TBILISI: New York-based distributor Cinema Guild has acquired new 4K restorations of the films of Georgian master Otar Iosseliani for North American theatrical and home-video releases.
The films will debut in the series Otar Iosseliani: Fables of Modern Life, commencing at New York’s Asia Society on 24 – 25 July 2026, before continuing at Metrograph 8 – 23 August 2026.
The series lineup includes: Otar Iosseliani Early Shorts Programme including Akvarel (1958), Sapovnela (1959), April (1962), and Tudzhi (1963); Iosseliani’s debut feature Falling Leaves (1966), winner of Cannes FIPRESCI award; There Once Was a Singing Blackbird (1971); Pastorale (1975), winner of the Berlin FIPRESCI Prize; Favorites of the Moon (1984), shot in France, where Iosseliani moved in 1982, and winner of Venice Special Jury Prize; And Then There Was Light (1989); Chasing Butterflies (1992); and Farewell, Home Sweet Home (1999), winner of the Prix Louis Delluc.
The new 4K restorations of Otar Iosseliani’s first three Georgian feature films (Falling Leaves, There Once Was a Singing Blackbird, and Pastorale) were commissioned by Pastorale Productions, which was founded by Iosselani in France to support the art of auteur cinema and which is now tied to preserving the director’s cinematic legacy.
