Sufficiency or Excess: Analog and Digital Strategies for Film Heritage Sustainability
Author(s)
Date Issued
2026
Type
article
Volume
25
Issue
45
Start Page
135
End Page
153
Journal
Abstract
The contemporary media landscape is marked by a tendency to accept the market-driven practices of planned obsolescence, where questions of sufficiency and excess permeate the realms of media industry practices. While this is entering the broader discussion on media sustainability, inadequate attention has been given to these phenomena in the film heritage field.As content libraries expand, the need for larger and more efficient data centres challenges the limits of storage, archiving, and accessibility. Many countries throughout Europe have witnessed the construction of cutting-edge film storage vaults and preservation centres, but the rising volume of digital content and the induced built-in redundancy of digital for-mats gradually replacing carrier-based collections have necessitated a heightened focus on digitization, such as digital preservation standards and access for both analog and digi-tal-born film materials.
Additional information
This article is one of the research outputs of the project SAFE – the SustainAbility of italian Film hEritage: Archival Infrastructures, Digital Preservation, Stewardship Strategies, financed by the European Union - NextGeneration EU Initiative - Mission 4, Component 2, Investment 1.1. Protocol P2022TXJ77 under the PRIN program by Italian Ministry for Universities and Research.