Film Preservation: Accessing Our Cultural Heritage An Argument by Jennifer Garner |
| The cultural artifacts and documents of former eras have long been preserved as part of an ongoing movement to ensure that posterity has access to the valuable knowledge history can offer. One of the most recently acknowledged methods of safeguarding America’s cultural legacy has been through efforts for the preservation of its motion pictures. The American Cinema emerged just over a century ago and evolved to become one of the country's leading modes of cultural and artistic expression. As a result, films have been able to visually capture multiple facets of American life during the time periods they were produced in. Unfortunately, it has been estimated that of these motion pictures less than twenty percent of silent films and approximately fifty percent of the feature films made before 1950 have survived (NFPF, 2002). Most salvageable films are still vulnerable to deterioration, the cost of their restoration generally too expensive for an individual to undertake. The federal government is currently the largest supporter of film preservation, but the general public is not allowed access to many of the films their taxes have paid to restore. If citizens are to benefit from the valuable cultural heritage contained in motion pictures, film preservation must be supported through public funds and made widely accessible to the community. |
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A: Importance
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B: Funding
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C: Access
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