Archive

The regional film archive celebrates our past and is a valuable resource.


Screen Archive South East and Wessex Sound and Film Archive are Screen South’s partners and receive funding to manage access to the region’s film heritage.

Screen Archive South East

new online database at www.brighton.ac.uk/screensearch


Collection

Screen Archive South East (SASE), part of the University of Brighton, recently replaced South East Film and Video Archive (SEFVA), which was established in 1992 to collect and provide access to film, video and digital media produced in Brighton and Hove, East Sussex, West Sussex, Medway, Kent and Surrey. The SASE collection consists of over 5000 items - a diverse range of material including newsreels, family footage, feature films and amateur productions depicting various aspects of daily life, work and creativity.

Access

SASE is committed to providing free public access to the collection for educational, heritage and community use. This includes students, teachers, academic researchers, museums, record offices, libraries, societies and others with an interest in the archive’s collection. SASE also encourages artists, filmmakers and musicians to use the archive in the creation of new work.

Archive staff can perform searches, or can arrange appointments to research and view archive material at our Brighton office. Requests for footage need to include a description of the intended use.

Education, Research & Outreach

SASE offers a variety of educational and research services including presentations, curatorial and programming advice, video compilations and entertaining school initiatives. SASE is involved in a range of undergraduate and postgraduate degrees at the University of Brighton and is a partner in the AHRB Centre for British Film & Television Studies.

Selections of SASE material can also be found at: Brighton Museum & Art Gallery, the Brighton History Centre at Brighton Museum, Brighton Fishing Museum, Hove Museum & Art Gallery, The Centre for Kentish Studies (Maidstone), University of Kent Library, Surrey History Centre (Woking), and Elmbridge Museum.

Services to Depositors

SASE’s preservation programme includes inspection, conservation and the transfer of material for preservation and viewing. Owners of film are encouraged to deposit film on a long-term basis to ensure its on-going preservation for the future. Depositors are provided with video copies and their wishes and copyright is respected.

SASE is looking for film of all gauges, video and digital media made in or of the region, apparatus related to the history of projection: magic lanterns and slides, film and video cameras, projectors and instruction manuals.

SASE is a not-for-profit organisation in the public sector and is supported by Screen South, Brighton & Hove City Council, East Sussex County Council, West Sussex County Council, Kent County Council, Surrey County Council, University of Brighton, University of Kent. Its patron is the Rt Hon the Lord Brabourne

Screen Archive South East
University of Brighton
Grand Parade
Brighton,
BN2 0JY
W: www.brighton.ac.uk/screenarchive
E: screenarchive@brighton.ac.uk
T: 01273 643213
F: 01273 643214





Wessex Film & Sound Archive

Collection

Wessex Film and Sound Archive (WFSA) was set up in 1988 to acquire, preserve and make accessible cinefilm, video and sound recordings of local interest. The Archive is based in Hampshire Record Office but, because of its specialist nature covers Central Southern England, including the surrounding counties of Berkshire and the Isle of Wight as well as Hampshire. WFSA has substantial holdings of some 18,000 items comprising professional and newsreel film, amateur film, research and advertisement films from local companies, local radio tapes, oral history recordings, and gramophone discs and tapes.

Access

Customers are welcome to visit the Archive to view or listen to copies of material. A computerised catalogue can be consulted in the search room and staff help is available. There is also an 85 seat cinema for group viewing and listening. Copies of items held can be made in some cases, where they are out of copyright or by permission of the owners.

Education, Research & Outreach

Illustrated talks are occasionally given by the Archivist, either at the Archive cinema, or elsewhere. Displays and exhibitions can also be arranged. Copies of material in the Archive is used in local museums, libraries, in reminiscence work with the elderly, by local groups and in the preparation of educational packages. Broadcasters and video producers also make extensive use of holdings. Advice, talks, seminars and short courses are offered to those involved in oral history and local video projects.

Services to Depositors

Material can be accepted either as a gift securing its public availability for all time or on deposit, with the depositor retaining legal ownership. A further option may be for the Archive to take a copy, the owner retaining the original.

Films are stored in temperature and humidity controlled strong rooms protected by fire and intruder alarms. The process involves cleaning, repair, provision of improved containers, and protection copying as necessary. Finding aids describing the contents of the material are prepared and where appropriate, video or audio cassette copies are made for the owner.

WFSA is looking for cinefilm, sound recordings, video recordings, equipment and manuals, and tape/slide programmes.

WFSA is a not-for-profit organisation in the public sector and is supported by Hampshire County Council and Screen South

Wessex Film & Sound Archive
Hampshire Record Office
Sussex Street
Winchester
S023 8TH
W: www.hants.gov.uk/record-office/film/index.html
E: david.lee@hants.gov.uk
T: 01962 847742
F: +44 (0)1962 878681



News Items

REEL LIFE: Saturdays in Film and Sound new DVD from the South East Film and Video Archive, Wessex Film and Sound Archive and the British Library

REEL LIFE is a new DVD that provides a fascinating glimpse into Saturday afternoons of the last 100 years through examples of films and sound interviews held in the public archives. All the material is grouped into six themes, covering everything from shopping to skateboarding.

REEL LIFE has been designed to be clear and easy to use for viewers of all ages. Viewers can discover the beauty of Margate and the reality of household chores in the 1920s, share the enjoyment of rollerskaters in the 1930s, learn about the history of parades and the development of surfing in Britain and hear stories of hop-picking in Kent.

Voice-over narration or textual information on screen provides context for some of the films and can also suggest ways of interpreting the content of others.
The commentators range from people who are in the family films, to those who have a special interest or knowledge in the subject.

The DVD programme is more than just a fascinating collection of individual film and sound clips-it aims to bring some of the resources from the archives to wider attention and suggest different ways in which this material can inform us about our social and personal histories.

REEL LIFE was initiated and funded as part of the British Library “Reaching the Regions” Initiative, in partnership with the South East Film and Video Archive and the Wessex Film and Sound Archive and in association with the South East Museum, Library and Archive Council.

Go to www.bton.ac.uk or telephone 01273 643213

Screen South supports SEFVA and WFSA.


Moving History – www.movinghistory.ac.uk

The Moving History web site is an online guide to the United Kingdom’s twelve public sector moving image archives, presenting detailed information on these fascinating and valuable collections, and illustrated with over 100 selected film and television clips. The site also offers guidelines on academic access to these archives, and provides links and contact points for further information.
The site was developed by the South East Film and Video Archive at the University of Brighton, and is a major outcome of several strands of research initiated by the AHRB Centre for British Film and Television Studies.


Moving Image Communications

Moving Image Communications Ltd is a major footage library based in Kent, which has been operational in the field of film footage library services for many years. The collections consist of approximately 16,000 hours of footage covering a wide range of subjects, both archival and contemporary. The library features many documents about Britain from the 1930s to the present day, covering every aspect of the country. Many films are available to view on the online database.
www.milibrary.com