A Preservation strategy for the NFSA This Preservation Strategy (Strategy) in combination with the NFSA’s Collection Policy and Statement of Curatorial Values will: guide plans and actions relating to the NFSA’s preservation mission; identify all key result areas for development and implementation; and, will provide a framework for the NFSA to focus its preservation resources in order to meet its current and future preservation obligations. VISION The NFSA seeks to be a recognised centre of excellence for audiovisual preservation nationally and internationally, including the development of expertise, the implementation and dissemination of standards and techniques, and the promotion of the value of audio visual preservation. Audience This Strategy will be used by staff at the NFSA to guide and inform preservation activity over the next three years, including the ongoing development of preservation skills and capabilities. However, it is expected that it will also be a useful guide for NFSA stakeholders in the broader Australian and international communities who are interested in the direction and priorities of the NFSA’s preservation activities. Background The NFSA preserves Australia's audiovisual culture for posterity so that the collection can be understood and interpreted by all Australians now and into the future. We will achieve this by preserving a comprehensive collection of Australia’s audiovisual cultural heritage, and all that it represents, forever. We will use all available measures to protect the integrity of the collection, to maximise the life expectancy of the materials in it, restore what can and should be restored and ensure the greatest possible access over the longest period of time for the largest number of items in the collection. UNESCO states that ‘…deterioration or disappearance of any item of the cultural or natural heritage constitutes a harmful impoverishment of the heritage of all the nations of the world’. 1. In his second reading speech in support of the NFSA legislation, the Minister stated that ‘The principal duty of a collecting institution is to 1
http://whc.unesco.org/en/182/
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manage the national collection in its care and to ensure that posterity is able to experience and enjoy all the treasures which it holds’2. In addition, the NFSA’s Act requires the organisation to ‘develop, preserve, maintain, promote and provide access to a national collection of programs and related material’ and to ‘support, promote or engage in the preservation and maintenance of programs and related material that are not in the national collection.’ Therefore, it is clear that the NFSA has a direct responsibility for the safekeeping of and ongoing access to the national collection of sound and moving image material and associated documents and artefacts. It is also clear that the NFSA has an important role in the provision of advice, assistance and information to other members of the audiovisual archiving community in Australia and abroad. The Preservation Strategy is an important element in assisting the NFSA to deliver on these priorities through high level detailed business planning processes and the successful delivery of key initiatives and projects. Scope This Strategy focuses on the range of activities and issues associated with conserving, duplicating and migrating3 the NFSA’s collection for the period 2010 – 2013. The NFSA has already developed specific policies and strategies relating to the preservation aspects of acquisition, access, stewardship, collection storage, asset renewal, collection security, storage, disaster recovery and business continuity. The NFSA’s preservation activities are also informed by a wide range of international standards, guidelines, and associations such as the International Federation of Film Archives (FIAF) and the International Association of Sound and Audiovisual Archives (IASA) – see Attachment A for a list of key references. Although these are all essential elements in the preservation of the NFSA’s collection, they will not be replicated in this Strategy. In particular, issues regarding to the philosophy and principles of audiovisual archiving and the cultural interpretation of the collection are covered by the NFSA’s Collection Policy. Issues relating to the identification of preservation risks and priorities and the application of specific resources are covered by the NFSA’s Cross Media Preservation Plan (Plan). Annual Business Plans will be developed each financial year to carry through the objectives of the Strategy and to identify key milestones and Key Performance Indicators. After 2013 this Strategy will be reviewed and updated for the period 2013 – 2016. NFSA’s Guiding Principles This Preservation Strategy addresses the following areas of the NFSA’s Guiding Principles Statement: 2
http://www.environment.gov.au/minister/garrett/2008/pubs/tr20080220.pdf
Duplication relates the creation of a replica copy for preservation or access purposes. Migration
relates to the en masse transfer of data. See Glossary of Terms in the NFSA Collection Policy for
further details.
