NFSA blog entries in Trends and challenges

NFSA Manager, National Media Miguel Gonzalez discovered an article written by Ken G Hall in 1950, about the future of television. The legendary Australian filmmaker was right about most of his predictions!

Film curator Kathrin di Rocco is taking part in an exchange program with George Eastman House in Rochester, New York.

Audiovisual Conservation Assistant Kerry Yates recently attended a workshop in New Zealand on Collection Emergency Management in Large-Scale Disasters.

Conservator Shingo Ishikawa and Audiovisual Conservation Assistant Kerry Yates recently attended a series of workshops run by Sylvie Penichon, from the Amon Carter Museum of American Art in Fort Worth, Texas.

Graham Shirley reports from the recent Film and History Association of Australia and New Zealand conference in Melbourne.

Senior curator Matthew Davies reports from the 43rd annual conference of IASA – the International Association of Sound and Audiovisual Archives – in New Delhi, India.

Rod Butler reports from UNESCO’s The Memory of the World conference in Vancouver on digital preservation projects from countries including Austria, Latvia, Singapore and the USA.

Rod Butler meets the man who invented the internet and grapples with the latest developments in preservation at UNESCO’s The Memory of the World conference.

NFSA’s Head of Preservation and Technical Services, Rod Butler, reports from the International Council on Archives Congress in Brisbane.

NFSA CEO Michael Loebenstein reports from day three of the International Council on Archives Congress in Brisbane.

NFSA CEO Michael Loebenstein reports from the International Council on Archives Congress in Brisbane.

The NFSA ventured to sunny Cairns for the 2012 Queensland Education, Science and Technology Network (QUESTnet) conference.

Get your own personal guided tour of filming and recording locations for classic Australian film, television, newsreels, music and radio, using 'near me’ on ASO mobile.

The NFSA congratulates the Australian Children’s Television Foundation on its 30th birthday, 16 March 2012.

Audiences loved The Artist, that ode to the early days of cinema, but as Kodak files for bankruptcy, has film lost the battle against digital?

NFSA conservator Shingo Ishikawa explores some of the ethical dilemmas that his profession is grappling with to remain relevant. Finding ways to preserve the non-physical elements surrounding physical objects is one example of a key challenge facing conservators.

Nominees have been announced for the inaugural AACTA Awards – formerly known as the AFI Awards.

To celebrate the life of Ken Russell, Vincent Plush reveals a little-known connection between the late British director and Australia – the failed film adaptation of Voss.

Brendan Fletcher’s feature won the 2011 NFSA IF Award for Independent Spirit. Miguel Gonzalez spoke with this 'mad’ director/producer.

Digital technology has, for decades, been elbowing its way onto the set and changing the way films get made. Film journalist Sandy George discussed its impact with those who roll up their sleeves and do the hard behind-the-scenes slog of filmmaking.

NFSA Librarian Jan Thurling takes a look at the local film critic scene – from Australia’s very first review, to the new generation of critics.

Much-loved Australian film critic John Hinde would have turned 100 today. NFSA Library manager Jan Thurling celebrates the radio and TV personality on his anniversary.

With some big celebrations in Australian film criticism happening this week, Jan Thurling, manager of the NFSA Library, reflects on the changing role of critics.

Sandy George looks at the 'furphy’ that Australians don’t like Australian films and breaks down some data on who watches what and how films are consumed by audiences in Australia.

Sandy George asks, how can Australian films and their limited promotional budgets compete with Hollywood’s marketing machine?

The Adelaide Film Festival team headed by Katrina Sedgwick moved to their new home at the Adelaide Studios today. Film journalist Sandy George takes a moment to look at the healthy impact of the AFF – as well as its Melbourne counterpart – on Australian film and documentary production.

NFSA manager for Education and Touring Programs Brendan Smith reports from the QUESTNet Conference in Queensland.

The NFSA was on hand at the 2011 St Kilda Film Festival to present the Audience Award for the SoundKilda Australian Music Video Competition.

Clare Stewart has been director of the Sydney Film Festival since 2006. Miguel Gonzalez speaks with her about the role of the 58-year-old festival.

The Young at Heart Film Festival is about engagement and involvement in film and is targeted at audiences over 60. It is held annually in March during NSW Seniors’ Week.

When most people think of Clare Valley, their minds immediately turn to wine. But amidst the undulating rows of grapevines is one of Australia’s most exciting new short film festivals.

Modern film formats pose problems in data storage capacities, here Dominic Case talks about some of the formats and why a full definition cinema quality digital film would not even come close to fitting onto your biggest home hard drive — Peta bytes anyone?

Recently the Audiovisual Conservation Laboratory (AVCO) needed to prepare some original Lumiere company films for reprinting. The work proved quite challenging for a several reasons, audiovisual conservationist Sean Mosely takes us through the process.

Grant Scicluna wins the inaugural Orlando Short Film Award for his short film Neon Skin. Grant tells us what he’s been up to, and gives us an insight into the world of short film making on the streets of Melbourne

Australia’s earliest surviving sound-on-film films is of the Duke of York, soon to be King George VI, not speaking…

The switchover to digital technology in sound recording and television has been relatively smooth with, and certainly has avoided much of the angst that has surrounded the introduction of digital technology in filmmaking.

The National Film and Sound Archive extends its congratulations to the following appointments as Members of the Order of Australia in the Australia Day 2011 Honours List.

Special glasses, expensive televisions – there is no way that 3D technology will last. Or will it?

Nearly a decade after the first digital projectors were installed to screen Star Wars Episode 2, the change to digital is gathering speed very rapidly indeed. Film archives around the world have developed expertise in preserving film so the question now is how will these prints will be screened in the future?

In offering my congratulations to the Sydney: City of Film management committee for their successful bid, I would also like to reflect for a moment on why Sydney so richly deserves this honour.

Imagine a home movie of a landmark event filmed by someone who died many years ago. Or a wonderfully ornate glass slide, such as those featured in our song slides exhibition, where the illustrator cannot be identified. And the breakthrough recording of a well-known recording artist where, despite extensive research, no-one knows who actually made it.

It is the era of unbundled content. The middleman is being cut out of the negotiations and TVs are being sold with a broadband cable. Welcome TV 2.0. The Screen Producers Association of Australia conference presented an exciting yet highly competitive outlook for film and TV producers in Sydney last week.

Broadcasting breaking news of the assassination of President John F Kennedy was a first for any Australian television network. The late Victorian broadcaster, journalist and author Michael Schildberger recognised early in his career the role that TV could play in reporting news and events as they unfolded, at a time when it took three to four days for the 16mm images of overseas events to arrive in Australia.

Warren Fahey AM, founder of Larrikin Records, provides a personal perspective on the NFSA’s recent Thomas Rome Lecture given by Ed St John.

Ed St John’s talk for the 2010 Thomas Rome lecture was illuminating and peppered with flashing warning signs. Music is a very resilient little devil but the record industry, or at least its traditional sound carrier systems, appear to be at death’s door.

One of the CDs we picked up from this year’s National Folk Festival was from a Sydney based trio The Lurkers. They play what they describe as 'subversive homespun bluegrass’.