Moving Image Preservation in Libraries

Within the confines of special collections in libraries, an established practice of preservation for film and video collections is largely nonexistent. By comparison, the scale of resources needed to achieve meaningful programmatic efforts to preserve them is far greater than the resources libraries have assembled for traditional paper-based preservation. Management of moving image collections requires specialized knowledge and expertise. Consequently, while a mature system of preservation technology and methodology exists in libraries today to achieve the systematic preservation of books and paper-based materials, preservation programs generally have excluded the same provisions to sustain the useable life of moving image materials. With this in mind, this article seeks to articulate the current landscape of film and video preservation in libraries and examine the barriers that have hindered the development of full-fledged preservation programs for them. It is unclear whether traditional library preservation constructs can effectively inform the development of techniques and methodologies appropriate to film and video preservation. Nevertheless, it is perhaps more important, at this point in time, to stimulate and encourage fruitful discussion that will lead to such development.