(Leandro Listorti, Argentina 2022, 83 min., DCP, Spanish with English subtitles)
Argentinian filmmaker and programmer Leandro Listorti offers a contemplation on the parallels between extinct plant life and lost film. An herbarium is an archived collection of preserved plant specimens, involving plants pressed flat, dried, and mounted for future study and research. In the film, Listorti draws comparisons between herbaria and film archives, which are collecting, conserving, and, in best conditions, restoring the images stored there. Featuring footage from both the Buenos Aires Botanical Garden and the Museo del Cine, Listorti follows professionals at both institutions as they attempt to identify, catalog, and preserve Argentina’s history, natural and cinematic. The film takes a poetic turn as Listorti considers the future of both, and the work necessary to achieving these goals.