FAUK commissioned report 'Invisible Innovators' launched by UEA
Next meeting? 28th June 2021Film Archives UK (FAUK) brings together archives, archivists, associate organisations and individuals who are interested in and committed to the work and development of the UK’s public sector film archives.
For a taste of the material we hold, why not watch our video showcasing some of the treasures from our collections?
The UEA’s report, ‘Invisible Innovators', making women filmmakers visible across the UK’s Film Archives is now available. It has been commissioned by Film Archives UK to explore the current scale and scope of the holdings of women’s amateur filmmaking within the regional and national film and media archives and to investigate ways of optimising their visibility. 6.3.20
FAUK'S next quarterly meeting will take place via ZOOM on Monday 28th June 2021 2-4pm. Zoom invites will be sent to Members in due course. We hope all our Members and friends are keeping safe and well. For more information about FAUK and membership, please contact administrator@filmarchives.org.uk
I suspect there are very few who missed seeing a veritable feast of footage of VE Day 1945 on their TV, laptop, tablet or phone at some point over the first 10 days of May 2020. The lockdown crisis has, it appears, made more people focus on overcoming adversity and fighting the deadly ‘enemy’ Covid and comparisons made to the same spirit shown during WW2. There is no doubt that moving image archive and testimony to VE Day celebrations showing a nation dancing and singing in the streets, burning the blackout boards and curtains and, for the first time in 6 years, relaxing and realising a better life was round the corner can serve to boost the nation’s mood with a feeling of nostalgia.
TV Productions including C4’s Britain’s Biggest Party and C5’s The Lost Films certainly brought archive film to the fore and featured content from FAUK member archives across the UK. It was the use of archive footage, both professional and amateur, in the Queen’s VE Day Speech 2020 transmitted at 9pm on Friday 8th May 2020 which really got the royal seal of approval with 1 minute 20 seconds of the Queen’s entire 4 minute 10 second broadcast featuring archive footage.
The colour footage shown was shot by my friend’s father and keen amateur filmmaker, Derek Stewart who worked at the time for Kodak and lived in North London. My friend messaged me after the broadcast to say how delighted she was to suddenly see her mother in the crowds (filmed by her father) back in 1945 – she had donated the footage to the Imperial War Museum a short while ago.
As well as providing some wonderful content to broadcasters, FAUK Member archives across the UK produced their own special VE Day tributes featuring many amateur film collections telling personal stories of families and communities across the UK.
London’s Screen Archives:
How London Celebrated VE Day
Screen Archive South East:
War & Peace
North West Film Archive:
VE Day 1945
Yorkshire Film Archive:
They sang and danced all night
VE Day 8th & 9th May 1945 and Thanksgiving Day May 14th 1945
East Anglian Film Archive
VE Day Anniversay – May 1945
Jane Jarvis
FAUK’s Administrator
