Editor's Letter

At this moment of writing my first "Editors letter" as the new Administrative Coordinator of FIAT/IFTA, I am trying to sort out my impressions. Having just arrived back from the Executive Council (EC) meeting in Rome, Friday 26th - Saturday 27th March, there are some things that need to be said. The Newsletter of FIAT/IFTA is primarily a source of information where everyone can get an updated résumé of the actual situation and the news within the organisation, such as when and where the special events will take place. Also important, though, is the fact that the Newsletter is an organ of debate and criticism. This decision has recently been unanimously taken by the EC in Rome. In the event that a critical article appears, the article itself has to be read as the opinion of the author and his/hers company and not to be confused with the common or official opinion of the FIAT/IFTA council. Therefore, an article that puts a subject in question will be presented with an introduction by the editor that clearly explains the situation. It should never be presumed or taken for granted, that an article of that kind is the attitude of the members of the board.

Three in Rome
Photo: Lasse Nilsson

Photo: Lasse Nilsson

The EC meeting in Rome provided the opportunity to make decisions, to consider new topics and to air ideas existing in the mind for a long time. One of the main topics on the agenda was of course the World Conference in Santiago, Chile. This conference is going to be one of the greatest events during this last year of the 20th century. The FIAT/IFTA office is continuously occupied preparing all the details to make sure that the plans will be realised and that the hard work and the preparations of the Conference Organisational Committee (C.O.C) will reap the best harvest for the world of audiovisual archives.

As you probably have noticed by now the conference venue is no longer Rio de Janeiro in Brazil but Santiago, the capital of Chile. This fact is a result of the economic situation in Brazil.

In this issue you can find the necessary Conference registration- and Hotel reservation forms as well as an Invitation to the event. You have also the chance to see the first draft of the rich programme including various and interesting subjects.

During the summer the FIAT/FOCAL Summer School, July 11th-16th, 1999, opens the doors for all the researching archivists, documentalists and the technicians. The venue will be East Anglia and London, UK. This interesting course is a collaboration between FIAT/IFTA and FOCAL. The goal is to provide students with the most recent knowledge in archiving and the history of film, film formats, video, their conservation and repair and, of course, the digitisation.

A new series in the Newsletter is "Who is Who in FIAT/IFTA". All the new members in FIAT, new members of the EC and the commissions or changes within the Federation will be presented to you here.

At the website you will be able to find an updated list presenting all the World Conference speakers, their subjects and the company they represent. The Seminars and the subjects of the Commissions and workgroups will also be published.

A backlist of prints will in the future be kept at the FIAT office so that different documents easily can be ordered. You will be able to download some of the documents directly from the website.

Communication between all the members of the Federation can only improve and everyone is welcome to send articles, impressions from the conferences or other interesting information.

Katharina Robertsson Reimer
Editor and Administrative Coordinator