Managing the Collection

A collection comprising over 560,000 accessioned audiovisual items is maintained and stored together with associated documentation (posters, photographs, scripts, costumes etc). The screen and sound materials cover all the common formats and gauges including Standard 8mm, Super 8mm, 9mm, 16mm, 35mm, and 70mm film, 2" and 1" videos, Betacam, Betacam SP, digital Betacam, DVD, CD, cassette, reel-to-reel tape etc.

A small collection of equipment is also maintained and used to illustrate the development of film, television and sound recording in Australia.

In order to ensure the preservation of this wide range of material, the Archive employs a number of strategies. These strategies include:

  • Active preservation involves time consuming and costly activities aimed at preserving original material or in making the best copies possible. The majority of this work is conducted by the Archive's professional technical staff in state-of-the-art laboratories.
  • Passive preservation to ensure that all material in the Archive's storage facilities remain in stable conditions. This relies upon proper packaging and storage to assist its long-term survival. Correct packaging and storage inhibits deterioration of collection materials and provides a cost-effective option for preserving major collections. Risk-assessment programs are conducted regularly, where samples of the collection are monitored and tested for signs of deterioration.

Receiving material into the Archive

New material is receipted and acknowledged. Items are examined, cleaned if necessary, and repackaged into archival packaging (polypropylene 'cans' for most film, polypropyleneor acid-free cardboard for audio tape, acid-free sleeves for discs etc).

Information is entered into the Archive's collection management database, MAVIS, for each physical item comprising a title. For example, if there are six cans of 35mm film comprising a title, each can will be separately barcoded, have its condition individually assessed, be appropriately repackaged and its vault location noted in the database. Other information relating to provenance and intellectual description is also captured at this time.

Before film is placed in the vaults it is rewound for storage, placed on a core and tested for vinegar syndrome (a chemical reaction that can cause rapid deterioration in acetate film). Any vinegar-affected film is placed in a cold storage isolation vault to retard chemical reactions and is given priority in assessing its copying status.

Storage conditions

The vast majority of the collection is stored in several facilities located in the Canberra suburb of Mitchell. These are all climate controlled and monitored storage vaults protected by a high level of security. The vaults and their storage conditions comprise:

  • Nitrate film repository: a purpose built nitrate film facility that complies with international standards for the care of nitrate film. Ten individual vaults house nitrate film in environmental conditions maintained at 6C (+/-2 C) and 35% RH (+/-5% RH).
  • Main storage repository: includes four cold rooms with environmental conditions maintained at 6C (+/-2 C) and 35% RH (+/-5% RH), and twelve large cool rooms with environmental conditions maintained at 18C (+/-2 C) and 40% RH (+/-5% RH). These rooms are used to store magnetic material, black and white film and sound recording discs.
  • Documentation and equipment storage: comprises four storage rooms for documentation and two storage areas for vintage equipment where conditions are similar, though slightly more humid in those vaults storing predominantly paper-based materials.
  • Duplicate copies: ie. second and third copies of titles (if held) are stored in a separate facility with environmental conditions maintained at 18C (+/-2 C) and 40% RH (+/-5% RH).

The Archive aims to ensure conditions are maintained within the temperature and relative humidity specifications 90% of the time. On-call technical support is available at all times and with a strict maintenance schedule, this target is a realistic goal.

Access to these facilities is limited to accredited Archive staff who are trained in the handling and management of the collection. These staff undertake periodic stocktakes of particular sections of the collection to detect misshelved items.

These storage facilities have been developed over the last 18 years to a position where they are now world class, offering a safe, secure environment for storage of the full range of audiovisual materials.

If you wish to find out more about the Archive's vaults contact the Manager, Collection Management on (02) 6248 2273 or email: preservation@nfsa.gov.au.