Film Heritage on Demand? Curation and Discoverability of “Classic Movies” on Netflix

Abstract

This text examines the phenomenon of the wide-ranging acquisition of archive films into the Netflix library and tries to understand it in terms of the current situation in the VOD market and the perspective of redefining the importance of film heritage in the streaming era. It argues that Netflix’s shift to “classics” is not just part of the company’s general expansion strategy but must be seen in broader context of current VOD market regulations as well as Netflix localization tactics in specific national markets. Most of these films, however, are hidden from the general viewer. Therefore, this study combines analysis of personalization tactics and analysis of curation of “classic movies” to explore how Netflix, with the help of archival films, performs middle-brow cultural taste, and at the same time complicates the relationship between accessibility and discoverability of film heritage online.