Unpublished Sources for Industrial Archaeology: Family Films Between Amateur Look and Corporate Memory
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.60923/issn.2280-9481/22174Keywords:
Amateur film, Industrial archaeology, Non-theatrical film, Infrastructure, Corporate heritageAbstract
The article explores the heuristic potential of amateur filming in the field of industrial archaeology, proposing a hitherto unpublished convergence between two fields of research. The value of so-called “protocol footage” is highlighted, amateur footage documenting the construction of buildings or infrastructures following the chronological order of works. Far from being mere visual testimonies, such images are configured as narrative devices capable of fixing individual and collective memories. Through the analysis of case studies – including the Eumig company documentaries and the Burgenland footage – it is shown how amateur footage provides a more intimate and non-institutionalised view of production spaces. The comparison with the official images allows us to detect a ‘bottom-up’, less celebratory and more authentic point of view. Finally, it is proposed to consider these sources as audiovisual micro-archives, capable of broadening the spectrum of research on industrial archaeology and enriching the understanding of the transformation of labour landscapes in the second half of the 20th century.References
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