Boudjemaâ Karèche, born in 1941, is a law graduate from the Faculty of Algiers. Host of the Algerian Cinematheque since 1971, he was appointed director there from 1978 to 2003, succeeding its founder, Ahmed Hocine.

This mecca of culture, debate and freedom, known to film buffs around the world, embraces the history of Algeria. Two private cinemas adjoin the cinema library. In 1995, in the midst of the civil war, bombs devastated them, causing eight deaths and many injured.