Heritage Film Research Articles

Cultural Characteristics of Female Hero Images in Intangible Cultural Heritage Films

In Chinese films with intangible cultural heritage themes, female images are an indispensable presence. Particularly, several renowned female hero figures derived from folklore literature, such as Liu Sanjie, Ashima, and Hua Mulan, stand out as symbols of both traditional Chinese heroines and the cultural zeitgeist. This paper utilizes Roland Barthes' semiotic theory to analyze the characteristics of these three representative intangible cultural heritage-themed folk literature films. By employing text analysis methods, it examines the elements of costume, dialogue, setting, and plot in these films. These symbolic elements elucidate the development of female characters and cultural transformations, revealing how traditional culture is represented and transmitted in modern media. The paper also explores the crucial role and value of women in the preservation and inheritance of intangible cultural heritage, offering suggestions for better shaping the images of female heroes in intangible cultural heritage-themed films.

‘The Happy Valley’: Temporalized Spatiality in Michael Radford’s White Mischief (1987)

ABSTRACT Contemporary times mark a fundamental shift in our sense and experience of the world. The postmodern condition — as remarked by Fredric Jameson (1991) and Jean-Francois Lyotard (1979), among others — calls for new conceptions of lived reality. Nevertheless, profound uneasiness with notions of space and time is not only a postmodernist obsession. Modernist cinema, on account of its aesthetic self-reflexivity, also grapples with ways of inscribing spatiality and temporality. The 1980s saw a resurgence of European heritage films, reminiscent of interwar years of empire (early 1920s–late 1930s), produced in Kenya. Out of Africa (dir. Sydney Pollack, 1985), White Mischief (dir. Michael Radford, 1987), and The Kitchen Toto (dir. Harry Hook, 1988) became global audience staples. Not only do these films perpetuate Western viewers’ ‘master-race’ instincts; they also reproduce ‘cult images’ of an ‘exotic’ African locale. This paper phenomenologically reflects on White Mischief’s nostalgic reconstruction of a colonial settler village, the Happy Valley, and its ultra-privileged white hedonists. It explores how materiality of physical space can aid re-inscription of time and vice versa. Turning the colonial gaze upon itself, in critical self-reflection, my analysis foregrounds profound ruptures, discontinuities and contradictions in the historical fact and experience of European colonialism in Africa.

Digital is Not the Alternative: Dilemma and Preserving Films in India

Abstract Films deteriorate over time and archival methods are still being developed to prevent this. Digital technology enables the conversion of films, but there are various issues with digital approaches that present Indian archivists with the dilemma of choosing the appropriate one to film preservation. It is perceived that digital technology is inferior to film and, thus, archivists in India are struggling to preserve their film heritage for future generations. Film archivists, curators and restorers in India were interviewed as part of this study, with a thematic analysis conducted to understand the perceived insufficiency of digital preservation. Film archivists dislike digital technology but recognise its benefits, however, digital film preservation faces issues of originality, obsolescence, cost, resolution and legal aspects. Archivists suggested that digital archiving is not an alternative to film archiving but rather a complement and the study finds that the problems in digital approaches can be minimised through measures such as diligence, technological advancement, multiple copies and raising awareness which can prolong the film artefact in a digital archive. Both methods must work together to preserve the unpreservable.

AI-POWERED RESTORATION OF VINTAGE FILMS INTO NEW CINEMA: HARMONIZING CREATION AND AUTOMATION

The revival of classic films has made significant progress thanks to Artificial Intelligence-powered restoration methods. The AI produces a restored film with improved brightness, resolution and color while preserving the original film content through complex algorithms. The purpose of the research is to analyze the opinions of viewers and historians about films restored with artificial intelligence and to address the ethical issues associated with AI restoration. Data was collected on likes and dislikes of viewers of AI-restored movies on YouTube, and the survey analyzed 375 people watching the vintage movie and its restored version. Analysis results show that AI-restored movies have better resolution, color and sound quality than the original vintage footage. Historians argue that AI algorithms can change the historical meaning and authenticity of the original work and undermine the original artistic intent of old films. The difficulty with artificial intelligence is finding a balance between technical progress and maintaining creative and historical integrity, which requires strict ethical standards to prevent potential harm. Preserving the integrity and true historical accuracy of original content and maintaining public trust require transparent practices, rigorous authentication procedures, and careful navigation of copyright, ownership, and consent issues. The rights of content producers, communities and individuals must be respected to ensure that AI-assisted restoration is carried out responsibly and ethically. The power of artificial intelligence in the restoration of old films has great potential to preserve and celebrate our film heritage.

