With the excitement of innovations and new directions in African cinema also comes an increased awareness of the significance of its heritage. Reflection on the past lives of storyworlds and the responsibilities of archives is more and more urgent, as pioneers from the 1970s and 1980s pass on and their films are in danger of getting lost. This chapter explores three pioneering North African women filmmakers’ early feminist works and their archival life. It examines Fatma 75 (1976) by Selma Baccar from Tunisia, La nouba des femmes du Mont Chenoua (1978) and La Zerda ou les chants de l’oubli (1981) by the Algerian filmmaker Assia Djebar, and Une porte sur le ciel (1989) by the Moroccan director Farida Benlyazid. The self-reflexive ethos of this chapter reflects the main argument that close personal relationships and professional networks are essential to the success of contemporary restoration projects. In considering these films’ individual and combined stories of archiving and preservation, the chapter explores a way forward for historical research across diverse African screen worlds.