(Pro) – Active Archives: Celluloid Remix – Annelies Termeer
Annelies Termeer presents the Celluloid Remix online video contest organized by EYE Film Institute Netherlands and Images for the Future. In this 7 years during project four public archive institutes digitize, save, preserve and share the Dutch audiovisual heritage for the future.
What comes after digitization is the question Termeer answers by presenting the practices of experimenting with new possibilities of digitized commons in the Celluloid Remix contest. For five month contesters were asked to make a remix by reusing the available video content with the theme of modern times. The content made available for the contest is a great part of the 1917 – 1932 silent film collection of the EYE Film Institute. The fact that most movement could be used without audio made the challenge manageable for remixing the motion. Celluloid Remix
Before starting the contest the EYE Film Institute had some challenges of their own to overcome. Mainly copyright and property issues of the material. After the kick off by video artist Eboman as the project ambassador the quality standard was set. Â And the institute launched the different platforms for communication means of a website, motion upload page Blip.tv, Facebook page and different workshops at higher art education institutes of applied science. The results were more than expected, a short list was shown at the Dutch Film Festival and the winner was awarded at the award ceremony at the festival. Movement by Jata Haan
The lessons learned as an archive are for Termeer the use full workshops held as part of the remix project. These were necessary to give the contesters the grip they needed for the project. The EYE Institute learned by this that contest involving user generated content, or user participation are in need of guidance by the instate provided to the participants. This is the first step to an open and free environment of cultural practice and sharing of content and creativity as archive of the commons. The first focus should herewith be on the aim target and communication together with the right timing matched to the audience. For future project this focus will be applied together with the infrastructure of a other archives to create an even larger sharing of the cultural commons by (open) archives.