BFIs National Archive curator tells TVBEurope about plans to save videos from the UKs lockdown
By Jenny Priestley
Published: May 4, 2020
BFI's National Archive curator tells TVBEurope about plans to save videos from the UK's lockdown
target=_blank title=Share on LinkedIn class=share-linkedin> BFI's National Archive curator tells TVBEurope about plans to save videos from the UK's lockdown
https://www.tvbeurope.com/production-post/how-the-bfi-is-preserving-digital-videos-from-lockdown-for-the-future title=Share via Email class=share-email>
The BFI has launched a new project asking the British public to recommend online videos that best represent how the country has experienced the impact of coronavirus.
Britain on Lockdown aims to create an online video archive of some of the best short clips created during lockdown, from Joe Wicks' PE lessons to Boris Johnson's video tweet announcing he had coronavirus symptoms.
If the BFI National Archive doesn't collect and preserve them, can we guarantee that they'll still be there in 5 years, 50 years, 200 years? Robin Baker, head curator at the BFI National Archive tells TVBEurope.
Video platforms come and go, but the BFI National Archive has been here for 85 years with a mission to preserve. These videos are an extraordinarily potent record of how the people of Britain experienced the time of lockdown and need to be part of the record we take into the future.
All of the suggested videos will be added to the database, where they'll then be viewed by the BFI National Archive's curators. We'll be using many criteria for selection - from the innovation of filmmaking to how impactful they've been to how they represent a wide range of narrative voices from across the UK, explains Baker.
Joe Wicks' daily PE sessions have been a must-watch for many families In terms of how the videos will be archived, the BFI National Archive has developed an integrated digital preservation solution using three major infrastructure components: a Collections Information Database from Axiell, a Media Asset Management system from Imagen, and a data tape storage infrastructure from Spectra Logic.
These systems are integrated with a set of microservices written in Python, to take descriptive metadata from CID and ingest media to Imagen using that metadata to inform the appropriate Imagen ingest workflow. Imagen integrates with Black Pearl from Spectra Logic, to store the original preservation-quality media to two geographically separated data tape libraries, on LTO and IBM data tapes, with robust digital preservation processes such as fixity confirmation.
A lower quality access copy is created by Imagen for web browser viewing, stored on a Dell EMC Isilon storage cluster, and this lower bitrate version can be made available to BFI staff at their desks in the Imagen Web application, to facilitate cataloguing, interpretation and research.
According to Baker, the videos will be kept for as we continue to preserve the films of Alfred Hitchcock, David Lean, and Powell and Pressburger. We're talking about the very long term here. In theory, for ever. So, as long as the UK has a national collection of film and TV, they will be safe. They'll survive many times longer than any of us will.
Asked which video he would pick to add to the archive, Baker cites a short video posted on Facebook and Instagram on 19th March by Dawn Bilbrough, a critical care nurse in York. It was posted in the middle of the stockpiling madness and she pleaded You just need to stop it because it's people like me that are going to be looking after you when you're at your lowest, so just stop it, please.'
Her pleas couldn't have been more desperate or heartfelt and impacted on both government and supermarkets and made many people in the UK take a long, hard look at their own behaviour.
Anyone who would like to suggest a video can do so via the BFI's website.
Most recent headlines
05/01/2027
Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be ...
07/10/2026
Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, today announced the latest Long-Term Supported (LTS) release of Dalet Flex. Build...
06/09/2026
June 9 2026, 23:00 (PDT) Dolby and MagentaTV Bring Fans Closer to the FIFA Worl...
20/08/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
20/08/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
20/08/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
20/08/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
20/08/2026
IPC Expands Brazilian Presence with New Channel Partner CCATech
Industry veterans Carlos Abrah o and Bruno Lopes strengthen local support and expand IPCs prese...
20/08/2026
Zixi Enters Mauritius Market Through Strategic Deployment with MTC Jockey Club
Worlds Oldest Horse Racing Club in the Southern Hemisphere Selects Zixis Softwar...
20/08/2026
LA JOLLA, CA-Scripps Research assistant professor Tiantian Liu has received a five-year NIAID DP2 award from the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Di...
20/08/2026
Audiences reveal appetite for multicultural Australia on-screen 20 August 2026
Dr Georgie McClean, Dr Rebecca Huntley (L-R)
By Dr Georgie McClean and Dr Rebec...
20/08/2026
How Mavis Studio Is Expanding Live Production Teaching at Sussex
Brie Clayton August 19, 2026
0 Comments
Hero image displays a student about to mix be...