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Mission: To excite people’s curiosity and inspire their creativity through development, preservation and an informed understanding of Australian film, sound and emerging new media heritage, its cultural diversity and significance. Values:  Stewardship – We will collect, care, preserve, manage and interpret the collection to the highest curatorial standards.  Professionalism ‐ We will be a reliable source of authentic evidence of Australia's audiovisual heritage.  Community and Engagement ‐ We will develop partnerships that extend the NFSA's networks and complement its status as a national institution of international renown.  Leadership ‐ We will share our expertise. The Collection The collection comprises more than 1.6 million items. This collection, which is likely to exceed 2 million items in the next 3 – 5 years, contains an extensive range of formats and media covering more than one hundred years of audiovisual production both in Australia and overseas. The collection includes discs, films, videos, audio tapes, phonograph cylinders and wire recordings, along with supporting documents and artefacts, such as photographic stills, transparencies, posters, lobby cards, publicity, scripts, costumes, props, memorabilia and sound, video and film equipment. The Challenges The NFSA’s audiovisual collection items are recorded on a wide variety of physical media or ‘carriers’. Audiovisual carriers have many physical characteristics that can cause archival preservation challenges. Some are very fragile, some highly flammable and all are susceptible to adverse environmental effects: they become mouldy, sticky, shrink, fade, corrode, delaminate, chemically decompose, lose their magnetic retentivity or become damaged during normal handling and use. The ability of the NFSA to arrest or impede deterioration of audiovisual works is influenced by the inhererent durability of the material itself. It is recognised that deterioration proceeds at different rates in different materials and may occur in different rates in the same material. Where a collection item’s medium and format are relatively stable, the appropriate strategy is to house the item in optimum conditions, and maintain the expertise necessary to preserve it – and where possible make it available ‐ in its original medium and format. The NFSA also protects collection content from deterioration and obsolescence through duplication or migration to a stable medium or format. This activity is carried out under curatorial guidance, in accordance with the NFSA’s Collection Policy and Cross Media Preservation Plan and in line with appropriate international standards. Preservation Strategy 2010-2012
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Although the NFSA’s policy is to preserve items in their original format and medium, digitisation is increasingly becoming the primary preservation solution for many categories of the NFSA’s collection due to the increasing rate of format obsolescence. Celluloid based motion picture film and artefacts such as equipment and costumes are the key exceptions to this. The NFSA has used digital technology to preserve the NFSA’s still image and audio collection items for the past decade. This technology has provided many storage, collection management, restoration and access benefits. NFSA will expand this approach over the next three years to cover the preservation of video items and some motion picture items (see Goal 1 of this Strategy for further details). However, digitisation has its own costs and challenges relating to dynamic format obsolescence. This obsolescence not only affects the format on which content is contained, but also provides preservation challenges for the equipment, standards, platforms and operating systems that are required to replay the various media. The NFSA’s legislative mandate also extends to collection material which is born digital (i.e. materials that originate in digital form). Managing these digital assets will continue to be a major endeavour for the NFSA that will require ongoing financial investment, as well as adaptive changes in structure, skills, attitude and continuous leadership. Migration of digital content, whether it be digitised or born digital, is an essential element in the preservation of digital artefacts. However, even this process is threatened by the rapid obsolescence of digital formats. It is fair to assume that the magnitude of the problem will dramatically increase with the proliferation of digital media in all aspects of audiovisual production. For interactive media there is no easy solution, and a combination of migration and operating environment emulation is currently the best way forwards. It is important to note that current digital access assumptions further highlight the importance of retaining original components, which remains one of the key archival principles underlying the NFSA’s Collection Policy and curatorial values. Audiovisual materials require machinery or technology to replay, render, reproduce or project the content that they contain. Such machinery may employ mechanical, optical, acoustic, electro‐mechanical, photochemical, electronic, and digital or other technology, which is developing and changing rapidly. NFSA must acquire, maintain and support all equipment necessary for preservation, conservation and restoration, including the management of parts and documentation, for the projected life of the media and formats. It will continue to be essential to balance short term access and preservation priorities with significant learning and development programs to ensure that preservation activities can be carried out now and into the future. Preservation Strategy 2010-2012
