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Black lives matter. I took a pause to read, absorb, learn, watch. Other voices are more important than mine right now. I want to offer my support, anger and creativity. Bear with me for a thread.
I want to speak personally, outside my job. The archive which I am closest to, Scotland's collection of moving images, has a representation problem. We are missing the stories, faces and voices of people of colour, who deserve to have their/our collective memories preserved.
We must do better. There are changes happening but progress could and must be made quicker. In the coming weeks I'm going to highlight footage we have in the MIA of black and South Asian people in particular. Doing this will reveal some of the issues we face
for example, so few films in the archive have POC as the subject matter of a film. We see glimpses, often fleeting, amongst white faces and concerns. Since film began, people of colour have been here, shaping Scotland, but they have been marginalised, hidden. We must not forget.
I'm now going to share a range of film/TV resources you can access RIGHT NOW for FREE that may be helpful for connecting with the histories, memories and experiences of people of colour, particularly in a Scottish/British context but also elsewhere. Watch, share, show.
First I want to highlight work done recently by filmmakers in/about Scotland. Apologies for omissions, this is just a starter as I've lots to get through! (Please add others that you know of and tag people).
Racism in Scotland (d. Vanessa Kanbi, 2020) @VanessaKanbi
Everyday racism in Scotland, told by people who experience it first hand.
Everyday racism in Scotland, told by people who experience it first hand.
BBC iPlayer: Black History Month
A range of programmes about black history and cultural influence. Includes Stewart Kyasimire’s great film ‘Black and Scottish’. @SKyasimire https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p070rtws
A range of programmes about black history and cultural influence. Includes Stewart Kyasimire’s great film ‘Black and Scottish’. @SKyasimire https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p070rtws
1745 (2017)
Powerful short fiction film set in the highlands, based on the histories of runaway slaves. https://vimeo.com/user5688041
Powerful short fiction film set in the highlands, based on the histories of runaway slaves. https://vimeo.com/user5688041
Moving on to material in the @BFI : Before Windrush collection. Films mostly from the 1940s but some very early material too and rushes from an unfinished film (A World is Turning, 1948) that showcases black talent. https://player.bfi.org.uk/free/collection/before-windrush
Black Lives film collection (BFI)
60 films (mostly non-fiction). Also includes some drama, including the monologue ‘Nice’ by Farrukh Dhondy delivered by Norman Beaton. https://player.bfi.org.uk/free/collection/black-lives
60 films (mostly non-fiction). Also includes some drama, including the monologue ‘Nice’ by Farrukh Dhondy delivered by Norman Beaton. https://player.bfi.org.uk/free/collection/black-lives
And the BBC archive: @BBCArchive
You can’t search this website, the material is selected. There is a collection on apartheid in South Africa, an interview with Martin Luther King and footage of Notting Hill carnival. https://www.bbc.co.uk/archive/
You can’t search this website, the material is selected. There is a collection on apartheid in South Africa, an interview with Martin Luther King and footage of Notting Hill carnival. https://www.bbc.co.uk/archive/
Also on iPlayer: The Colony (1964) d. Philip Donnellan
West Indian immigrants describe their experiences living and working in 1960s Birmingham. https://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/p055t73r/the-colony
West Indian immigrants describe their experiences living and working in 1960s Birmingham. https://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/p055t73r/the-colony
And if you know 'Handsworth Songs'/Black Audio Film Collective this interview is worth a watch. John Akomfrah – on essays, identities and Stuart Hall (2014)
Akomfrah reflects on his career and the essay film. https://vimeo.com/86095079
Akomfrah reflects on his career and the essay film. https://vimeo.com/86095079
‘The archive has been the space of intervention… it also has an overarching historic importance, connected to this question of diasporic identity. One of the few reservoirs of memory for diasporic subjects is the archive. … we were trying to address a regime of representation.’
