This Best Practice Guide has been produced by the BFI Film Audience Network, in collaboration with the Regional and National Film Archives, to support exhibitors to plan and deliver screen heritage events.

The guide has been created to complement Changing Times: a multi-year, nationwide screen heritage programme led by Film Hub North on behalf of the BFI Film Audience Network. Changing Times provides exhibitors with funding to produce screen heritage events that celebrate the moving image collections of the UK’s public film archives.

Exhibitors are encouraged to explore new ways of screening archive material, experiment with exciting event formats and forge new collaborations with partners across the archive and wider cultural sectors. We’ve produced this guide to nurture these ambitions and increase exhibitors’ confidence in working with archive film.

This document builds on existing archive resources (listed later) and draws on the experience gained and lessons learned in the first two years of Changing Times from 2018-2020. It can be read in its entirety for an overall introduction to screening archive film, or you can consult individual sections for information on specific topics like programming, rights clearances or live scores.

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