FILM PROVENANCE: A Framework for Analysis

The story of where films come from may be conceived as a triptych: the material life of cinematic objects (prints and negatives but also machines and tools), the migration of the images they contained and produced, and the cultural journey of artifacts and practices related to their production and exhibition. These three narrative strands describe the film artifacts’ itineraries in space and time and seek to interpret their meaning. In qualitative terms, the analysis of provenance in film relies on a clear understanding of both the profound connections and the equally significant differences between the image carrier and the work