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GOALS OF THE NFSA PRESERVATION STRATEGY Within ten years (2020) the NFSA’s collection, including its digital collection, will reside in a more secure repository. Within three years (2013) preservation strategies and action plans will be in place to ensure continued access to the collection. A preservation watch mechanism will monitor and provide advance warning of the need for preservation action. The NFSA will continue to develop its national and international leadership in the preservation of analogue and digital audiovisual materials. GOAL 1: Continue to develop dynamic, cost effective and appropriate preservation programs and projects that maximise the ongoing access to the collection in accordance with international standards and the NFSA’s curatorial values. GOAL 2: Advance knowledge in the field of audiovisual preservation through research and leadership and representation on national and international preservation networks and fora. GOAL 3: Optimise capability development, succession management and knowledge transfer. GOAL 4: Develop a three year Cross Media Preservation Plan. GOAL 1: Continue to develop dynamic, cost effective and appropriate preservation programs and projects that maximise the ongoing access to the collection in accordance with international standards and the NFSA’s curatorial values. Strategies: The NFSA will:  develop a curatorially informed priority listing of all collection items that require urgent preservation treatment and develop plans to preserve items at risk within agreed time limits. These priorities will be expressed through the Cross Media Preservation Plan.  continue to review and update its standards for preservation.  undertake an annual review of its business systems and workflows and re‐
engineer those that are out of date and/or do not reflect current national and international best practice. NFSA will also consider international peer review of its business systems and preservation practices to ensure that they reflect international best practice.  continue to undertake and improve regular surveys to assess collection deterioration and institute appropriate treatment programs. This also includes monitoring the physical environment in which the collection is stored and taking all necessary steps to ensure that the collection is housed in conditions that meet national and international best practice for environmental controls. This will inform future plans for increased storage space or for the construction of a purpose built storage facility. Preservation Strategy 2010-2012
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perform preservation activities with appropriate timeliness. Some activities may be postponed, without danger, to a later date. Other activities may need to be carried out sooner rather than later owing to technology obsolescence or other factors. Effective preservation planning should allow these principles to be implemented successfully. utilise life cycle modelling to cost and plan for the preservation of traditional format and digital collections, including the consideration of complete lifecycle management of materials at the point of their acquisition. Investigate methods for reducing the environmental impact of the NFSA’s preservation activities In addition, the NFSA will achieve the following media specific key strategic deliverables: Film The core strategy for film preservation is the maintenance of controlled environment storage. Maintaining film in appropriate conditions reduces the rate of chemical decay of the film base and image. All film copying work will be carried out under curatorial guidance and in line with the NFSA’s Collection Policy. Despite the uncertain future of motion picture raw stock production, the NFSA will continue to preserve motion picture film in its original format and medium. However, film to film copying is resource intensive. While the NFSA remains fundamentally committed to respecting the historical and aesthetic identify of all works in the collection, the sheer magnitude of the film collection necessitates a diversified approach to preservation. This is particularly relevant for those titles that have been created using the film medium for practical, not artistic reasons (e.g. non fiction films shown and distributed non theatrically). On the basis that the original film medium is not intrinsic to the work in such cases, NFSA curators may determine, on a case by case basis, that it is appropriate to preserve such titles using non original formats and media. Copying of cellulose‐nitrate film onto stable polyester stock will continue to be an ongoing high priority due to the age and the inherent instability of the nitrate base leading to total loss of reproducibility, and also due to progressive reduction in image quality prior to catastrophic failure. The NFSA will also continue to monitor acetate film to detect the onset and progress of ‘vinegar syndrome’, a term for acetate film decay caused by water, high humidity or heat, which destroys the plastic base of the film releasing acetic acid or ‘vinegar’. High priority will be given to copying at‐risk acetate films onto stable polyester stock. Colour film is monitored for vinegar syndrome and colour dye fade. The NFSA does not currently have the equipment to copy colour film in‐house. Therefore, the copying of colour films of high curatorial significance will be outsourced. The NFSA is Preservation Strategy 2010-2012
