Are you interested in learning more about working with physical film, film archiving, and archival research?  In this workshop you will:

—Learn how to handle 16mm celluloid film and operate a projector;

—Learn about the history of Pitt’s film archive and how it may support your own research;

—Learn how you can help document and preserve physical film here at Pitt;

—Learn about how film archives are catalogued;

—View and help catalogue a “grab bag” of uncatalogued films from Pitt’s archive!

 

Working in archives with physical film can be a rewarding and illuminating experience, but an increasing emphasis on digital storage and the neglect of physical film has meant that many scholars have never had the opportunity to do so. Many do not even realize that Pitt possesses a voluminous film archive with more than 800 titles spanning narrative, documentary, government, educational, industrial, and newsreel films spanning a multitude of academic disciplines. These films are not only a valuable resource for researchers, but tell the story of how these disciplines have developed over time, and how film has been used in a variety of ways across the 20th century.

Facilitators:

Dr. Katie Bird is a visiting lecturer in Filmmaking and Film & Media Studies at Pitt and has used Pitt’s 16mm collection extensively in her teaching and research.

Adam Hebert is a doctoral candidate in Film and Media Studies at Pitt and has worked in a professional film archive.

John Paul Taylor is a doctoral candidate in Film and Media Studies at Pitt who has conducted extensive research of 16mm films at the National Archives.