The Hong Kong Film Archive (HKFA) has published an article titled “Memory, History, and Archives: SEAPAVAA Conference 2019, Noumea”  in their Newsletter Issue 89, August 2019. The article was written by their staff Kwok Ching-ling who attended the 23rd SEAPAVAA Conference in Noumea, New Caledonia, 25-30 June 2019. She reflected on the conference theme and shared her key takeaways from the event.
Memory, History, and Archives: SEAPAVAA Conference 2019, NoumeÌa
Kwok Ching-Ling
âUNESCO uses the concept of âmemory institutionsâânot history institutionsâto collectively describe archives, libraries, museums and similar bodies, including audiovisual archivesâ. As Dr Ray Edmondson broached the concept of âmemory institutionsâ, I mused: What this notion, by implication, could mean?
Under the theme âMemory, History, and Archives,â the 23rd annual conference of the Southeast Asia-Pacific Audiovisual Archive Association (SEAPAVAA) was held from 25 to 30 June 2019 in NoumeÌa, capital of the overseas French territory New Caledonia. BibliotheÌque Bernheim along with Tjibaou Cultural Centre were the hosts of the conference.
In the two-day conference, keynote speaker Mick Newnham reviewed the history of ethnographic collections, issues confronting the indigenous people, and re-iterated the virtue of respect. Meanwhile, Professor Kwok Kian-Woon of Nanyang Technological University, Singapore presented a comprehensive analysis of the core attributes of digital transformation. Only through understanding history can humankind adapt to changes.
Memory and history are symbiotic conceptsâwhy propose calling âmemory institutionsâ instead of âhistory institutionsâ now? My immediate association was that it signified a shift to a âpeople-basedâ approach. Is digital transformation not a subject we all call attention to nowadays? Long live technology! Thereâs no stopping it. But the seriousness of the inherent problems should not be underestimated. After digesting different notions presented by various speakers, one conclusion is beyond dispute: digital transformation is a bridge that connects us to the new age, cultivating a community that respects diversity. Only then can we exploit the rich potential of cultural heritage. Establishing a sense of identity keeps memory fresh and alive, connecting the past, the present and the future.
I too shared with my fellow attendees the Archiveâs research on the Cathay repertoire. During the conference, I witnessed how devoted the many veteran audiovisual archivists and SEAPAVAA executive council members were to maintaining our community in close liaison, as well as boosting the morale of our fellow  archivistsâso as to advance our professional standards and evolve with the times. This is precisely the spirit that will inspire successive generations! (Translated by Sandy Ng)
Kwok Ching-ling is Assistant Curator I of the Hong Kong Film Archiveâs Research & Editorial Unit.Â
Original text from Newsletter (Issue 89), Hong Kong Film Archive, August 2019 https://www.filmarchive.gov.