Harvard Film Archive (HFA) in a nutshell

This information comes from the March 26, 2007 RASC meeting. Hayden Guest, curator of the HFA, provided the overview; Sharon Yang, of the Yenching Library, produced the notes.


Brief historical overview: The HFA was founded in 1979 by Robert Gardner and others from the Visual and Environmental Studies (VES) department. It has always been in the Carpenter Center. It began as a study collection, primarily for classroom teaching, and also offered public screenings. The first curator was Vlada Petric, and the second, Bruce Jenkins.

When a consortium of New England libraries which had pooled resources to acquire 16mm films fell apart in the late 1970s, the HFA took over this collection. Over time, the HFA began to acquire a wider range of materials, such as rare and valuable prints, 35mm films, and pre-print materials (e.g. negatives and sound materials). The collection has been roughly inventoried, but until now, never cataloged. That situation is changing (see below).


Holdings: HFA holds about 11,000 prints today. Its strengths are post-war European films and post-war American avant-garde films. Particular strengths include:

• rare Soviet silent films and Eastern European cinema.

• Grove Press collection: films based on works of literature (The corporate papers for Grove Press are held at Syracuse.)

• exhibition prints (many are very rare), pre-print materials, and promotional shorts. For some of these, the HFA has limited rights, but the details remain to be figured out.

• a private collection of vintage prints from the 1930s to the present assembled by Bill Pence, the founder of the Telluride Film Festival. These include some Technicolor prints, which are extremely valuable in preservation work, and European post-war films.

• personal copies donated by directors who worked with the Carpenter Center. These include director’s cuts, outtakes, and pre-print materials.

• personal papers of director Robert Gordon.

Future directions: HFA is trying to create strategies for acquisitions and access. One area of potential collection development is non-fiction and documentary film-making done in the Boston area or by people who have worked at Harvard. As a new division of HCL, HFA is committed to supporting research and teaching at Harvard. Film studies is an area of tremendous growth; American film studies is about to become a Ph.D program at Harvard.

Access:
• visiting researchers can view films on flatbed viewers at 625 Mass. Ave.
• videotransfers may be possible for some materials.
• private screenings at the Carpenter Center can be arranged, if needed.
• films are sometimes used in courses.
• public cinema programs are organized by the HFA.

Cataloging: this is one of the most important current priorities of the HFA. The Film Archives now has a full-time cataloguer who reports to Linda Takata of Fine Arts. The cataloger is creating MARC21 records for every print and these records will be added to the HOLLIS catalog. Hayden pointed out that standards are still being set for film cataloging.

Preservation: this is an equally important priority at HFA, which has, for the first time, secured funding for film preservation projects. Other grant applications are underway. A full-time conservator began in January, and there is an open position for an assistant curator.

The HFA is looking at film-to-film preservation, as digital preservation is too expensive and unstable at this time. The Archive recognizes the need to purchase better projection equipment to reduce damage during screening. Current preservation efforts are focused on early animation and 2 avant-garde films.

Questions and Comments:
• Does HFC distinguish between non-fiction and documentary film making? Yes; non-fiction is the broader category.

• If a student wants to do a film project, do they contact the HFA directly since films are not yet in HOLLIS? Yes – they are working on the website to make the contacts for various services clear. Currently, more inquiries are from other institutions than from individuals.

• Houghton gets requests to use film and requires that users pay to have a viewing/listening copy made. Is there a way to do this that is quicker and less expensive? HFA sometimes charges for access copies, digital masters, etc., when it is for a commercial project. Sometimes there is department or other funding to make copies (e.g. from magnetic tapes).

• The English faculty are considering a possible drama track, for which film would be crucial. Who should be involved in this conversation? There is a Film Studies library in Sever Hall which is growing quickly but not well known. Perhaps there could be a list of interested groups; it would give us opportunities for teaching and learning. HFA would like to be part of a working group, and we should put one together before the department finalizes its plans.

• Media Lab: videos, DVDs, etc. are circulated and used without monitoring. A media lab, perhaps along the lines of UCLA’s lab, which has a central console, would help preserve materials.

• Is there precedent for making access copies for circulation? Yes, at other institutions.

• Besides Robert Gordon’s papers, does HFA hold other materials and is there a reading room? HFA has large poster collections, papers of other directors, and a variety of other materials. There is no reading room, and materials like these are used at the Fine Arts Library. HFA is also talking to Houghton as it considers developing further non-film, but film-related, special collections.