Archives Month Events and Activities around the State

EVENTS

• Ohio Historical Society

  • Home Movies Come Out of the Shoebox

    Many of us were the stars, directors or camera operators of home movies. Shot on 16mm or 8mm film, the lighting is often too dark; the sound hard to hear; and the cameras bob up and down. Yet, home movies are eternally charming. They have preserved for decades our memories of holidays and milestones. Film archivists and historians have long appreciated home movies as examples of amateur film making and a rich historic record of everyday life.

    To bring home movies out of the shoebox and help people view the original films on working projectors, the Center for Home Movies began Home Movie Day. The first Home Movie Day event was held on August 16, 2003. It has been held every year since at more and more locations.

    The Ohio Historical Society will hold our first Home Movie Day on Saturday, October 17, 2009 from 1-4 PM on the museum floor of the Ohio Historical Center. Bring your 16mm and 8mm films to be inspected by an archivist and played on working projectors. You are also welcome to just come and enjoy the show.

    “We will inspect and play as many films as possible” says Lisa Wood of the Society’s Archives/Library. No registration is necessary, but the sooner you arrive the more likely that your film can be played. Participation is free with museum admission. Actor and comedian Steve Martin says, "Home Movie Day is important because our lives, our recollections, and our truth is recorded in home movies. One day, what the heck, c'mon!”

    For additional information about Home Movie Day and the Center for Home Movies, see their web site: http://www.homemovieday.com/index.html. If you have questions about Home Movie Day at the Ohio Historical Society, please write to images@ohiohistory.org.

Contact Louise Jones, Archives Week Chair, at ljones@ohiohistory.org.