Back in the spring I attended an exhibit at the Skirball Cultural Center in Los Angeles called JEWISH HOMEGROWN HISTORY. THe USC Casden Institute for the study of the Jewish role in American Life and the USC School of Cinematic Arts were behind the presentation and panel discussion.
A gallery of the center was used to project a series of home movies. taken by families of families and covering various rites of passage as well as everyday life. Most of us have had the experience of being asked to watch a home movie (or maybe one that was taken of a wedding or other family event by a professional) and feeling a little bored with it, especially when it's something that's been shown more than once. The quality of home movies varies, and in the early days of home movies, the stars did a lot of waving to the camera. These home movies are related to the reality TV shows of today though and I think are more interesting the more time has passed.
That's because Home Movies are time capsules. We get to know a lot about the stars - the family - by observing their clothing, hairstyles, and the places they lived and held ceremonies and celebrations. We can tell something about what they thought to be important, what they spent money on film and developing on. We can see them alive and moving, rather than posing for a picture.
HOME MOVIES can be an important preservation of family history, and whatever your family ethnic or religious culture, part of preserving memories of that culture.
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