Digitizing Home Movies

The Center for Urban History announces annual open days for free digitization of home and amateur films on film.

From September 12 to September 20, we invite you to bring your film archives to digitize and see live footage of the past again, recall important family moments, and share your memories or creative work.

Many people keep films in their home archives with movies that were once shot by relatives, friends, or relatives with amateur cameras. Because the technology of filmmaking is outdated and younger generations are hardly familiar with it, they lie there as forgotten or unseen witnesses of time. Over the years, the value of home and amateur movies has been changing, and they are gaining historical significance. At the same time, the need to preserve them is growing. We are even more convinced of this during the war.

The best way to preserve is to learn, revise, and pass on your stories to the future. The Urban Media Archive of the Center for Urban History has been forming a collection of home and amateur movies for many years, organizing annual free digitization on the eve of International Home Movie Day.

The only requirement for free digitization is that the participants are ready to share and transfer digital copies of films to the Media Archive collection, with additional approval and consideration of the wishes regarding the movies. We will accept movies shot on 8mm, Super 8 and 16mm film. After digitization, all original materials will be returned to their owners.

In October, the Center for Urban History will host a Home Movie Day with a presentation of this year's digitized materials, screenings of selected home movies, and discussions.

We are waiting for you with your films at the Center for Urban History at 6 Bohomol'tsya St from Monday to Friday from 10:00 to 18:00.

If you have any questions about digitization, please contact Oleksandr Makhanets at [email protected] or visit our office.