Irish Film Institute -Digital Preservation and Access Strategy

Digital Preservation and Access Strategy

IFI Press Release: 16th June 2015
 
New strategy from the IFI Irish Film Archive tackles the urgent challenge of preservation in a digital age
 
The IFI Irish Film Archive today publishes a new Digital Preservation & Access Strategy that outlines its response to the challenges and opportunities of archiving vast quantities of moving image material in a digital environment. Over the last five years moving image production and distribution has changed from being almost entirely analogue to being predominantly digital; as the guardian of the national moving image collection the IFI Irish Film Archive is faced with the challenge of collecting, cataloguing, preserving and giving access to these digital collections for the benefit of current and future generations.
 
Kasandra O’Connell, Head of the IFI Irish Film Archive said ‘This crucial document is the result of several years of intensive research by the Archive team and outlines a long-term plan and a set of guiding principles, flexibility, scalability and sustainability, which will  assist us in preserving and providing access to Ireland’s digital moving image material. We have already made significant progress on our digital path, throughout 2014 the IFI Irish Film Archive installed core digital infrastructure, which includes a fibre-optic network, high volume digital storage and an upgrade of the Archive’s digital restoration capabilities. This has radically improved our ability to care for and provide access to our expanding digital collections.”
 
Raelene Casey, Digital Collections and Access Manager , and Anja Mahler, Digital Collections Management Officer will be presenting a paper, Future Proof: The Transition to Digital at the IFI, at the first Annual Conference on Digital Preservation for the Arts, Social Sciences and Humanities (DPASSH 2015) which runs at Croke Park Conference Centre on 25th & 26th June. This paper outlines the process and methodology involved in developing the Archive’s digital strategy and policies to ensure the long term preservation and management of high resolution digital film and broadcast assets and associated metadata.
 
To download the Digital Preservation & Access Strategy from the IFI website click HERE. To find out more about the IFI Irish Film Archive visit www.ifi.ie/archive
  
Notes for Editors:
 
More about the IFI Irish Film Archive
As part of the Irish Film Institute, the IFI Irish Film Archive acquires, preserves and makes accessible Ireland’s moving image heritage. Since 1992 over 500 individuals or organisations have deposited material with the archive for preservation and the collection has grown to approx. 30,000 cans that are held in custombuilt, climate-controlled vaults, designed for the long-term storage of archival materials.
 
The IFI Irish Film Archive collections reflect the many facets of indigenous film production from 1897 to the present day. They are a visual document of Ireland’s past and present, chronicling the development of modern Ireland in a uniquely accessible manner.
 
The IFI Irish Film Archive collects moving image material made in or about Ireland, or considered to have a significant Irish theme. The Archive has a non-purchase acquisition policy and so relies on the donation of material by those eager to see films preserved and centralised in a national moving image archive.  Material is accepted from private sources, production companies and professional bodies; recent indigenous production is deposited via the Broadcasting Authority of Ireland and the Irish Film Board.
 
The Archive’s paper collection holds nearly 20, 000 documents and provides contextual information on the history of Irish film. The collection includes stills, scripts, screenplays, posters, correspondence, media clippings, storyboards and a variety of other material related to Irish cinema. Notable donations include papers from the Irish directors Neil Jordan and Pat Murphy, the producer Lord Killanin, set designer Josie MacAvin and the Horgan Picture Theatre, Co. Cork.
 
The Tiernan MacBride Library houses a collection of nearly 3,000 books on Irish and international film, as well as an extensive collection of film-related periodicals.
 
The IFI ensures that this rich resource is available shared with the public in as many ways as possible – from making material available for filmmakers and researchers, public screenings and events in Dublin, nationally through IFI National and internationally through IFI International (which is supported by Culture Ireland), to DVD releases of key titles from the Archive. This national film collection provides a wealth of material for anyone interested in Ireland’s moving image heritage; academics, students, teachers, filmmakers, researchers and film enthusiasts are all welcome to avail of the IFI Irish film Archive’s viewing facilities and consult the reference collections.
 
For more information, high-res imagery and interview requests with our Archivists please contact Patrick Stewart at the IFI Press Office on pstewart@irishfilm.ie or 01 679 5744.
 
The IFI acknowledges the financial support of the Arts Council.
 
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