Beyond Your Screens: Turning Your Art House Cinema into a Community Archive
This webinar discusses the transformative journey of the Belcourt Theatre's centennial project, focusing on developing a community-driven archive and oral history initiative.
The webinar, "Beyond Your Screens: Turning Your Arthouse Cinema into a Community Archive," featured speakers Teddy Minton and Stephanie Silverman discussing the transformative journey of the Belcourt Theatre's centennial project, focusing on developing a community-driven archive and oral history initiative. The project involved extensive research, interviewing local patrons and key figures, and leveraging the TheirStory platform for oral history collection. This effort culminated in an expansive archive and a forthcoming book, while also enhancing programming through deep engagement with narratives captured from community members. The initiative was notably successful in fundraising, demonstrating a strong connection and value to the community. The conversation highlighted practical avenues for engaging with community narratives: identifying key storytellers, utilizing digital platforms for collection and archiving, and forging partnerships with local historians and educational institutions. Emphasizing the importance of giving voice to community history, the webinar conveyed how such projects could enrich cultural institutions and their standing within their communities.
