Lincoln Center theatre on tape collection
Lincoln Center theatre on tape collection
morosco
Broadway Legend Joined: 7/10/04
#1Lincoln Center theatre on tape collection
Posted: 2/20/09 at 11:52amDoes anyone know if the archives have been transferred to a somewhat more stable digital format for reasons of preservation? Videotapes don't last forever.
bwaygal1
Broadway Legend Joined: 1/5/07
#2re: Lincoln Center theatre on tape collection
Posted: 2/20/09 at 12:02pm
As much as I know through my studies of the collection is that some of the titles have been transferred to DVD. There is also a set of two copies on site, one is the disc or tape used for viewing. The other is an extra. Then, a third copy is stored off site in case something happens to the library itself. I can't say for sure that ALL titles have been transferred to digital format (it costs money). The newer videos are probably largely DVD format. Hope this helps.
morosco
Broadway Legend Joined: 7/10/04
LadyDramaturg2
Featured Actor Joined: 8/21/08
#3re: Lincoln Center theatre on tape collection
Posted: 2/20/09 at 4:03pm
Who can we get to subsidize the transfer of the entire library?
Nederlander
Shubert
An authors' consortium
Disney/Pixar
bwaygal1
Broadway Legend Joined: 1/5/07
#4re: Lincoln Center theatre on tape collection
Posted: 2/20/09 at 4:16pm
I am actually studying to work in a place like the Library for the Performing Arts and I discussed this with several individuals. This is a branch of the public library-they are run based on city taxes and donations. Given this economy, it's very hard to come by the funds needed to create a more 'stable' digital format. Notice I put 'stable' in quotes. I did so because it is deceptive to think of digital as stable. (DVD is as close as you'll get.) You have to upload new software every time there's an update, you need to have an immense amount of storage space for all these recordings. Security is an even bigger problem if they're digitized. The cost of maintaining it would be prohibitively expensive though. New machines would have to be purchased to house the digital videos and updated. The people who would have to be hired or trained to do this would be expensive too. And it's best to have a physical back up anyway in case of emergency.
Digitization is all well and good (I'm a huge proponent of it) but this collection, format, and the institution housing it make it really difficult due to the financial constraints, largely. (Plus I'm not sure all the actors' unions, stagehands' unions and creative teams would want these films so readily available.)
If you just mean the transfer to DVD, well that's in process I believe. Again, funding is an issue here too. (It doesn't seem so expensive but it is. Someone has to be paid to transfer these items 3 times onto DVD.)
Videos