Symposium “New Paradigms for Accessing and Curating Audiovisual Collections” – 28-29 September 2023

28-29 September 2023, EPFL Pavilions, Lausanne, Switzerland

 

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⇒Download the full programme with bios and abstracts 
⇒Register for the event (On-site or online)

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This event is part of the Narratives From the Long Tail: Transforming Access to Audiovisual Archives Event Series:

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Overview:

Audiovisual archival contents are gradually transforming into datafied entities. Major drivers for this transformation are: 

  1. The constant growth of audiovisual content 
  2. Maturing computational methods for processing and presenting audiovisual content 
  3. Changes in preference for engaging with audiovisual content from audiences     

These drivers call for not only a digital but a data-driven mindset. They are pushing fundamental changes in traditional practices from preservation, archiving, and reusing and disseminating the ever-growing audiovisual materials. 

In the context of the transformation, accessibility and curation of datafied content require rethinking to unlock meaningfully the complexity and large volume of audiovisual collections. For instance, standard web interfaces often ignore the potential of exploration and features like visual, auditory, and haptic, which are not easily accessible with traditional metadata. Scoping out an upgrade for accessing audiovisual archives can be facilitated via innovative curatorial access and informatics models that can activate new modes of engagement, interaction, and meaning-making. While pushing the boundaries for accessibility, the new interfaces, experiences, and curatorial models also raise technological and conceptual questions about every corner of the archival practice, especially on the preservation end, in the age of data. 

 

Themed talks:

Addressing these challenges, this symposium is stimulated by a growing need for access models for audiovisual collections beyond traditional strategies and the need to reconceptualize curatorial and presentational frameworks and models. It aims to explore the intersection of cutting-edge computational methods and audiovisual archiving through three themed sessions, each designed to cover a specific and unique angle:

  1. A Blurry Boundary: From Archive to Data
    • Examining the transformation of audiovisual archives content into data entities, exploring challenges and opportunities in rethinking preservation and archiving with the diverse choices of technologies available
  2. A New Way of Seeing: Analytics and Curation
    • With the various data out of archival content, experimenting and critically reflecting on the impact of computational methods and analytics in the accessibilities of archives, such as curation, exploration, copyright, and public engagement 
  3. In Progress and Practice: An Institutional Zoom-in
    • Switch the focus to institutions in Switzerland and more, addressing technological and conceptual challenges surrounding audiovisual preservation, management, and application in practice
 
 
Speakers:
  • Prof. Alexandre Alahi, EPFL
  • Prof. Renato Pajarola, University of Zurich
  • Prof. Giovanna Fossati, University of Amsterdam
  • Prof. Sarah Kenderdine, EPFL
  • Prof. Giovanni Colavizza, HEIG-VD, Switzerland
  • Margit Rosen, ZKM Center for Art and Media Karlsruhe
  • Ingrid Mason, National Film and Sound Archive Australia
  • Günther Giovannoni, Swiss National Sound Archives
  • Prof. Jasmijn Van Gorp, Utrecht University
  • Dr. Vera Chiquet, University of Basel
  • Prof. Julia Noordegraaf, University of Amsterdam
  • Anna Schjøtt Hansen, University of Amsterdam
  • Leonard Bouchet, RTS Radio Télévision Suisse
  • Beate Schlichenmaier, Swiss Archive of the Performing Arts
  • Baptiste De Coulon, Swiss Archive of the Performing Arts
  • Katrin Oettli, Swiss Archive of the Performing Arts
  • Dr. Alain Dufaux, EPFL Cultural Heritage & Innovation Center
  • Keir Winesmith, National Film and Sound Archive Australia
  • Adelheid Heftberger, Bundesarchiv – German Federal Archives
  • Prof. Sarah-Mai Dang, Philipps-Universität Marburg
  • Prof. Richard Misek, University of Bergen
  • Irene Haan, Eye Filmmuseum
  • Prof. Christophe Fellay, EDHEA (Ecole de Design et Haute Ecole d’Art)
  • Yasmin Meichtry, International Olympic Committee
  • Johan Oomen, Netherlands Institute for Sound & Vision
  • Brecht Declercq, The International Federation of Television Archives; Radiotelevisione Svizzera
  • Arthur Lezer, French National Audiovisual Institute (INA)

Bringing together more than 25 world-leading scholars in various fields (such as media and cultural studies, digital humanities, archival science, informatics and human-computer interaction), archivists and curators from heritage institutions, as well as domain experts and artists, this symposium will serve as a holistic venue to explore and critically reflect on the affordances and limitations of cutting-edge computational methods and tools for preserving, accessing and utilizing audiovisual materials and to push forward a digital and data-driven mindset for the future of audiovisual collections.