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exploring the possibility of incorporating colour film processing and/or digital motion picture film preservation in its future preservation activities. A growing number of motion picture films are delivered to NFSA in digital form. NFSA will develop workflows and infrastructure necessary to quality assess and migrate this content. Video NFSA will continue to apply international best practice to video preservation activities, such as that recommended by the European Union Prestospace Project. Content from obsolete video formats determined as curatorially significant will be copied onto the current professional production format, Digital Betacam. Curators will provide guidance to prioritise the oldest and/or most vulnerable formats. An immediate focus will be given to copying content held on 2 inch Quadruplex material due to its near total obsolescence (the NFSA has one of the only full‐time operating 2 inch transfer facility in the Australasian region). The copying of U‐Matic videocassettes will also be given a high priority due to high rate of deterioration. However, content cannot be transferred to Digital Betacam format without suffering generational loss. File based digital preservation offers the only solution for this. The NFSA will implement a digital video preservation workflow as a matter of urgency, and will investigate cost effective outsourcing options for the more common video formats. These workflows will be underpinned by a new Media Asset Management system, which will be implemented in late 2010. Audio Format obsolescence and deterioration are major challenges for the NFSA’s audio collection. However, the digital based preservation workflow that has been in place for the last decade has significantly increased our capability and capacity to meet these challenges. Content from obsolete audio formats deemed to be curatorially significant will be digitally preserved, in accordance with IASA guidelines, in particular TC‐03 (Safeguarding of the Audio Heritage: Ethics, Principles and Preservation Strategy) and TC‐04 (Guidelines on the Production and Preservation of Digital Audio Objects). Priority will be given to media identified as suffering from active deterioration including, but not limited to: lacquer instantaneous disc recordings and wax cylinders, which are prone to loss of surface material rendering them unplayable; copying of audio reel‐to‐reel tape prone to hydrolysis; and, magnetic film sound tracks, wire recordings and audio cassette tapes at risk of chemical and physical deterioration. The preservation of post production material, such as multi‐tracks, will also be investigated during this period. NFSA will also investigate the implementation of multiple ingest functionality to increase the rate at which material held on compact disc and cassette tape can be preserved and made accessible. Preservation Strategy 2010-2012
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Documentation The documentation collection contains some of the oldest and most diverse items in the NFSA’s collection. It also comprises almost half of all items held by the NFSA. Access is regularly required to both originals and copies. Under curatorial guidance, items with a high priority access demand and the oldest and most damaged documentation items will be conserved as original artefacts and digitised for preservation and access purposes. Over the period of this Strategy, additional focus will be placed on identified curated documentation categories and subsets such as fragile glass slides, fragile early film posters and discrete collections containing fragile papers, costumes and artefacts. Although digital technology offers collection artefacts, such as costumes, access outcomes (and therefore some moderate preservation outcomes) this facet of the collection cannot currently be preserved digitally. Therefore the NFSA will continue to control, stabilise, secure and store these items, and will continue to provide curatorial advice regarding conditions of access. Digital The NFSA will consider the implications for the complete lifecycle of digital materials at the point of their acquisition. The digitisation program will develop and enforce an approvals process to ensure digitised collections are created with due consideration for their long term preservation. Theory, practice and confidence in digital preservation will be advanced to the point that digital data may be considered as an effective long term preservation surrogate for film, sound and broadcasting material. The NFSA’s web archiving program will explore the capture and preservation of web based materials and will contribute to the development of international toolsets. Preservation Strategy 2010-2012