Commercial break: British advertising on screen

In this report, I describe the development of British screen advertising as represented in the BFI National Archive, address several key questions about the BFI’s advertising holdings, discuss the BFI’s strategic digitisation projects, Unlocking Film Heritage and Heritage 2022, and, finally, share areas of research and topics within advertising that are ripe for exploration as possible academic partnerships.

Film Preservation in the Digital Era: Pitfalls and Potentials

This paper highlights the pitfalls and potentials of digitization of film heritage in the archival domain. The largest issue encountered by the global archive community would be the recent transition from analog to digital technology in the capture, post-production, and distribution of cinematographic works. Due to the emergence of new platforms for access and the fact that digital copies are not susceptible to the same wear and tear as analogue film elements, digitization of historical films has the potential of enabling access on a larger scale. The conflict between the necessity to preserve originals and the need to offer access has been somewhat lessened by digitization. By acting as stand-ins for quick access or as backup copies in case original materials are lost or damaged, digital versions serve preservation functions. Also, negatives that are losing their information value can be preserved by digitization in order to extend access to them and preserve their content. The value of digitization as a preservation tactic has been hotly contested. Despite the benefits of digitization, there are significant technological, legal, financial, and curatorial obstacles or pitfalls that must be addressed in order to realize the potentials.

A Distanced View of Historical Period Dramas: English Heritage Films as a Critical Genre

Bu çalışma geçmişin sinema ve televizyon ekranlarındaki görsel temsillerine eleştirel bakışı temsil etmek üzere 1980’lerde İngiltere özelinde ortaya çıkarak günümüze değin gelişim gösteren ulusal miras filmleri üst başlığının, türsel bir kategori olarak dönem dizilerine uyarlanabileceğini tartışmayı hedeflemektedir. 'Ulusal miras filmleri' etiketi, Viktorya ya da Edward dönemlerine ait İngiliz emperyal geçmişini öven muhafazakâr ve milliyetçi anlatılara karşı kültür endüstrisi, postmodernizm ve gösteri toplumu eleştirisinden beslenen mesafeli duruşu ifade etmek için kullanılmaktadır. Özellikle 1990’ların sonu ve 2000’li yıllar boyunca çoğunlukla postmodern estetiğin imkanlarını vurgulamayı tercih eden yorumlar eşliğinde ulusal miras eleştirisinin gelinen noktada açıklayıcı gücünü kaybettiğine yönelik görüşler dile getirilmektedir. Aksine bu çalışma, gösteri toplumunun içine gömülü olan dönem dramalarının anlamı üzerine verilen söylemsel mücadelelerin tarihsel seyrini sürmenin, kültür endüstrisi eleştirisine yaslı ulusal miras kategorisinin bir tür olarak geçerliliğini göstermeyi amaçlamaktadır.

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

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.

A History of Danish Cinema

A History of Danish Cinema

Insights on the Film Tourism and Archéocinema for the Promotion of Heritage Tourism: A Critical Review

The link between Cultural Heritage (CH), media, and film tourism has gained increasing attention in the literature over the last two decades. The 21st-century film tourism industry edutainment must reflect the experiences of 21st-century digital/virtual requirements. Film tourism is often considered a potential marketing channel for World Heritage Sites (WHS) and CH tourism. Limited research addresses how heritage film tourism providers employ and deal with the film industry and Archéocinema media for marketing communication. This paper attempts to discuss the relationship between the capability of heritage film tourism as a promotional tool combined with Archéocinema in constructing the optimistic destination image of heritage tourism and experience as it flows in both physical places and virtual environments. It argues that both environments, as dynamic and generate meanings, merge, and embody subjectivity and objectivity now in one process. This process suggests building a critical, informative, and promotional purpose by engaging in storyline and storytelling, learning about what and how film tourism and Archéocinema can offer and representing it in a modern key within and beyond the physical dimensions of place in an ethical and transparent approach according to the London Charter and the Seville Principles.

