Journal of Film Preservation N° 60/61 - FIAF

As I remember it
Einar Lauritzen
Historical Column/Chronique
historique/Columna histórica
Stockholm, May 30, 2000
As far as I know I have become the only still living participant of the
1946 FIAF Congress in Paris, the first one to be held after the war. I
therefore feel it necessary to put down some of my memories from
this historical occasion before it is too late.
Unfortunately the notes I most certainly must have written at the
time have disappeared long ago but some things, which none of
those who have written about this congress seem to have mentioned,
stay very clearly in my memory.
I am particularly thinking of one decision taken at this Congress: to
name the Polish archive Vice-President of FIAF although only a
representation from the Polish Embassy in Paris was present. The
reason behind this decision was really that it had not been possible to
get any confirmation from Moscow that the Soviet Union wished to
become a FIAF Member. Had that been the case, the USSR would
have been voted Vice-President. (at the time the political relations
between the Soviet Union and the Western allies had started to
become frosty.)
So that is how it came to pass that at the next FIAF Congress, in
Copenhagen in 1947, a man from the Polish archive by the name of
Jerzy Toeplitz presented himself as the Federation’s Vice-President. It
is, I believe, no secret that due to her “indisposition” Iris Barry had to
leave most of the leadership of the procedings to Toeplitz. His
knowledge of at least seven languages and ability to quickly find an
acceptable compromise to differences of opinion were already then
appreciated. No wonder then that everyone, including Langlois and
Barry, agreed that here was FIAF’s new President. Langlois’ clever idea
to select Iris Barry as “Présidente Fondatrice” made the choice even
easier. That Toeplitz would stay President of FIAF for 18 years
however nobody could foresee!
46 Journal of Film Preservation / 60/61 / 2000