It Ain’t Half Racist Mum (1979)
Produced for BBC’s Open Door series and openly critical of the BBC for commissioning racist programming. Deconstructs comedy and news. Please watch. https://vimeo.com/203825966
Produced for BBC’s Open Door series and openly critical of the BBC for commissioning racist programming. Deconstructs comedy and news. Please watch. https://vimeo.com/203825966
Sam the Wheels (1960 – 2008)
Films of Brixton filmed by amateur filmmaker Clovis Salmon, who arrived in London from Jamaica in the 1950s.
http://www.samthewheels.co.uk/
Films of Brixton filmed by amateur filmmaker Clovis Salmon, who arrived in London from Jamaica in the 1950s.
http://www.samthewheels.co.uk/
Colonial film database
Database of films that contain images of British Empire, including films by the Empire Marketing Board, established to promote imperial trade. Some records have detailed notes and references.
http://www.colonialfilm.org.uk/
Database of films that contain images of British Empire, including films by the Empire Marketing Board, established to promote imperial trade. Some records have detailed notes and references.
http://www.colonialfilm.org.uk/
For example, this film: Nigeria – The Making of a Nation (1960)
Made by Commonwealth Office to promote an "orderly" transition to independence by nations formerly under the control of the British Empire.
https://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/films/1951to1964/filmpage_nigeria.htm
Made by Commonwealth Office to promote an "orderly" transition to independence by nations formerly under the control of the British Empire.
https://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/films/1951to1964/filmpage_nigeria.htm
British Pathe
Huge range of newsreels – search for footage of Martin Luther King, Angela Davis, James Baldwin, Adelaide Hall, Josephine Baker, civil rights, Black Panther Movement, apartheid, colonialism, ‘Windrush generation’. https://www.britishpathe.com/video
Huge range of newsreels – search for footage of Martin Luther King, Angela Davis, James Baldwin, Adelaide Hall, Josephine Baker, civil rights, Black Panther Movement, apartheid, colonialism, ‘Windrush generation’. https://www.britishpathe.com/video
Search terms ‘negro’ and ‘segregation’ bring up news pieces on protest marches and acts of resistance in the USA. In films like ‘Our Jamaican Problem’ (1955) you can see how news was/is used to frame the migrant experience for a white audience. Who holds the camera matters.
Speaking of which, more uncomfortable viewing available in the Travel film archive - Travelogues depicting locations and people around the globe. Intertitles can reveal imperialist attitudes towards the local subject matter.
http://travelfilmarchive.com/
http://travelfilmarchive.com/
The Library of Congress National Screening Room
Includes ‘A Time for Freedom’ (1957) documenting the Prayer Pilgrimage for Freedom; ‘One Tenth of a Nation: the Press’ (1953) about African-American newspapers https://www.loc.gov/collections/national-screening-room/
Includes ‘A Time for Freedom’ (1957) documenting the Prayer Pilgrimage for Freedom; ‘One Tenth of a Nation: the Press’ (1953) about African-American newspapers https://www.loc.gov/collections/national-screening-room/
Also at LOC: ‘All my babies: a midwife’s own story’ (1952) about a midwife and mothers in Georgia. You can see early film depictions of native Americans and African-Americans (some are blackface) which influenced later cinematic stereotypes and racist portrayals.
The fantastic thing about this collection is you can download the films and reuse them (check rights first)!
Jessie Maple archive
Blog post about filmmaker Jessie Maple’s archive held at Black Film Center/Archive @BlackFilmCenter https://blackfilmcenterarchive.wordpress.com/2012/04/12/exploring-the-jessie-maple-collection/
Blog post about filmmaker Jessie Maple’s archive held at Black Film Center/Archive @BlackFilmCenter https://blackfilmcenterarchive.wordpress.com/2012/04/12/exploring-the-jessie-maple-collection/
Want to finish by mentioning the fantastic @bcaheritage https://blackculturalarchives.org/ who also have films/videos and, in Glasgow, @ColourHeritage who have been documenting South Asian heritage on video and have built up an amazing collection of interviews.
