Slovenian Film Archives
It was established in 1968 at the then Archives of Slovenia and tasked with collecting and protecting Slovenia film archival material on the basis of the Archives Act applicable at that time, which stipulated that a film constitutes archival records.
The Slovenian Film Archives today continues to perform that task with respect to the entire Slovenian cultural arena. In the course of its existence, it has collected the majority of Slovenian film heritage that has been produced by Slovenian authors and producers. The oldest films in the film collection (SI AS 1086) are the first Slovenian film recordings by Dr Karol Grossmann, a pioneer of Slovenian cinematography. After 1990, museums, archives, educational institutions, companies, and various personal creators and collectors entrusted the Slovenian Film Archives with the task of storing and protecting their film material. Thanks to the relatively early establishment of the Slovenian Film Archives, the Slovenians are one of the few nations that have managed to collect and preserve the majority of their national film heritage.
The Slovenian Film Archives records, acquires, processes, and ensures the physical protection and use of Slovenian film archival material in accordance with the relevant legislation.
In accordance with the legislation on archives in force, producers who have made a film using public funds are obliged to deliver the film archival material to the Archives of the Republic of Slovenia immediately after the film has been produced. Film archival material is an edited original image and sound negative recorded on film and films recorded on digital or analogue media produced by Slovenian producers and/or in co-production between Slovenian and foreign co-producers in the Republic of Slovenia. The Slovenian Film Archives also collects films that have not been co-financed by the State and/or the Slovenian Film Centre, a public agency, but belong to the archival collection.
Arranging film archival material
The following information on films is included in the record of funds and collections: title, a brief description of the subject matter, film-makers and technical data (length in metres and minutes, format, sound, colour, number of copies and their physical state, date of delivery, name of the person delivering the film, connection with the record of archival material delivered, and year of production). By the end of 2019, a total of 12.689 titles of films.
Moreover, eight inventories in book form have been issued; these contain information on 3,770 films and are accompanied with a geographical index, an index of legal persons, a personal index, an index of film-makers and a subject index with over 50,000 entries.
The Slovenian Film Archives also keeps a record of films about Slovenia and Slovenians that have been recorded by foreign film companies. It manages a collection of video cassettes and sound recordings, film archival material such as scripts, storyboards and other material related to the production of a particular film, and a comprehensive collection of photographs and slides.
Physical protection
Film archival material is stored in air-conditioned film-storage facilities on Poljanska (Kapusova) ulica in Ljubljana, which were adapted for that purpose in 2015 in accordance with the recommended standards. Because of the threat posed by the flammable nitrate film, a special storage facility in Borovec in the Municipality of Kočevje has been acquired for the storage of this kind of film material.
Use of film archival material
Users may access information on film archival material through inventories or by using the web search tool.
There has been an increase in the use of film archival material for national and foreign television shows and for the creation of new copyright work in the area of audiovisual production. Audiovisual presentations have become an almost indispensable part of exhibition projects in museums and similar institutions. Users are also provided with access to film archival material.
