A number of decisions concerning the National Film and Sound Archive (NFSA) have been made in advance of the 2014-2015 Federal Budget. Nearly every film society in Australia will be affected.

THE KEY DECISIONS

1. SUPPORT FOR THE SCREEN LENDING COLLECTION IS TO BE WITHDRAWN.

2. THE NFSA HAS ALREADY STOPPED ADDING NEW ITEMS TO THE SCREEN LENDING COLLECTION. IT HAS ALSO STOPPED RENEWING FILM AND DVD LICENCES.

3. THE SCREENING LOANS SECTION WITHIN NFSA WILL BE DISBANDED IN COMING MONTHS. WHETHER THE SERVICE CONTINUES BEYOND THIS FINANCIAL YEAR IS UNDER CONSIDERATION BY NFSA SENIOR MANAGEMENT.

MAJOR CONSEQUENCES FLOWING FROM THE DECISIONS ·

All borrowing from the collection will cease from a given date; all items now held in the Screen Lending Collection will be absorbed into the general collection and become inaccessible to erstwhile borrowers, other than commercial clients and possibly accredited researchers and educational institutions. ·

It’s a no-brainer that once the NFSA stops providing cost-effective screening rights, higher fees charged by other license holders will make life extremely difficult for film societies. Some will find it impossible to continue. ·

PLEASE ACT NOW!

email a short message indicating your support for the Screen Lending Collection and the Screening Loans Section to Michael Loebenstein, CEO of the NFSA, at michael.loebenstein@nfsa.gov.au, and cc it to the following senior NFSA executives: Steve Vogt, Organisational Development and Corporate: steve.vogt@nfsa.gov.au; Jane Cruickshank, A/g General Manager, Access and Outreach: jane.cruickshank@nfsa.gov.au; Sonia Gherdevich A/g General Manager, Collection Development: sonia.gherdevich@nfsa.gov.au

Dear Mr Loebenstein, I am writing to you on behalf of/as a member of (your film society) concerning the future of the Screen Lending Collection and the Screening Loans Section of the NFSA. We appreciate the pressure you are under, but we are extremely concerned that closing down these facilities will have many serious consequences, especially for film societies which rely on them very heavily. More importantly, I/we feel obliged to point out that if the collection closes, the NFSA would not be meeting its obligation to carry out the core functions of collecting, preserving and sharing Australia’s audiovisual heritage, as enshrined in legislation and enunciated in the NFSA charter and current NFSA promotional material. The only way we and other film societies across Australia can share the NFSA collection is by using the Screen Lending Collection. Closing it would be denying us this opportunity. Accordingly, I/we hope you are able to ensure the Screen Lending Collection continues to flourish and the Screening Loans Section continues to provide its excellent service. I/We look forward to your early reply. Yours etc, (Your name)