20/08/2026
Vertical Unscripted Series Legal Queens Captured with Blackmagic Design
Brie Clayton August 19, 2026
0 Comments
Reality TV veteran Eric Gardner create...
19/08/2026
As the cost of IP nears price parity with traditional SDI, Reynolds argues that ...
19/08/2026
A private 5G bubble was chosen instead of traditional broadcast RF for the race ...
19/08/2026
(L-R) Rafael Manuel and Isabel Sicat attend the Filipi ana premiere during the 2026 Sundance Film Festival at The Ray Theatre on January 23, 2026, in Park Cit...
19/08/2026
Studio owners invited to have their say on rates cuts
The Music Producers Guild (MPG) are inviting UK-based studios to take part in an in-depth survey that ...
19/08/2026
Vintage-inspired desktop interface revealed
Harrison's latest hardware offering sees them head into the world of audio interfaces, delivering a 10-in/12...
19/08/2026
Granular effect remains locked to scale and tempo
Described as your dream granular effect , Minimal Audio's latest creation is capable of turning any s...
19/08/2026
First polyphonic SWAM instrument incoming
Audio Modeling's latest physical-modelling orchestral instrument is just around the corner, and is now availab...
19/08/2026
World Cup Games Generate 84 Billion Minutes Across FOX, Fox Sports 1 and NBCU...
19/08/2026
July brought typical peak-holiday drops in viewership, driven primarily by viewers stepping away from screens and a visible decline in reach across both traditi...
19/08/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
19/08/2026
Henry joins BCE as the company accelerates its commercial strategy and expands its international presence across the media, broadcast and technology markets. He...
19/08/2026
iWedia, a leading provider of software solutions for connected TV devices, today announced a major milestone in Android platform optimization with the successfu...
19/08/2026
NTP Technology announces that ST 2110-30 audio-over-IP connectivity with AES67 and RAVENNA capabilities is now available for the brand's world-class audio i...
19/08/2026
Net Insight has been selected to provide its Nimbra platform by the service provider Big Blue Marble, formerly ORS Group, as the core media transport solution f...
19/08/2026
LiveU has supported Coventry City FC and several other top-flight UK football clubs through one of their most demanding live production challenges of the year, ...
19/08/2026
Nature Seekers Documentary Shot with Blackmagic URSA Cine 12K LF
Brie Clayton August 18, 2026
0 Comments
Filming endangered turtles required camera...
19/08/2026
Neyrinck Brings D-Control Consoles Back to Life on Apple Silicon with D-Control ...
19/08/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
19/08/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
19/08/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
19/08/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
19/08/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
19/08/2026
Riedel Communications today announced that Edith Cowan University (ECU) in Perth, Australia, implemented a comprehensive communications infrastructure that brin...
19/08/2026
QuickLink, a leading provider of award-winning video production and remote guest contribution solutions, will spotlight a major leap forward in remote guest con...
19/08/2026
Integrated platform melds media asset management, playout automation and newsroom workflows
EMAM, PlayBox Neo and SNEWS have officially launched Nuvex, a conne...
19/08/2026
Screen Australia releases the Private Investment Toolkit to strengthen screen in...
19/08/2026
Do Aussies truly value local content? Unpacking Screen Currency 2026 with Deirdr...
19/08/2026
There's an early Christmas gift for Bookish fans, as UKTV confirms the re-commission of the hit U&alibi drama, created by and starring Mark Gatiss. Viewers ...
19/08/2026
Wednesday 19 August 2026
Sky gives sports fans the chance to watch multiple liv...
19/08/2026
On Saturday September 5 Katie Taylor will step into the ring for the fight of her life against Flora Pili in front of 80,000 fans in Croke Park. A legendary fig...
18/08/2026
SportStream 2026, a free three-day virtual event, will take place September 15-17. One registration provides access to all three days of live programming and on...
18/08/2026
BeckTV will introduce BeckFlow to the European market at IBC2026, demonstrated on the Providius stand (10.F53).
BeckFlow is a web-based schematic documentation...
18/08/2026
Boland Communications will introduce a SMPTE ST 2110 input option for its 4K monitors at IBC2026, along with a new 55-inch super-narrow bezel display for video ...
18/08/2026
Dolby Laboratories and the Seattle Seahawks have announced a partnership integrating Dolby OptiView into the Seahawks' live streaming coverage, making the S...
18/08/2026
For BMG Executive Producer of Sports Production, Graham Taylor, producing live s...
18/08/2026
TMRW Sports has appointed Rufus Hack as President of Golf, a newly created role in which he will lead the company's golf businesses including TGL presented ...
BFIs National Archive curator tells TVBEurope about plans to save videos from the UKs lockdown
