Optimum Releasing is taking over management of StudioCanal’s British Library Archive, including early Hitchcock films, as part of a series of initiatives aimed at protecting British film heritage.

The company will now be responsible for all clip sales and merchandising of the library, which also includes titles such as The Third Man, The Ladykillers and The Dambusters.

The initiatives, announced in conjunction with Pinewood Studios, will also include restoring a number of classic films, starting with children’s titles Michael Powell’s Peeping Tom, Kind Hearts and Coronets by Robert Hamer and Lionel Jeffries’ The Railway Children. The films will be re-released theatrically and available on Blu-ray/ DVD after it has been completed.

Pinewood will also house the Canal+ Image UK library assets, including building to new storage facilities at the studio, which are expected to be completely early next year. Ivan Dunleavy, the CEO of the studio, said: “The importance of these titles to the nation and worldwide heritage cannot be under estimated.”

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