Download the full programme with bios and abstracts (Available soon)

 
 
Visit the Pioneering Laboratory for Experimental Museology:

Aside from the critical discussion on technologies X cultural content, this event invites people to embark on a captivating journey through the cutting-edge Laboratory for Experimental Museology (eM+), where immersive visualisation, cultural data, and state-of-the-art technologies converge. Join our guided tour to explore 8 unique visualisation systems, powerful sonic architectures, and groundbreaking techniques like motion capture and photogrammetry. Witness the transformation of tangible and intangible heritage into stunning ultra-high-resolution experiences. This exclusive opportunity unveils 20 years of research from pioneering laboratories in Sydney and Hong Kong, offering a glimpse into the future of post-cinematic multisensory engagement. As a part of the Swiss National Science Foundation Sinergia Project: Narratives from the long tail, this guided tour will also showcase the latest interactive and embodied exploration interfaces developed for our content partners such as the Eye Filmmuseum and the Radio Télévision Suisse.

 

Special Film Screening:

Why are we still able to watch moving images captured over 125 years ago?

As we move ever further into the digital age, our audiovisual heritage seems to be taken increasingly for granted. However, much of our filmed history and cinema has already been lost forever.

During this symposium, we arranged a special screening of the latest documentary Film, the Living Record of Our Memory, where film archivists, curators, technicians and filmmakers from around the world explain what film preservation is and why it is needed. This documentary put the focus on our protagonists are custodians of film whose work behind the scenes safeguards the survival of motion pictures. It is a task they undertake based on their closely held belief in the artistic and cultural value of the moving image, in tune with a shared mantra that a film might one day transform someone’s life. This documentary is a homage to them all and sheds some light on their critical undertaking.


DIRECTOR & WRITER: INÉS TOHARIA

Film, the Living Record of Our Memory allows a unique and rare approach to the often troubled life story of moving images. Film professionals and film archivists, significant voices that are not usually heard despite their vast knowledge and passion for film, reveal their points of view. Their narrative guides us through the major setbacks, surprises or changes motion pictures have experienced: the evolution of film technology; film’s vulnerability to loss, damage and decay; the creation of film archives and cinematheques; the fragility of digital data; restoration projects; and the growing field of film and digital preservation, which protects and celebrates moving images as cultural heritage.

 

Symposium Programme:

 

9.00 – 9:30    
    Prof. Sarah Kenderdine, EPFL
    Prof. Alexandre Alahi, EPFL
    Prof. Renato Pajarola, University of Zurich
    Prof. Giovanna Fossati, University of Amsterdam
    Welcome and intro to SNF Sinergia Project: Narrative from the long tail

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Session “A Blurry Boundary: From Archive to Data I”

9:30 – 10.00  
    Prof. Giovanni Colavizza, University of Bologna
    Using AI to broaden access to historical archives

10.00 – 10:20
    Margit Rosen, ZKM Center for Art and Media Karlsruhe
    The Future’s Past.The archives of the ZKM | Centre for Art and Media Technology Karlsruhe

10:20 – 10:40
    Ingrid Mason, National Film and Sound Archive of Australia
    Audiovisual Archives for the C21st – Digitisation, Datafication, Computation

10:40 – 11:00  
    Yasmin Meichtry, International OlympicCommittee
    Unlocking Olympic archives: from digitization to data-driven curation

11:00 – 11:20    Q&A

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11:20 – 11:35    Coffee break

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Session “A Blurry Boundary: From Archive to Data II”

11:35 – 11.55 
    Prof. Jasmijn Van Gorp, Utrecht University
    Data Traces: Exploring ‘Locally Inscribed’ ASR-files of Archived Television News

