Alain Resnais
Alain Resnais (1922-2014) has been recognized as one of the leading post-World War II artists of French cinema. He rose to prominence in the mid-1950s with the release of his powerful documentary, NIGHT AND FOG (1955), which provided an unprecedented look at the Nazi concentration camps and drew on his early training as an editor, combining newly-filmed color footage with documentary footage taken inside the camps. As a member of the “Left Bank” school of filmmakers and writers, which included Chris Marker, Marguerite Duras and Alain Robbe-Grillet, Resnais emerged as a key figure in the French New Wave movement of the 1950s.
Among his most highly regarded films from this period are HIROSHIMA MON AMOUR (1959), LAST YEAR AT MARIENBAD (1962), and MURIEL (1963). While the work of his contemporaries such as Francois Truffaut and Jean-Luc Godard was characterized by revolutionary cinematic technique, Resnais experimented with Modernist narrative structures, achieved in collaboration with writers such as Duras and Robbe-Grillet. In 2009, Resnais received the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Cannes Film Festival.
OVID is proud to present four of his newly restored early short films, plus FAR FROM VIETNAM (1967).
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All the World's Memory
Directed by Alain Resnais • Documentary • 1956 • 21 minutes
This recently restored early short by French New Wave director Alain Resnais (perhaps best known for Hiroshima Mon Amour), pays homage to the National Library of France. For centuries, the library has served as a repository for all the ...
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Far from Vietnam
Directed by Jean-Luc Godard, Joris Ivens, William Klein, Claude Lelouch, Chris Marker, and Alain Resnais • Documentary • 1967 • 115 minutes
Initiated and edited by Chris Marker, FAR FROM VIETNAM is an epic 1967 collaboration between cinema greats Jean-Luc Godard, Joris Ivens, William Klein, Clau...
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Guernica
Directed by Alain Resnais and Robert Hessens • Documentary • 1949 • 14 minutes
In 1937, Spanish nationalists called on Nazi and Italian Fascist forces to bomb the Basque town of Guernica. The horrors of the bombing led Pablo Picasso to create perhaps his greatest work, “Guernica”: a massive pain...
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Paul Gauguin
Directed by Alain Resnais • Documentary • 1949 • 13 minutes
PAUL GAUGUIN uses the artist’s own writings and artwork to trace his creative journey. The film begins with Gauguin losing his job in finance—the catalyst for his commitment to paint every day—and continues through to his final days in ...
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The Song of Styrene (Le chant du styrène)
Directed by Alain Resnais • Documentary • 1957 • 13 minutes
Recently restored and digitized in 2K!
THE SONG OF STYRENE is the perfect example of how to turn a commissioned industrial film into a lyrical, satirical film masterpiece. When the young Alain Resnais was asked by the Péchiney plastics...
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Van Gogh
Directed by Alain Resnais • Documentary • 1948 • 18 minutes
Classic French New Wave director Alain Resnais’ early film, VAN GOGH won an Oscar for best short documentary film. Recently restored, this 1948 boundary-pushing short brilliantly evokes the life of Vincent Van Gogh, using only his paint...
