Project Detail

Her Name Was Moviola

Synopsis

A cinematic love letter to the Moviola film editing machine, led by Academy Award winning editor Walter Murch, detailing how it dominated English-language filmmaking for most of the 20th century.
Invented in 1922, the Moviola remained for a long time the dominant machine for editing film in English-language cinema. Mastering it allowed an editor, in tandem with the director and producer, to create a language and rhythm within a film. Her Name Was Moviola sees Academy Award® -winning sound and film editor Walter Murch working with a team to rebuild a Moviola editing suite to take us through the process of how a film was pieced together. Using two scenes from Mike Leigh’s 2014 drama Mr. Turner – reverse-engineered from digital to 35mm prints – Murch and his collaborators take us through the way the Moviola was employed to bring a multitude on individual shots together into one cohesive narrative. It’s a riveting deep-dive into a process that is key to every form of filmmaking.
Official Selection Sheffield DocFest 2024 - World premiere

Details

Year
2024
Type of project
Features
Running time
70 min
Format
Digital, 4K
Director
Howard Berry 1st Feature
Producer
Howard Berry
Co-Producer
Richard Craske
Editor
Howard Berry
Screenwriter
Walter Murch
Director of Photography
George Nicholls
Sound
Mike Wyeld
Principal cast
Walter Murch, Dan Farrell, Howard Berry, Mike Leigh

Categories

Production Status

Production Company

The Curators! Ltd.

2 Beecroft Lane
Walkern
Herts
SG2 7PE

Page updates

This page was last updated on 12th May 2025. Please let us know if we need to make any amendments or request edit access by clicking below.

See also

You may also be interested in other relevant projects in the database.

Maverick: The Epic Adventures of David Lean Maverick: The Epic Adventures of David Lean

Director: Barnaby Thompson

Year: 2026

An in-depth study of David Lean, the man and his films. David Lean was one of the greatest filmmakers. He redefined what films could be, but his singular vision and tenacious determination to film the impossible earned him a reputation as an obsessive maverick. He was a master of his craft, capable of creating love and beauty on screen, but whose personal life was often troubled, uprooted, and painful. Featuring interviews with contemporary filmmakers including Wes Anderson, Paul Greengrass, Alfonso Cuarón, Celine Song, Brady Corbet, Francis Ford Coppola, Denis Villeneuve, Nia DaCosta, and Joe Wright. Official Selection Cannes Film Festival 2026 - Cannes Classics - World premiere

TCB - The Toni Cade Bambara School of Organizing TCB - The Toni Cade Bambara School of Organizing

Director: Monica Henriquez, Louis J. Massiah

Year: 2025

Structured as a series of classes in cultural organising, this film reconstructs the life of a woman whose literary works and film collaborations became a catalysing force in 20th century political movements. Toni Morrison, Nikky Finney and filmmaker Haile Gerima are among those who testify to Bambara's humour, fierce commitment to collective action and gift for galvanising artists into community work. Official Selection DOC NYC 2025 - World premiere Official SelectionTrue/False Film Festival 2026 Official Selection Hot Docs Canadian International Documentary Film Festival 2026 Official Selection Sheffield DocFest 2026 - European premiere

Life Support Life Support

Director: Daniele Rugo

Year: 2026

A group of international doctors breach the blockade of Gaza. What they find is the calculated dismantling of life itself. Official Selection Sheffield DocFest 2026 - World premiere