CIPPM’s Claudy Op den Kamp presented at the BFI’s conference ‘Right from the Start: Copyright Data That Works’ on 3 February 2026 – a major gathering addressing copyright challenges facing film archives today.

Held at BFI Southbank, the conference brought together experts from the BFI, National Library of Scotland, German Federal Archives, CREATe/University of Glasgow, and other institutions to tackle practical questions about managing rights information in archive collections.

Op den Kamp presented ‘Opening Pandora’s Box,’ a 14-minute video essay exploring originals and copies in film restoration through the 2008 restoration of Pandora’s Box (1929, G.W. Pabst).

The three-year restoration project, coordinated at Haghefilm Conservation Amsterdam, involved international collaboration between partners in eight countries. With original camera negatives missing, three deteriorated distribution copies became the source materials.

The video examines debates about filmmaker intent versus archival versions and the creation of ‘new originals.’ It raises questions about copyright-data links, copyright duration across different jurisdictions, and country-of-origin rules. With legal considerations initially overlooked in the film’s restoration, the video examines cultural practices surrounding copyright, public domain, and public accessibility.

Drawing on her practical background in film preservation at institutions including the Nederlands Filmmuseum and Haghefilm, Op den Kamp brings unique insight into how copyright questions intersect with the day-to-day work of film restoration.

The conference was supported by the BFI Screen Heritage Fund awarding National Lottery funding.