Kevin Costner’s Oscar-winning western dances with Wolves is returning to the big screen in a newly restored 4K extended director’s cut, with a world premiere for the 79th edition of the Locarno Film Festival in Switzerland this August.
Festival organizers unveiled the screening as part of the Histoire du Cinéma program, which celebrates landmark works and major restoration projects from film history.
The nearly four-hour version will be screened on August 7 in Locarno’s famous Piazza Grande, one of the largest open air cinema venues in Europe. According to the festival, the restoration was completed by Zurich laboratory Cinegrele in partnership with the Locarno Heritage Project and international sales company K5 International.
The restored version includes over 30 minutes of additional footage beyond the original theatrical release, providing audiences with the opportunity to experience the film as Costner originally envisioned.
The 1990 epic earned seven Academy Awards, including Best Picture and Best Director, and remains one of the defining Westerns of its era for its portrayal of the relationship between a Union Army officer and the Lakota people.
Festival celebrates the legacy of cinema
dances with Wolves This is just one of the highlights of a program that features restored classics alongside impressive works from around the world.
One of the featured restorations is letter from my village (1975) by Senegalese filmmaker Safi Faye, recognized as the first feature directed by a woman from sub-Saharan Africa to receive commercial distribution.
Restored through the Locarno Heritage Project and the Arsenal FilmInstitute, the film tells the story of a young couple whose hopes for marriage are challenged by drought and the hardships of rural life.
Locarno’s artistic director Giona A. nazaro said Festival Meaningful conversations continue to be created between iconic classics and lesser-known cinematic treasures, while introducing them to future generations in an evolving technological landscape.
Studio Ghibli, Roger Corman also honored
The festival’s Heritage Series also pays tribute to several influential filmmakers.
A special centennial screening will honor legendary producer and director Roger Corman with his final directorial feature, frankenstein unbound (1990), starring John Hurt, Raul Julia, and Bridget Fonda.
Animation fans will also see a tribute to late Studio Ghibli co-founder Isao Takahata. His acclaimed anti-war work grave of fireflies It will be released on August 7 with the introduction of his son Kosuke Takahata. Takahata had previously received the Honorary Leopard of Locarno in 2009.
The program also includes works rediscovered by Swiss experimental filmmaker Isa Hesse-Rabinovitch through the festival’s partnership with the Cinémathèque Suisse. The 79th Locarno Film Festival will run from August 5 to August 15, with the full lineup to be announced on July 9.
