Details on a three-month exhibition timed to mark the 40th anniversary of the death of Orson Welles have been released by Cinematheque francaise in Paris.
My Name is Orson Welles , which runs October 8, 2025 through January 11, 2026, will feature several prominent guests including longtime collaborator Oja Kodar (to be confirmed), noted Welles scholar and film historian Esteve Riambau Möller, Stefan Droessler of Munich Stadtmuseum, and authors Simon Callow and François Thomas.
The exhibition is curated by Frédéric Bonnaud, director general of the Cinémathèque française with Riambau and Thomas are serving as advisors. A catalogue, reportedly 600 pages and containing new papers, will be published by Les Éditions de la Table Ronde.
Organizers are promising the screening of feature films (some offered in different edits), unfinished films (Don Quixote, The Deep), television projects(Filming Othello, Around the World With Orson Welles), movies featuring Welles as an actor (The Third Man), documentaries about Welles’ career and special showings of various rarities.
Numerous meetings and conferences are planned over the three months.
Additional details may be found online at https://www.cinematheque.fr/my-name-is-orson-welles.html
Welles’ work has long been lauded by French cinephiles.
Portions of some his films were shot in France including The Trial, F for Fake, Filming Othello and The Other Side of the Wind. His Othello and Chimes at Midnight took high honors at France’s Cannes Film Festival.
In February 1982, Welles was invited to Paris to be decorated with the Legion of Honor by President François Mitterrand, and to preside over the César Awards ceremony. While in Paris, he spoke to an audience composed mainly of young film lovers. Footage of his appearance can be seen at youtu.be/oCD1_niFIgc?si=4QD79pZA7h6ed3wu
Welles died on October 10, 1985 at the age of 70.
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