A collaborative approach for the registration, deposit and digitisation of Flemish film heritage

This paper discusses the collaboration between meemoo (the Flemish Institute for the Archives) and the Royal Belgian Film Archive with regard to the registration, conservation and digitisation of film heritage preserved by Flemish libraries, archives, museums, performing arts organisations, government bodies and city archives. The paper begins with a detailed description of the various pain points identified in a 2013 report on the state of Flemish audiovisual heritage conservation, including inter alia the fragmentation in film heritage management, the lack of specific attention for film collections, the lack of infrastructure and content-related and technical knowledge and poor storage conditions. It then focuses on the eight-step approach developed by meemoo and the Royal Belgian Film Archive, which culminates in large-scale digitisation projects and encouraging the reuse of the digitised films. After discussing some interim results of the collaboration, the article concludes that partnerships such as the one discussed facilitate an efficient, effective and affordable approach to the preservation and digitisation of diverse and dispersed film collections on a regional scale, thus providing a solid base for further conservation and digitisation.

Film tourism in Poland: potential and perspectives for development

Travel has been inspired by films for many years, but only in the early 21st century did it begin to constitute a significant volume. In many places in the world, film tourism has become a true phenomenon. The paper constitutes the first so broad an attempt at determining the state of film tourism in Poland. Based on 15 years of the author’s own research and research by other Polish scholars, an inventory of film heritage (film locations, museums, festivals and other attractions) was taken and – as far as the available data allowed – the characteristics of associated tourist traffic were provided. The research procedure revealed numerous gaps in our knowledge. Hence, apart from other conclusions, a list of problems that, in the years to come, should become a subject of interest among cultural tourism scholars in Poland was included in the summary.

SCREENING SPACE IN FILM ADAPTATIONS OF ESTONIAN HISTORICAL FICTION: “THE LAST RELIC” (1969) AND “BETWEEN THREE PLAGUES” (1970)

This article analyses the spatial representations of “The Last Relic” (Viimne reliikvia, Grigori Kromanov, 1969) and “Between Three Plagues” (Kolme katku va? hel, Virve Aruoja, 1970). While almost diametrically different in terms of intention, execution and reception, the films exemplify the complex interplay of the past and the present that is typical to screen adaptations of historical fiction. “The Last Relic” and “Between Three Plagues” belong to the same wave of cinematic works that was inspired by debates on the architectural heritage of Tallinn’s Old Town in the late 1960s and early 1970s. Using this historical urban environment, as well as its broader field of connotations, as a central point of reference, the films provide intriguing critiques of the late Soviet period that was characterised by negotiations of power, identity and history. As specimens of the heritage film genre, “The Last Relic” and “Between Three Plagues” open up a room for discussing the discursive intricacies of narrating the nation, demonstrating that industrial conditions, audio-visual struc- tures and ideological undercurrents can sometimes lead to unexpected, even conflicting constellations.

Local/global: amateur cinema and new forms of valorization in archival film festivals

ABSTRACT This paper will focus on the new landscapes of valorization and access to amateur/small gauge films within the archival film festival context. Archival small gauge film festivals present themselves as something completely different from those festivals dedicated to amateur and experimental cinema in the past, mainly because their goal is to valorize assets that have been deposited in specialized archives from the 1980s onwards. This film heritage is composed not only by the products of serious amateurs, but also by home movies and experimental films. We will start from the cases of Home Movie Day, a project developed in 2002 by archivists, curators and film historians in the US, Archivio Aperto in Italy, and Orphan Film Symposium, founded in 1999. Throughout the years they have become a blueprint for archival small gauge film festivals and a label to which different experiences refer: small archival film festivals; meeting activities where the broader field of ‘non-theatrical film’ is addressed; the Home Movie Marathon, a live streaming in which amateur films from all across the world are screened, etc. Furthermore, we will focus on examples from the European context, such as Archivio Aperto and its recent developments with the Memoryscapes digital platform.