11:55 – 12:15 
    Dr. Vera Chiquet, University of Basel
     Chances and limits of the International Image Interoperability Framework (IIIF) with regard to digital representations of visual artwork

12:15 – 12.35  
    Prof. Julia Noordegraaf, University of Amsterdam
    Anna Schjøtt Hansen, University of Amsterdam
    Media Museums and Participatory Spectatorship: Towards a dialogical engagement with audiovisual heritage

12:35 – 12:55    Q&A

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12:55 – 13:55    Lunch

13:55 – 14:40    Guided tour to EPFL Pavilions Cyber Physical: Architectures in Motion

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Session “In Progress and Practice: An Institutional Zoom-in I”   

14:40 – 15:00
    Léonard Bouchet, RTS Radio Télévision Suisse
    AI in Action: Refining Access to RTS Audiovisual Archives

15:00 – 15:20  
    Beate Schlichenmaier, Swiss Archive of the Performing Arts
    Baptiste De Coulon, Swiss Archive of the Performing Arts
    Katrin Oettli, Swiss Archive of the Performing Arts
    Collecting digital images and sounds to provide access to the history of the performing arts. Feedback from the SAPA Foundation

15:20 – 15:40  
    Dr. Alain Dufaux, EPFL Cultural Heritage & Innovation Center
    Montreux Jazz Digital Project

15:40 – 16:00  
    Keir Winesmith, National Film and Sound Archive of Australia
    Building an Active Archive: The view from the National Film & Sounds Archive of Australia

16:00 – 16:20    Q&A

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16:20 – 18:20    Screening I: Film, the living record of our memory
    Inés Toharia Terán
    In English, Spanish, French, Japanese, Catalan and Arabic with English subtitles

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Session “A New Way of Seeing: Analytics and Curation I”

9:00 – 9:30 
    Adelheid Heftberger, Bundesarchiv – German Federal Archives
    Shifting Cultural Practices – AV-Archives, AI and Access

9:30 – 9:50   
    Dr. Sarah-Mai Dang, Philipps-Universität Marburg
    Visualizing Women’s Impact in Film History. On Metadata in Archival Research Frameworks

9:50 – 10:10  
    Prof. Daniel Chávez Heras, King’s College London
    Creanalytics: moving images between data analytics and media synthesis

10:10 – 10:30    Q&A 

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10:30 – 10:45    Coffee break

10:45 – 11:05    Screening II: A History Of The World According To Getty Images
    Prof. Richard Misek

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Session “A New Way of Seeing: Analytics and Curation II”

11:05 – 11:25 
    Prof. Richard Misek, University of Bergen
     Datafication and assetization

11:25 – 11:45   
    Irene Haan, Eye Filmmuseum
    Visual Search in a Film Collection

11:45 – 12:05
    Prof. Christophe Fellay, EDHEA (Ecole de Design et Haute Ecole d’Art)
    Performing The Archive

12:05 – 12:25   Q&A

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12:25 – 13:25     Lunch

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Session “In Progress and Practice: An Institutional Zoom-in II”

13:25 – 13:45   
    Günther Giovannoni, Swiss National Sound Archives
    Challenges and opportunities in the dissemination of Switzerland’s sound heritage

13:45 – 14:05  
    Johan Oomen, Netherlands Institute for Sound & Vision
    Generous Access to Audiovisual Heritage: From Desktop to Social Virtual Reality

14:05 – 14:25 
    Brecht Declercq, The International Federation of Television Archives; Radiotelevisione Svizzera (RSI)
    The Hourglass Model

14:25 – 14:45
    Arthur Lezer, French National Audiovisual Institute (INA)
    Mining AV archives at INA lab

14:45 – 15:15   Q&A

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15.15 – 15.30     Coffee break

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15:30 – 15:50    Closing words
    Prof. Sarah Kenderdine

15.50 – 17.30     Guided tour to the Laboratory for Experimental Museology, EPFL

17:30 –    Apero & Social on the lake

 

 

Should you have any questions or require further information regarding this symposium, please feel free to reach out to our coordinator Yuchen Yang at [email protected]

 

Sponsored by: