The vast majority of film production up to 1930, as much as eighty percent, was destroyed worldwide forever. Very few at the time were aware of the dramatic loss of film heritage and wanted to save the art of film, the tenth Muse. Jan de Vaal (1922-2001) was one of them. But how do you start a national film museum in a country with such small film production and a condescending attitude toward film culture? Against the current, Jan de Vaal built the Netherlands Film Museum in forty years. From nothing, without film, money, housing or experience. This book recounts the fascinating struggle, arduous but tenacious, for a national film museum by "the Dutch Langlois," by "the genius rag picker. He laid the foundation of the national film collection and today's EYE Film Museum Amsterdam. One of the richest and most unconventional collections in the world, internationally recognized and appreciated. That collection is now worth millions and a part belongs to the UNESCO World Heritage.