IF I COULD SHAPE THE WORLD:
Visions of Future Cooperation

Presented by the
Society of Film and Video Archivists (SOFIA)

Kuala Lumpur
20 April 1999

Background

The Society of Film and Video Archivists, a professional association of a-v archivists based in Manila, Philippines, was organized in 1993 following a felt need for the practitioners to work more cohesively as a group. The Philippine situation is such that it does not have a national archives, much less a national film archives where the preservation efforts can be more focused. Various government and private organizations have undertaken tasks to preserve their respective audiovisual collections. The practitioners have soon discovered that working co-operatively as a group armed with a collective experience of working in both public and private sectors the cause of preserving the audiovisual heritage. The film and TV industries as well as government agencies concerned with film and TV have given unqualified support in terms of funds and other resources to enable the Society to carry on a-v archives, WITH GREATER VISIBILITY. To date the Society has been tasked with laying the groundwork for a national audiovisual archives facility. Its current work consists of:

• Finding temporary "homes" for important/unwanted films
• Providing technical advice and expertise in film restoration
• Drafting a-v archives policies to serve as guidelines for government and industry sectors
• Promoting high heritage Filipino film productions in commercial theaters and now on television (through sponsorship)
• Conducting research and drafting proposals towards a Filipino national audiovisual archive

"If I could shape the world …"

SOFIA would like to see the Southeast Asia and Pacific region as the FOCUS OF AN EMERGING AUDIOVISUAL ARCHIVING MOVEMENT. We envision a change in the way we work, in exploring many possible ways of working together. We see this as feasible because of commonality in our cultures, our histories, and the general climatic conditions under which we live in. On the down side, we are confronted with:

• The hostile humidity levels, but seek to know how the a-v archives in the region address this problem;
• Coping with relatively large industry output and equally large market for film and TV;
• Dealing with relative lack of the sense of urgency to preserve the audiovisual heritage;
• Dealing with the seeming lack of awareness or concern of government and industry sectors;
• Relatively little inter-action with other practitioners in the collecting disciplines.

Hostile humidity levels

Working under very humid conditions, for example, makes audiovisual material more vulnerable to an earlier manifestation of vinegar syndrome. The continuing work of archivists in SEAPAVAA should be made more public, its findings and recommendations more accessible. More effective and perhaps more economical methods to address vinegar syndrome is always important especially to a-v archives in SEAPAVAA. Alternatives to expensive (even if necessary) means to regulate temperature and humidity in storage facilities are other areas where cooperative work in SEAPAVAA can be made a priority.

Large industry output and a large market

The a-v industry outputs of SEAPAVAA-member countries are significantly large; its audience is commensurate to its output regardless of imported productions coming their way. The market for heritage material begins at home. Promoting heritage material is best served on home grounds. As a region, the similarities of culture, and sometimes language, increases the market potential of old (heritage) productions.

Lacking the sense of urgency to preserve the heritage

Perhaps it is because of the countries’ being politically "young" that the systematic preservation of their cultural heritage is not getting the attention required vis-à-vis other national priorities. It is ironic that much of Southeast Asia and the Pacific is rich in traditional culture. Audiovisual archiving must have its niche or its place. The archivists’ challenge is to find this niche and sustain the work of preservation. A-V archiving may be an issue from which to develop "a political will."

Lack of awareness or concern by government and industry sectors

The work of audiovisual archiving is best supported by these two sectors and it is again the a-v archivists’ challenge to continuously convince them of the gains of preservation. It might help to talk their language of cost effectiveness and long-term benefits in addition to appealing to their sense of history (or lack of it) or sense of loss.

Coordinated efforts with practitioners in the collecting disciplines

Being able to work with librarians, museum curators, and archivists of traditional material strengthens the over-all cause for preserving the heritage. A-V archivists should try to find time for coordinated work with their colleagues in other fields.

Undoubtedly, we anticipate that our efforts continue to be an uphill struggle, particularly now that the national / regional economies are sorely depressed. However, if we look at what has been accomplished as recently as this decade, we believe we can safely say that we have advanced. We believe that we have offered the best arguments for long-term investments in a-v archives. However, it is still true that preservation is among those in competition for priority. SOFIA enjoins SEAPAVAA to study the best ways to strategize implementation of what may look like expensive restoration projects or building of storage facilities. SOFIA believes that it is a smaller price to pay than to have lost the audiovisual heritage altogether.

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