Archiving visual effects: Filling a digital void in the documented memory of film and television

  • Evanthia Samaras University of Technology Sydney
DOI: https://doi.org/10.37683/asa.v50.10417
Keywords: Archives, Film, Special effects, Television, Visual effects

Abstract

Digital visual effects emerged onto cinema screens during the mid-20th century and have now become an essential feature of contemporary film and television production. Notwithstanding the rise and prominence of visual effects in the telecinematic discourse as a key visual storytelling tool, there is currently a visual effects gap in audiovisual archival collections, and a digital void in the documented memory of film and television. Why are there no visual effects records in our moving image archives?

This reflection will explore the above question by sharing some findings from my doctoral research about records and archiving in the global film and television visual effects industry.

Author Biography

Evanthia Samaras, University of Technology Sydney

Dr Evanthia Samaras is a practitioner-researcher specialising in information management, archiving, digital preservation and media production. She presently works in the Information Governance Services group at the University of Melbourne and previously held positions at the National Archives of Australia, Public Record Office Victoria and Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Evanthia completed her PhD in 2021 at the University of Technology Sydney's Animal Logic Academy.

Published
2022-12-15
How to Cite
Samaras E. (2022) “Archiving visual effects: Filling a digital void in the documented memory of film and television”, Archives & Manuscripts, 50(2). doi: 10.37683/asa.v50.10417.
Issue
Vol 50 No 2 (2022): Issue in progress
Section
Reflection articles

Copyright (c) 2022 Evanthia Samaras

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