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Toronto archivists seek home movies for shot at big screen

Last Updated: Wednesday, May 9, 2007 | 11:57 AM ET

Isabella Rossellini supplied home movies to tell the story of her famous father, and filmmakers such as John Waters and Martin Scorsese have incorporated amateur movies in their work.

Now the Toronto International Film Festival Group is giving ordinary families the chance to get their old movies out of that box in the basement and onto the screen.

The TIFF group's Film Reference Library has put out an open call for members of the public to bring home movies to the library for a free inspection.

Then, on International Home Movie Day on Aug. 11, some of the films will be shown during a two-hour curated program.

The library is looking for films that show something about an era or are interesting for any other reason, said Sylvia Frank, director of the TIFF group film library.

After an open call last year, a film made about the boy scouts was chosen by the curators as an important historical record and was shown to the public and preserved. 

"Home movies tend to be a record of the lives for middle-class families," she said in an interview with CBC Arts Online. "But it's interesting what some people made with a home camera."

One Hong Kong man sought a digital copy of a film his father had shot while on a business trip to the U.S.

"It was a kind of outsider's look at the U.S.," Frank said. "But the businessman now has Alzheimer's and his son hopes to use it to help his memory."

The archivists expect old Super 8, 8 mm and 16 mm film — and some people may just be curious to see the old images of themselves as children.

Preserving film

The film library can transfer them to a digital file, but that is not a good long-term solution to preserving the film.

"People don't know how to handle home movies any more," Frank said. "Part of what we hope to do is present to people how to preserve home film."

Film will maintain its quality over a long time if it is covered and kept in dry conditions at constant temperature, she said.

And for those who no longer have a suitable projector, a digital copy will give an opportunity to see the old footage.

The archivists behind International Home Movie Day started the project five years ago to try to draw attention to the historic importance of amateur film.

In the U.S., a group of film librarians hopes to start a collection of home movies.

When its new Toronto headquarters is completed the TIFF group library also will be looking at preserving selected home films, especially films associated with now prominent filmmakers, Frank said.

The TIFF film reference library will be open to evaluate movies from the public from May 15 to July 20.
 

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