This talk will discuss a unique amateur film collection held by the Indiana University Libraries Moving Image Archive (IULMIA), including the challenges and ethical questions surrounding efforts to make the work of a female filmmaker and writer visible through preservation and access. Bernadine Bailey (1901-1995) was a travel writer from Illinois who documented her trips and supplemented her writing through the use of small gauge film. Bailey’s films were donated to IULMIA after they were discovered in a barn by a historical society in her hometown. Discussion will center around our attempts to describe and contextualize content (including some culturally sensitive content) from 109 films with limited access to ephemeral material during the COVID-19 pandemic, efforts to interpret Bailey’s perspective as a Westerner travelling the globe, and our experience navigating copyright in order to make visible the work of this groundbreaking female filmmaker. Madeline


Madeline Webb-Mitchell
Media Archivist, Indiana University Libraries Moving Image Archive, USA

Madeline Webb-Mitchell is a moving image archivist at Indiana University Libraries Moving Image Archive, where she has worked in a variety of roles since 2018. She holds a Master’s in Library Science from Indiana University Bloomington and a Bachelor’s degree in history from Agnes Scott College.