For most students, Powell Library is seen as the gate to such
works as Shakespeare and Chaucer, not Scorsese and Spielberg. But
with the help of the Archive Research and Study Center, located on
the second floor, watching classic films and spending time in the
halls of Powell are becoming more integrated.
Just ask Jennifer Miller, a research assistant, whose mission is
to connect students with the world’s third largest archive of
film and television.
“People come in with the hope of browsing (like in a video
store),” Miller said.
While students might not be able to peruse aisles and aisles of
films “Blockbuster”-style, Miller asserts that
isn’t really the purpose of the center.
“The best thing about this job is when students and
researchers find films here that they haven’t been able to
find anywhere else,” Miller said.
Westerns, comedies, foreign films, silent films and 1950s
television shows are examples of films available for viewing.
Students also have access to old radio programs and 100,000 news
and public affairs programs taped off the air from the late
’80s through 2003, as well as special coverage of events like
Sept. 11, 2001, and the Rodney King uprisings, according to the
coordinator of the center, Mark Quigley.
To search for the desired film, students work with Miller using
the computer database available online. The 25,000 items available
in the study can be viewed the next day in Powell’s
second-floor Instructional Media Lab once a request is made. But
materials not in the study collection may take five to seven
working days to prepare for viewing.
Some contents of the Archive exist in the form of 35-mm print
not available anywhere else. When that is the case, Miller will
make the student an appointment to screen the film in Hollywood.
The special screenings are free of charge to UCLA students (as are
viewings in the Instructional Media Lab), but the screen which
brings these rare finds to life is smaller than your average
computer monitor and sits on a steenback (a flat editing
table).
But for students interested in cinema, the opportunity is
unmatched. “Personal research” is adequate
justification to request any film ““ no proof of dissertation
required.
Miller pointed out a common misconception about the Archive,
which is that while it has many films, it does not have everything.
This is mostly due to the fact that the Archive’s contents
rely on generosity; donations come everywhere, from private
individuals to major studios.
“The Archive’s mission is to preserve and provide
access to our moving image heritage,” said Quigley.
The contents of the Archive are currently held in the center,
the University of California Southern Regional Library Facility and
Hollywood vaults.
“We want students to know that we’re here to help
them get acquainted with our resources,” Quigley said.
As for the future, a new preservation center for the Archive is
in the works. Its aim is to house all the Archive contents under
one roof. Ironically, it will be located in Valencia, near Cal Arts
(30 miles north of UCLA), but once completed ““ in five to 10
years ““ requests and viewings will still be done at UCLA.
With any luck, the huge collection will be available to browse,
“Blockbuster”-style.