"Let me illustrate this with reference to the part of the world where I live - the Southeast Asia/Pacific region... It's home to half a billion people - a twelfth of the world's population. Does it also have - should it have - a twelfth of the world's preserved moving image heritage? How does it rate in world terms?"
"Making do, as a practice of poor archiving, is then a distinctly scrappy affair that involves collective efforts to make the best of meagre resources. Such practices do not represent a permanent solution; nonetheless, poor archiving must be defended rather than patronized."
GAVA 2026 invites scholars, archivists, artists, curators, filmmakers, students, and enthusiasts to explore contemporary professional, artistic, and socio-political issues affecting audiovisual heritage today.
In the 21st century, audiovisual archives are increasingly shaped by the communities that care for them, in the regions beyond the established buildings of film studios or public archives. Moreover, the audiovisual heritage located in Asia, Africa, Latin America, the Caribbean, and the Pacific are largely managed with scarcity of resources, keeping them in the peripheries of global history or, as Edmondson said, outside of the frame, which primarily centres on the canons coming from Western Europe and North America.
Regional, local, activist, and cultural practices are redefining the archive beyond national or institutional frameworks. Smaller archives, private collections, and non-institutional initiatives often face challenges such as limited resources, lack of access to digitization technologies, and the need for specialized labor. Inspired by the 'manifesto for poor archiving' proposed by Filipina scholar Bliss Cua Lim, GAVA 2026 aims to shed light on these realities, fostering dialogue about creative strategies, sustainable solutions, advocacy, and collaborations that ensure archival materials are preserved, activated, and made accessible.
Central to GAVA is identifying gaps in the field, building bridges, and fostering alliances among institutions, communities, and individuals. The conference will also explore innovative practices, theoretical frameworks, and creative interventions that expand our understanding of audiovisual heritage.
The GAVA Program Committee proposes a focus on both contemporary and historical issues in audiovisual archiving practices within the Asian region, including its colonial and transnational entanglements. Multiple media formats were created, used within and exported from the region, shaping Asian and global audiovisual history. Asia’s longstanding traditions of screen culture, its narrative and linguistic diversity, and its globally far-reaching entertainment industry could also inspire the growth of archival and academic projects or collaborations. At the same time, the region’s diverse climate conditions offer valuable opportunities to learn from existing practices and strategies and to develop innovative approaches. The Committee recognizes that promoting sustainable audiovisual archiving in the region is a pressing priority. The Conference aims to highlight achievements in maintaining archiving practices, provide a collaborative platform for presenting initiatives, and support institutions confronting economic, political, climatic, and technological challenges.
The Program Committee will be especially interested in proposals that address the following topics, which include but are not limited to:
The following formats of presentation are welcome:
Proposals received by 15th February 2026 will receive full consideration, and acceptance results will be sent out by 6th March 2026. Among other information, the form will ask for the following:
The Committee is working on providing a limited amount of travel grants, please add information in your proposal if you need it.