[Apologies for cross-posting]
Dear All,
We are delighted to extend an invitation to you on behalf of the consortium of the Swiss National Science Foundation Sinergia Project, "Narratives
From the Long Tail: Transforming Access to Audiovisual Archives". Please Join us at EPFL, Switzerland, for a week-long series of thoughtfully curated events 25th - 29th of
September that focus on exploring the exciting intersection of machine learning, visual analytics, digital museology, and archival science. With a 2-day PhD workshop, a half-day seminar, and a 2-day international symposium, this gathering
brings together researchers and practitioners to address the current challenges in providing public access to the significant audiovisual archives of the 20th and 21st centuries:
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PhD
workshop
Beyond Search: Opening Up Audiovisual Content for Humanities Studies
25-26 September 2023 (2 ECTS provided by EPFL, travel subsidy available)
In recent years, audiovisual content, with its growing accessibility, rich hidden meanings, and complexity in modality, became a new frontier for research in humanities and computational domains. The quest for properly and meaningfully opening up the variety
of information (such as historical, social, affective, and aesthetic) available in the ever-increasing audiovisual materials requires a collective effort from both sides to co-create not only new methods but also new research questions.
This 2-day workshop, covering both the theoretical and practical aspects of processing and utilising audiovisual data, provides an entry point and a test field for researchers working on digital humanities, audiovisual content understanding, and HCI to formulate
and validate new ideas.
Lecturers:
Prof. Marina Hassapopoulou, New York University
Ingrid Mason, National Film and Sound Archive of Australia
Prof. Matthias Grotkopp, Freie Universität Berlin
Prof. Mark Williams & Dr John P. Bell, Dartmouth College
Dr Luca Rossetto, University of Zurich
To access the full programme, including bios and abstract, or to apply, click here:https://www.epfl.ch/labs/emplus/workshop-beyond-search-opening-up-audiovisual-content-for-humanities-studies-25-26-september-2023/
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Mini Seminar
Constellations of Images: ‘The Grande Conversion’ in Cultural Archives
27 September 2023
The digital era has witnessed a significant transformation in the accessibility and availability of cultural content in various formats, encompassing a wide range of art forms such as visual arts, cinema,
literature, music, photography, and architecture. This shift from analogue to digital, referred to as the “grande conversion” by Milad Doueihi, continues to have a profound impact on our engagement with these creative expressions.
Spinning off the new book Les Devenirs numériques des patrimoines (The
Digital Futures of Heritage), this event carefully curated a series of talks drawing on a variety of disciplinary perspectives and examples, showcasing the progress and advantages of
working with the ever-changing technologies.
Speakers:
Prof. Jeffrey Shaw, Hong Kong Baptist University
Prof. Clarisse Bardiot, Rennes 2 University
Prof. Daniel Foliard, Université Paris Cité
Prof. Martine Beugnet, Université Paris Cité
Lily Hibberd, Interdisciplinary Artist
Prof. Sarah Kenderdine, EPFL
Dr Susan Hazan, Digital Heritage, Israel
To access the full programme, including bios and abstract, or to register, click here:https://www.epfl.ch/labs/emplus/constellations-of-images-the-grande-conversion-in-large-audiovisual-archives/
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Symposium
New Paradigms for Accessing and Curating Audiovisual Collections
28-29 September 2023
In the context of the transformation, accessibility and curation of datafied content require rethinking to unlock meaningfully the complexity and large volume of audiovisual collections. For instance,
standard web interfaces often ignore the potential of exploration and features like visual, auditory, and haptic, which are not easily accessible with traditional metadata. Scoping out an upgrade for accessing audiovisual archives can be facilitated via innovative
curatorial access and informatics models that can activate new modes of engagement, interaction, and meaning-making. While pushing the boundaries for accessibility, the new interfaces, experiences, and curatorial models also raise technological and conceptual
questions about every corner of the archival practice, especially on the preservation end, in the age of data.
Addressing these challenges, this symposium is stimulated by a growing need for access models for audiovisual collections beyond traditional strategies and the need to reconceptualize curatorial and presentational
frameworks and models. It aims to explore the intersection of cutting-edge computational methods and audiovisual archiving through three themed sessions, each designed to cover a specific and unique angle:
Bring together more than 20 world-leading scholars in various fields (such as media and cultural studies, digital humanities, archival science, informatics and human-computer interaction), archivists
and curators from heritage institutions, as well as domain experts and artists, this symposium will serve as a holistic venue to explore and critically reflect on the affordances and limitations of cutting-edge computational methods and tools for preserving,
accessing and utilizing audiovisual materials and to push forward a digital and data-driven mindset for the future of audiovisual collections.
To access the full programme, including bios and abstract, or to register, click here:https://www.epfl.ch/labs/emplus/events/new-paradigms-audiovisual-2023/
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Visit the Pioneering Laboratory
for Experimental Museology
During all three events
Each event invites participants to embark on a captivating journey through the cutting-edge Laboratory for Experimental Museology (eM+), where immersive visualisation, cultural data, and state-of-the-art
technologies converge. Join our guided tour to explore unique visualisation systems, powerful sonic architectures, and groundbreaking techniques like motion capture and photogrammetry. Witness the transformation of tangible and intangible heritage into stunning
ultra-high-resolution experiences. This exclusive opportunity unveils 20 years of research from pioneering laboratories in Sydney and Hong Kong, offering a glimpse into the future of post-cinematic multisensory engagement. As a part of the Sinergia Project:
Narratives from the long tail, this guided tour will also showcase the latest interactive and embodied exploration interfaces developed for our content partners, such as the Eye Filmmuseum and the Radio Télévision Suisse.
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Special Film Screening
Film, the Living Record of Our Memory
28 September 2023, during the symposium
Why are we still able to watch moving images captured over 125 years ago?
As we move ever further into the digital age, our audiovisual heritage seems to be taken increasingly for granted. However, much of our filmed history and cinema has already been lost forever.
On the night of the 28th, we arranged a special screening of the latest documentary Film,
the Living Record of Our Memory, where film archivists, curators, technicians and filmmakers from around the world explain what film preservation is and why it is needed. This documentary
puts the focus on our protagonists are custodians of film whose work behind the scenes safeguards the survival of motion pictures. It is a task they undertake based on their closely held belief in the artistic and cultural value of the moving image, in tune
with a shared mantra that a film might one day transform someone’s life. This documentary is a homage to them all and sheds some light on their critical undertaking.
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If you cannot make it in person, we will also provide streaming services for those participating online. Please use the respective link to register your online participation, and details will be sent
shortly before the event.
Should you have any questions or require further information regarding this symposium, please feel free to reach out to our coordinator Yuchen Yang at yuchen.yang@epfl.ch
Best,
Narratives From the Long Tail Team.