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Preservation of the NFSA digital collections will be achieved by:  storing multiple copies of each digital object in different physical locations (three initially) and utilising back ups and integrity checking to ensure that no data is lost owing to media decay or catastrophe.  characterising and validating each digital object in order to determine the requirements for its preservation.  recording metadata about each digital object and allocating unique persistent identifiers to ensure that no object will be lost.  creating and evolving representation information over time.  implementing a comprehensive technology watch mechanism to provide warning of the need to take preservation action.  developing or acquiring tools to perform preservation actions on digital objects to ensure that they can continue to be used and understood.  investigating the development of a set of preferred digital standards for digital acquisition.  applying a standard set of digitisation standards (Attachment B) to all activity. GOAL 2: Advance knowledge in the field of audiovisual preservation through research and leadership and representation on national and international preservation networks and fora. Strategies The NFSA will:  address the root causes of obsolescence through an active and continued engagement with the developers of application software to improve the longevity of proprietary file formats, to reduce the frequency and complexity of digital preservation actions.  share experiences with and learn from other organisations through selective national and international collaboration, including research programs, conferences and seminars, and the provision of training.  conduct ongoing research into improving treatment methods and implement the research findings.  perform experimental preservation activities using demonstration materials from the NFSA’s own collections.  provide policy, guidance and technology to enable effective preservation infrastructure to be implemented.  seek funding for and participate in collaborative projects to develop practical preservation policy, technologies and infrastructure.  apply knowledge learnt from experience with the preservation of older materials to ensure that our preservation of current materials is effective, despite an uncertain technological future.  implement an approvals process to ensure that preservation copies are created with due consideration for their long term preservation, as described in the NFSA’s Collection Policy. Preservation Strategy 2010-2012
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implement a comprehensive technology watch mechanism to provide warning of the need to take preservation action. develop or acquire tools to perform preservation actions on objects to ensure that they can continue to be used and understood. develop a knowledge bank for the understanding of technologies, objects and management practices required for ongoing stewardship of archival audiovisual collections. GOAL 3: Optimise capability development, succession management and knowledge transfer. Strategies The NFSA will:  undertake strategic, targeted development and training to improve the professional skills of all NFSA staff and encourage staff to undertake professional training.  incorporate training and development into branch performance targets.  continue to implement a succession management strategy through the NFSA’s performance management scheme to ensure that appropriately skilled staff will be available to maintain and preserve the collection into the future.  work with education and training partners to develop and deliver to staff appropriate competencies in a wide range of conservation and preservation skills.  continue to refine its structure and operations to deliver enhanced performance and achieve optimal capability development, knowledge transfer and staff retention outcomes. GOAL 4: Develop a three year Cross Media Preservation Plan (Plan) Strategies: The NFSA will develop a Plan that allows the NFSA’s preservation resources to be prioritised in a flexible, cost effective and efficient manner. This Plan will be developed through collaboration between Curatorial and Preservation staff. The Preservation Plan will describe the prioritisation of NFSA’s preservation copying programs for those titles determined to be curatorially relevant. Titles that do not have immediate curatorial priority will continue to be preserved through effective storage, cyclical maintenance, and other archival collection management activities. The NFSA will continue to investigate innovative preservation methods to expand its preservation capacity, such as the use of technology to automate copying activity where appropriate. Although this Plan will allow for long term planning to take place, it is recognised that it will be constantly adjusted to meet the dynamic needs of collection management, preservation priorities and access programs. Preservation Strategy 2010-2012
