Home Movie Day- DC August 11, 2007

Historic home movies from the Library of Congress collection and screenings of films brought by the public will be featured at the fourth annual Washington D.C. Home Movie Day (www.homemovieday.com). Library film experts and other local archivists will help attendees learn how to rescue their home 8mm, Super 8mm and 16mm films. The event will be held from 1:00 to 4:00 p.m. on Saturday, August 11, in the Pickford Theater, 3rd floor of the Library’s James Madison Building, 101 Independence Ave. S.E., Washington, D.C. Sponsored by the Moving Image section of the Library’s Motion Picture, Broadcast and Recorded Sound (MBRS) division, the event is free and open to the public.

There is growing recognition of the artistic, cultural, and historical value of home movies. Documentarian Ken Burns has said, "Home movies are, like snapshots, the DNA of our collective memory, the first inkling of history." "Saving our film heritage should not be limited only to commercially produced films. Home movies do not just capture the important private moments of our families' lives, but are historical and cultural documents as well." says legendary director and film preservation advocate Martin Scorsese. According to famous filmmaker and raconteur John Waters, "There's no such thing as a bad home movie. These mini-underground opuses are revealing, scary, joyous, always flawed, filled with accidental art, and shout out from attics and closets all over the world to be seen again."
"The Library is pleased to support Home Movie Day. Home movies are a valuable record of the everyday experience and a wonderful, if too often overlooked, chronicle of American culture,” said Mike Mashon, Head of Moving Images for MBRS. “The Library actively preserves home movies as part of the national collection, and the Librarian has named several to the National Film Registry." Under the terms of the National Film Preservation Act, each year the Librarian of Congress names 25 “culturally, historically or aesthetically” significant motion pictures to the Registry.

Home Movie Day is a worldwide celebration of amateur film and filmmaking that provides an opportunity for individuals and families to learn more about their own family movies, how to care for films and how home movies have helped capture 20th century history. Forgotten with the advent of home video, home movies have never been entirely replaced. Video began to take over in the 1970’s, and more rapidly replaced amateur film usage in the 1980’s. There is no limit to the number of films each participant may bring to the event. Depending on the number of attendees, only one or two of their films may be screened. Damaged films cannot be screened, but participants whose films are at risk will learn about how to rescue these precious images. The audience will leave with the knowledge of how to care and preserve their home movies, information about how and where to transfer them to DVD, along with new ways to enjoy the films.

Official Website: http://www.homemovieday.com/