Behind The Scenes at the British Film Institute National Archive
We are really excited to be welcoming Robin Baker to our September meeting where he will reveal some of the secrets behind the doors of the British Film Institute National Archive.
The BFI National Archive is one of the world’s largest and most important collections of film and television. In this illustrated talk head curator Robin Baker will take us behind the scenes of the national collection. Our tour will look at some of the work the BFI preserves: from the most fragile (and explosive!) early films to the latest online videos; from costume and production designs to the challenges of preserving ‘virtual reality’. Robin will also provide an insight into some of the extraordinary restoration work undertaken by the archive and show how the BFI is making the collection accessible.
Robin has worked in film exhibition, distribution, marketing and archiving for 30 years. He leads the British Film Institute’s team of curators developing and interpreting the national collection of film and television. Robin led the BFI’s project that saw the restoration and presentation in 50+ countries of Alfred Hitchcock’s 9 surviving silent feature films. He was also curator of the BFI and British Council’s Shakespeare on Film project that toured to 104 countries. He oversaw the selection and curation of the Lottery-funded project Britain on Film that resulted in the digitisation and presentation of 10,000 British archive films – viewed 90 million times to date. Robin has written and directed two short films and his radio play, Elephant and Castle, starring Rory Kinnear and Olivia Colman, was broadcast by BBC Radio 4. Robin was a presenter of the BBC Two TV series The Home Movie Roadshow.
Plus tea, wine and cake and snacks and a chance to catch up with friends old and new. All in the Crypt at St Peter’s De Beauvoir on Thursday 2nd September at 7.30pm. Grab yourself some popcorn and join us, free to members, come as a guest for £5 (this includes tea/coffee and cake)
The terrace doors and windows will be open for ventilation purposes.
We are asking sisters to wear masks on the way in (unless exempt) and at the sign in desk, and our committee members at the sign in desk and on refreshments will be wearing masks while on duty there. We will have hand sanitiser available and please also bring your own. All surfaces on tables and at the hatch will be wiped down with disinfectant before your arrival. National Federation advice asks for members to do a lateral flow test before attending meetings (these are available free at pharmacies) and only attend if negative. Please do not attend if you are experiencing symptoms or have been asked to self isolate.
Book Group
Book group are planning to meet face to face on September 21st, and the book is Hamnet by Maggie O’Farrell. It was described by The Observer as ‘a profound exploration of the healing power of creativity’ and won the Women’s Prize for Fiction.
Walking Group
BST walking group will be heading off on evening of the 3rd September to take in the sights at Springfield Park and the reservoirs.
Great Big Green Week and Canary Craftivism on 18th September
In the lead up to Cop26, the United Nations Climate Change Conference taking place in Glasgow in November, the NFWI is supporting a national week of climate change events at the end of September (18 – 26).
The Great Big Green Week will take place 18 – 26 September 2021, and will be the largest event for climate and nature ever seen in the UK.
Together with our local yarn bombing group, De Beauvoir K2P2, we are planning an art installation at Rainbow Garden (on the corner of Ufton Road and Downham Road) that will go live on Saturday 18th September.
The Craftivism Collective are running a new #CanaryCraftivists project that takes a gentle, positive approach to climate activism. We are planning on making a flock of canaries to join other knitted and crafted flowers, plants, sea creatures and insects to create a wonderful display of our natural world to highlight the impact of climate change on our planet.
If you would like to get involved, we have patterns and felt to create a crafted canary. There are also knitting patterns and other ideas here https://craftivist-collective.com/blog/2021/06/canarycraftivists/
Do email in if you need provisions or would like to help out
Autumn Trail September 19th
Back by popular demand, the De Beauvoir Trail is back on 19th September. Stalls galore in front gardens across the ward will offer a host of delightful things to buy. We have a stall and our jam makers have been busy preserving the seasons harvest. We need a team of people to help set up and run the stall. There will be a sign up sheet at the next meeting. If you fancy making some jam, let us know, we will pay for ingredients and have jars if you need them. Put the date in the diary, come along and shop and check out the art installation at Rainbow Gardens on your way home.
De Beauvoir WI 