From innovative projects screening archive films on phones, to carrying out oral history interviews and editing evocative testimonies for museum displays – my archive work is wide-ranging.
As well as a thorough understanding of correct archive procedure, I also have 20 years’ experience of working with sound professionally, for archives, museums and the BBC.
“Belinda crafted elegant audio pieces … incorporating sound effects to add atmosphere without interfering with the integrity of the original material“
Ben Lumby, National Maritime Museum Cornwall
National Maritime Museum, Cornwall
Work for the multi-award winning NMMC involved editing and mixing pre-existing oral history recordings for exhibition, using sound effects to create a powerful sense of subject matter and story. This material featured in the exhibitions: Lighthouses, Life on the Rocks (2009); Rescue (2011); Search and Rescue (2013).
Plymouth Shortcuts
An Augmented Reality trail of 10 site-specific mini-movies centred around Plymouth’s waterfront. Working with the South West Film and Television Archive, it was developed to help bring classic footage “out of the archive”. The techniques used can be applied to the full range of historic collections; embedding the past in the present, amid people’s everyday lives. Find out more at Plymouth Shortcuts.
Porthcurno Telegraph Museum
Over a period of five years, I recorded 20 testimonies of former Cable & Wireless employees, their families and the people living near the Porthcurno Telegraph Museum – C&W’s former telegraph station at Porthcurno, Cornwall. I then mixed carefully selected clips and relevant sound effects to create four themed CDs, constituting a compelling narrative of a globally-significant story. I also selected, edited and mixed sections of these recordings for the award-winning museum’s multi-sensory 2014 re-launch exhibition.
Barbican Archive
In 2007 working for Plymouth City Council’s Library Service, I distilled 30 hours of pre-existing, 1990 oral history recordings into three, themed, 80 minute CDs, using sound effects and music to bring this fascinating part of Plymouth to life.
BBC People’s War
In 2005, I was the South West Co-ordinator of the BBC People’s War Archive – a web-based resource of written testimonies. Working with a wider team, I was responsible for devising a broadcast strategy; recruiting volunteer story gatherers; organizing and leading training sessions; organizing WW2 related events; working with partner organizations (especially museums and libraries) and raising the project’s profile publicly and internally.
Hidden City
As the 2008 Hidden City Festival (Plymouth) Heritage Coordinator, I worked with Part Exchange Theatre Company to create an archive centred around the locations of site-specific theatre performances. It involved oral and video history recordings, primary source research, liaising with writers and artists, and editing excerpts for the festival exhibition.
Belinda Dixon 