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Risks This Strategy is, itself, a risk management plan for ensuring the ongoing safety of the NFSA’s collection. In addition, a comprehensive range of risk mitigation strategies can be found in the NFSA’s Business Continuity Plan. Measuring success ‐ consultation and evaluation This Strategy will be comprehensively reviewed each year to review the outcomes and achievements and to ensure that the strategies proposed or outlined under it remain relevant and appropriate. The review and evaluation of this strategy will primarily be the role of the Preservation and Technical Services Branch in consultation with curatorial staff. Prior to implementation, this Strategy was peer reviewed by a number of international experts to ensure its veracity and consistency. This Strategy will provide the framework for the development of an ongoing series of cross media preservation plans that will maximise the use of the NFSA’s preservation resources. The success of these plans will be tracked through the delivery on Key Performance targets, qualitative and quantitative monthly reports and regular review of performance against the prevailing cross media preservation plan. The success of this strategy will also be measured by the NFSA’s ongoing ability to provide preservation services for its collection, as a result of successful succession planning outcomes. This strategy will ensure that at risk collection profiling is carried out and that the NFSA’s resources are prioritised in a cost effective manner for preserving the most at risk and curatorially relevant items. Throughout the period of this Strategy, the NFSA will strive to increase its reputation, nationally and internationally, in the field of audiovisual preservation, and increasingly will be called upon to provide advice, training and support. The NFSA will continue to be actively involved in international discussion and debate relating to the development of standards, formats, guidelines and practices. This Strategy will be reviewed in 3 years to take account of new developments and national and international best practice. Preservation Strategy 2010-2012
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Attachment A – References 
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NFSA Cross Media Preservation Plan – to be published NFSA Collection Policy ‐ www.nfsa.gov.au/the_collection/ NFSA Collection Emergency Management Manual (DRAFT Version 4 Sept 09). IASA TC‐03 The Safeguarding of the Audio Heritage: Ethics, Principles and Preservation Strategy ‐ www.iasa‐web.org/IASA_TC03/TC03_English.pdf IASA TC‐04 Guidelines on the Production and Preservation of Digital Audio Objects ‐ www.iasa‐web.org/audio‐preservation‐tc04 PrestoPRIME: Audiovisual preservation strategies, data models and value‐chains ‐ nla.gov.au/padi/metafiles/resources/41663.html IPI Storage Guide for Acetate Film ‐ www.imagepermanenceinstitute.org ISO 18911:2000 Imaging materials – Processed safety photographic films – Storage practices ‐ www.iso.org/iso/catalogue ISO 18902 :2007 Imagine materials – Processed imaging materials – Storage Enclosures ‐ http://www.iso.org/iso/catalogue Preservation Strategy 2010-2012
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NFSA DIGITISATION STANDARDS MASTER LIST
Attachment B – Digitisation Standards COLLECTION WORKS AUDIO Web Publishing TECHNICAL STANDARDS • Encoding: MP3 • Bit rate: 16 bit/44.1 kHz ; 128 kb/sec Preservation • Encoding: BWF • High quality recordings are digitised with sample‐rate of 96 kHz, 24 bit quantization • Lower quality recordings are digitised with sample‐rate of 48 kHz, 24 bit resolution Distribution • Encoding: BWF • Bit rate: 16 or 24 bit/44.1 kHz Browsing Last Updated: April 2010 NOTES • Encoding: MP3 • Bit rate: 16 bit/44.1 kHz ; 128 kb/sec •
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Broadcast Wave Format (BWF) Standard: EBU 3285‐ Digital items, like minidisc and DAT are reformatted with their sample‐rate and quantisation preserved •
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MPEG‐1 Audio layer 3 (MP3) Motion Picture Experts Group Standard: ISO/IEC 11172‐ Page 13 of 16 NFSA DIGITISATION STANDARDS MASTER LIST
COLLECTION WORKS IMAGES TECHNICAL STANDARDS COMMENTS •
Web Publishing • Encoding: JPEG • DPI: 72 • Image bit depth: 24 • Size: suit to need Preferred Standard – JPEG if only TIFF is available use: • DPI: 300 • Image bit depth: 8 • Size: suit to need •
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Tagged Image File Format (TIFF): Adobe Standard: ISO 12639 - Preservation • Encoding: TIFF • DPI: 300 • Image bit depth: 16 • Colour: 24 bit • Greyscale: 8 bit uncompressed Distribution • Encoding: TIFF • DPI: 300 • Image bit depth: 8 Browsing • Encoding: JPEG • DPI: 640 px long • Image bit depth: 8 •
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Joint Photographic Experts Group (JPEG) Standard : ISO/IEC 10918 ‐ Thumbnail • Encoding: JPEG • DPI: 150 px long • Image bit depth: 8 Last Updated: April 2010 Page 14 of 16 NFSA DIGITISATION STANDARDS MASTER LIST
COLLECTION WORKS VIDEO Web Publishing TECHNICAL STANDARDS • Encoding: Windows Media Player • Bit rate: 512 Kbps • Frame rate: 25 fps • Size: 320 x 240 •
Joint Photographic Experts Group (JPEG) Standard: ISO/IEC 15444 – Material eXchange Format (MXF) used for exchange purposes Soundtrack digitised as WAV file • Encoding: MPEG‐2 • Bit rate: 50 Mb/s I‐frame to 5 Mb/s long GOP •
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Motion Picture Experts Group Standard: ISO/IEC 13818 • Encoding: MPEG‐1 or MPEG‐4 • Bit rate: 1.8 kb/s to 500 kb/s •
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Motion Picture Experts Group MPEG‐1 Standard: ISO/IEC 11172 MPEG‐4 Standard: ISO/IEC 14496 • Encoding: JPEG 2000 • Bit rate: 11.2 KiB Preservation Distribution Browsing Last Updated: April 2010 COMMENTS •
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COLLECTION WORKS TECHNICAL STANDARDS NOTES FILM Web Publishing Under development Preservation Under development Distribution Under development Browsing Under development Last Updated: April 2010 Page 16 of 16