El estado del patrimonio cinematográfico en el Perú: una revisión de literatura científica

This research work is defined as a review of scientific literature that inquires about the state of film heritage in Peru. In this way, it encompasses the process that begins with the invitation of UNESCO in 1992,where it allows its member countries to categorize a minimum of fifteen films that are representative of historical, aesthetic and socio-cultural values, granting them the category of cultural heritage. Under this line, the literature review proposal is pursued where the problems related to the management of cinematographic heritage are analyzed, the information search process is described, the data is organized and the results are analyzed from sources documentaries that explain the public policies and safeguard mechanisms established in the field of audiovisual documents.

From Pride and Prejudice to Pride and Prejudice and Zombies

Abstract Comparative poverty is a central issue in the world of Jane Austen. In Pride and Prejudice, the greater gentry displays a wide range of passive aggressive behaviors to keep the lesser gentry at bay. Austen intends that the micropolitics of reserve can be replaced by the politics of redistribution and recognition, leading to better relationships between the self and the other. Austen adaptations largely adhere to this integrationist vision, the only exception being Pride and Prejudice and Zombies, for Grahame-Smith’s novel and Burr Steers’s film openly foreground the irreconcilable differences between the sadomasochistic gentry class and the anarchistic underclass. As the heritage film genre is updated to reflect the contemporary world order, the cinema of reverence and nostalgic catharsis gives way to the cinema of irreverence and visionary paranoia, foregrounding the anti-heritage agenda and the conspiratorial outlook in Hollywood film culture.

The Politics of Nordsploitation: History, Industry, Audiences

The Politics of Nordsploitation: History, Industry, Audiences

“Paul and Mary Would Like You to Bake”

In a time of devolution and fragmentation in the UK, The Great British Bake Off plays into the elements of heritage film and imperial nostalgia and especially all things considered ‘English’. However, the show also attempts to include a more diverse representation of the British people and recreate a national identity that leaves more space for ethnic minorities. Linking theories on national identity and theories on heritage film, this article examines how the GBBO format acts as heritage television which idealizes certain aspects of English history, as well as how the inclusion and celebration of contestants with an ethnic minority background adds to a portrayal of an idealized form of British multiculturalism. These findings lay the basis for a discussion on the connection between food culture and multiculturalism, and how GBBO tries to combine the past ‘glory’ of England with the present (multicultural) reality of Britain.

Activating the Archive: Feminism and German Women’s Film Heritage, 2010–2020

Activating the Archive: Feminism and German Women’s Film Heritage, 2010–2020

Cinematic empire and nostalgia in Viceroy’s House and Victoria and Abdul

The commercial viability of Gurinder Chadha’s Viceroy’s House (2017) and Stephen Frears’ Victoria and Abdul (2017) can be attributed to their effective use of heritage film elements to offer romanticized versions of British rule. Decoding the teleological intent behind these romanticized versions, this article contends that the chosen films promote nostalgia in response to the postimperial melancholia that Britain is experiencing in the contemporary period. Exploring the cinematic recreation of nostalgia, this article analyses the spatial, material, and racial aspects of Victoria and Abdul and Viceroy’s House. The spatial analysis highlights the cinematography used to depict heritage space to commemorate British tradition, the material examination focuses on colonial gifts of economic mobility and political emancipation bestowed on the colonized, and the racial analysis focuses on Muslim stereotyping through exoticism and animalization to reinforce British pride in civilizing the “inferior race”. An explication of these cinematic and narrative elements highlights the films’ invocation of nostalgia for an idealized past through a return to a closed epoch of empire that uncritically and dangerously reproduces ideologies of British cultural and racial superiority. Furthermore, this invocation of nostalgia works to glorify British historical origins and strengthen national cohesion in order to allay collective anxieties about the abject loss of the empire’s global recognition in the wake of Brexit.