The National Filmography program at the National Film and Sound Archive recently took another step forward with the appointment of a program manager, Dr Jeannette Delamoir, who joined the staff of the NFSA’s Moving Image Branch on 25 February 2008.
The goal of the National Filmography is to list every film made in Australia since the beginning of production in 1896. Along with feature films, the Filmography will include documentaries, animated films, educational films and experimental production. The entries will be scholarly, authoritative and comprehensive, and will include production details, plot summary, and other information useful to researchers, educators and public users. As the successive volumes of the Filmography are completed, they will be published in hardcopy and will also be accessible online.
Delamoir, who has a PhD in media studies, wrote her thesis on the life and work of one of Australia’s earliest Hollywood film stars, Louise Lovely. She has 11 years’ experience designing, writing and teaching humanities, cultural studies and communications courses at Central Queensland University, during which time she continued to research in film and cultural studies. She has worked in university libraries and museums in Australia and the USA, including managing a three-screen arthouse cinema, the Little Theatre.
‘It’s an honour to join the National Film and Sound Archive as part of its increasing emphasis on research and scholarship,’ Delamoir says. ‘The National Filmography is an important project for the NFSA, reflecting its mission to preserve, present and develop screen and sound culture in Australia. As a resource, the Filmography will be of enormous benefit to researchers both in Australia and overseas. In addition, the project also promotes Australia’s pride in its cultural heritage.’
[release from Avviso PR for the AFC]