This three to four-week course, organized in collaboration with national and regional bodies responsible for photographic, audiovisual, and film archives, provides an overview of issues related to the preservation and access of sound and image materials such as photographs, film, videotape, audiotape, and digital materials.

It discusses the value, meaning, selection, and use of sound and image collections in various institutional contexts, exploring the potential of sound and image media in transmitting knowledge and cultural traditions. Initial sessions focus on the identification of various formats including playback equipment, the life expectancy of media, and ways of detecting deterioration. Additional course topics include: current knowledge and practices for documenting and cataloguing; media handling and storage; risk assessment of collections; emergency preparedness and response; criteria and technologies for migration and reformatting; planning preservation projects; outsourcing options; and digital preservation and management. Other issues such as curating and access, copyright law, legal deposit, and institutional and national preservation policies, are discussed in the context of participants’ working realities. Adaptation to technological changes and related cost-effective preservation strategies form a key component of the course.

updated on: 16 July, 2012