that the print didn‘t get stuck in customs or sometimes simply disappeared, but hopefully arrived intact in Hof.

The analog cinema world requires the utmost concentration and technical skill from everyone involved. A fascinating world that is steadily disappearing. Let‘s take a bow to the art of projection and cinema with our 8 I 16 I 35 HoF Classics on Film series.

Let‘s go back early in festival history, where avant-garde in film was a must. Werner Herzog has been with the Hof Film Festival since the beginning. In 1971 he presented his FATA MORGANA with images as if not from this world. More down-to-earth was the legendary soccer match, where Herzog again excelled as top scorer in the FC Hofer Filmtage team.

NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD still shocked audiences almost 10 years after it was made. George A. Romero was at the Central Kino Hof to witness the reactions of the audience. Those who left the auditorium prematurely, pale as corpses, were dismissed into the night with a pat on the back from Romero and the reassuring words „It‘s just a movie.“

Filmmaker Barbara Albert has been a recurring presence at the Film Festival since 1996. NORTHERN SKIRTS (1999) is her feature film debut. The film was the first Austrian film in competition at the Venice International Film Festival since 1948 (Golden Lion for Nina Proll). At the 33rd Hof Film Festival, the enthusiastic audience celebrates the German premiere. In 2013, Albert receives the The Award of the City of Hof.

The then 28-year-old Cary Joji Fukunaga is with his first long feature film SIN NOMBRE "A highlight" (SZ) at the 43rd Hof Film Festival. Back then, wearing a parka and jeans, he certainly moved rather inconspicuously amidst the Filmtage hustle and bustle. But it was clear that another career started here. Many great films followed. In 2021 he was the director of JAMES BOND 007: NO TIME TO DIE.