Pacific Film Archive Will Receive IDA Film Preservation Award

LOS ANGELES -- The Pacific Film Archive will receive the 2001International Documentary Association (IDA) Preservation andScholarship Award. The presentation will be made during the 17th AnnualIDA Distinguished Achievement Awards ceremonies on December 7 at theDirectors Guild of America Theatre in Los Angeles.

“This award is a tribute to the many dedicated people at thePacific Film Archive who have made sustained and exceptional efforts topreserve an important part of our heritage which is at risk,”says IDA president Michael Donaldson. “In addition to preservingmany irreplaceable films from around the world, the archives has a longtradition of making films readily accessible to scholars, journalists,students and fans.”

The Pacific Film Archive was founded in January 1971 at theUniversity of California at Berkeley as a department of the UniversityArt Museum. Founding director Sheldon Renan had been arrangingscreenings on the campus since the late 1960s. The construction of theUniversity Art Museum (now called the Berkeley Art Museum and PacificFilm Archive), and the subsequent building of the 234-seat George GundTheater, provided a home for the archive and a venue forscreenings.

The IDA Preservation and Scholarship Award will be accepted for thePacific Film Archive by Film Curator Edith Kramer, who says there aresome 10,000 titles in the collection.

“Our mission from the beginning has been to keep the historyof cinema alive and a vital part of our contemporary culture,”she says. “Our collection includes narrative and non-fictionfilms, features and shorts, avant-garde and independent film and videoworks, live action and animation. The films are from many countries,including Japan, the former Soviet Union and Eastern Europe. We havenewsreels and home movies, including some that document San FranciscoBay Area history during the early part of the century. Screenings aregenerally held six days a week for students and the public, often withthe filmmakers present for discussions and the open exchange ofideas.”

In addition to scheduled screenings, researchers, filmmakers andothers can arrange for private viewings at minimal costs. The PacificFilm Archive has also researched, compiled and maintains more than200,000 files about films, filmmakers and related subjects, includingphotographs and posters. These records are scanned and maintained indigital files that are catalogued and listed on the Pacific FilmArchives website (www.bampfa.berkeley.edu/collections).

Many of the films in the Pacific Film Archive were donated by peoplewho wanted to ensure the films were preserved for posterity.

“We have lost too much of our heritage,” Kramer says.“We can't make up what is already gone, but we know a lot moretoday. Preservation technology is better, and more people are aware ofthe need to properly archive films and videos. But, many independentnarrative and documentary filmmakers still have to be educated. If wedo the right things today, future generations of filmmakers, film fansand scholars will be rewarded tomorrow.”

The IDA is headquartered in Los Angeles. It has over 2,500 membersin some 50 countries. The non-profit organization was founded in 1982for the purpose of supporting and encouraging the pursuit of excellencein non-fiction filmmaking. The organization has achieved its originalgoals of providing a forum for dialogue and a cohesive voice fordocumentarians from around the world to speak out on issues of mutualconcern.

Kodak has been the sponsor of the IDA Distinguished DocumentaryAchievement Awards since their inception in 1984. For additionalinformation about the IDA Distinguished Achievement Awards, visit theIDA website at www.documentary.org or phone 213.534.3600.