Free Video Preservation for SF Residents at Playback Lab
Inspired by the Memory Lab Network at public libraries nationwide, BAVC Media and SF COMMONS now offer free, do-it-yourself audiovisual preservation services for San Francisco residents. Boasting a variety of playback machines, the SF COMMONS Playback Lab empowers our community to control their own stories held on video formats most common to the average creator.
BAVC Media (Bay Area Video Coalition) and SF COMMONS unveiled their new community preservation center, the Playback Lab, during a launch event and demonstration attended by local San Francisco film organizations and community members located at the Ninth Street Independent Film Center in SOMA.
BAVC Preservation Director Tim Lake described the new Playback Lab’s public offering, “We’re really playing against the clock with analog media, and quickly running out of time to save crucial stories that give character to our local community. San Francisco has had such a rich tradition of independent creativity that breaks down cultural boundaries – the Playback Lab offers a one-of-a-kind opportunity to celebrate this tradition, to shed light on hidden histories, and to strengthen our individual voices.”
Paula Smith Arrigoni, BAVC Media’s Executive Director, introducing the Playback Lab alongside BAVC Preservation Director, Tim Lake, and Director of Community Engagement, Isa Nakazawa.
Launching in conjunction with BAVC Preservation’s 30th anniversary, the Playback Lab will initially offer VHS, Video8/Hi8, and digital video (DV) digitization capabilities.
For 30 years, BAVC Media has been a leader in video preservation, working with some of the most prestigious and celebrated institutions, universities, and foundations in the country. These collaborations have ensured long-term access to thousands of hours of our collective history, doing so with the highest standard of care and at the cutting edge of technology.
“A lot of us have old video tapes with precious memories, but figuring out how to transfer them can be tricky and often costly. SF COMMONS is offering San Francisco residents and community based organizations free access to the technology and training needed to preserve these valuable memories and stories. It’s a fantastic opportunity to keep your special moments safe and accessible, and we’re eager to assist you in preserving them.” – Andy Kawanami, Director of Community Media at BAVC.
The lab’s launch includes collaborations with local partners, the Center for Asian American Media (CAAM) and the San Francisco Art Institute (SFAI) Legacy Foundation + Archive
“It’s impossible to overstate the value of the BAVC preservation team as a Bay Area resource, not just for the work they do to preserve increasingly fragile, at-risk analog media, but for their knowledge, expertise, and generosity in making preservation accessible to the community at large, as evidenced by the Playback Lab. Our analog media collections at the San Francisco Art Institute Legacy Foundation + Archive represent the explosion of creativity made possible by newly available consumer-grade video recording equipment in the 1970s and beyond, and we’re so grateful to be able to partner with BAVC to preserve some of that fascinating, unique, Bay Area art and cultural history. Bringing preservation to the community keeps these and so many other histories alive–documentation of creative work, of moments in time, of people and places that would certainly be lost otherwise.” -Becky Alexander, Archivist, SFAI Legacy Foundation + Archive
Located in BAVC Media’s space at the Ninth Street Independent Film Center (145 9th Street, San Francisco CA 94103), the Playback Lab will be open for use by local organizations on Mondays, Tuesdays and Wednesdays; and San Francisco residents on Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays.
Interested in learning more? You can book an orientation with the Playback Lab team to get started at https://www.bavc.org/playback-lab
Follow at @bavcmedia
About BAVC Media
Founded in 1976, BAVC Media (Bay Area Video Coalition) is a community hub and resource for media makers in the Bay Area, serving thousands of filmmakers, artists and activists every year. Our mission is to inspire social change by empowering media makers to develop and share diverse stories through art, education and technology.
BAVC Preservation works to digitize analog media, preserving collective memory, cultural artifacts and other precious works of media art. Since 1994, we have preserved over 7,000 hours of audio and videotape.
About SF COMMONS
SF COMMONS is the home of public access TV in San Francisco, broadcasting live from our state-of-the-art studio. We offer our community media services to help San Francisco residents develop the skills to create broadcast-ready content. SF COMMONS is funded by the San Francisco City Department of Technology
About CAAM
The Center for Asian American Media is a nonprofit organization dedicated to presenting stories that convey the richness and diversity of Asian American experiences to the broadest audience possible. We do this by funding, producing, distributing and exhibiting works in film, television and digital media. For 40 years, CAAM has exposed audiences to new voices and communities, advancing our collective understanding of the American experience through programs specifically designed to engage the Asian American community and the public at large.
About San Francisco Art Institute (SFAI) Legacy Foundation + Archive
The SFAI Legacy Foundation + Archive (SFAI LF+A) is an independent non-profit formed to support the preservation of the San Francisco Art Institute Archives, coordinate the proper transfer of its contents to a permanent home, and ensure future access.
The mission of the SFAI Legacy Foundation + Archive is to protect, sustain, and carry into the future the legacy of the San Francisco Art Institute–a legacy of bold, experimental artistic practice and innovative scholarly inquiry. The Foundation preserves and makes accessible to future generations of scholars and artists the SFAI archives, an unparalleled collection of primary source material documenting the history of SFAI and the art of Northern California dating back to 1871.
This post was brought to you by BAVC Media (Bay Area Video Coalition) and SF COMMONS.
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