Fairy Princess (1956)

Restored to its original glory by the National Film Preservation Foundation back in 2005, this little Christmas film is one of our holiday favorites. Margaret Conneely (Chicago amateur filmmaker & CFA Collection namesake) frames stop-motion animation and trick photography with live action footage to fuel her very own Christmas fairy tale. FAIRY PRINCESS (1956) was Margaret Conneely's most successful amateur film, winning a slew of local awards, and being named one of the Photographic Society of America's 'Ten Best films of 1956.' Conneely's film was also awarded the PSA's 'Harris B. Tuttle Trophy'; named after Eastman Kodak's innovator of the 16mm format, this trophy was awarded annually for the best amateur storytelling film on a family theme. - Chicago Film Archives