First Video May Fair

[Extract from program:]

The weekend will be a video forum: the playback of videotapes and the discussion of how, where and why people are using video.

The weekend will provide the opportunity for videomakers to gain feedback from interested groups and individuals, who will, in turn, see what videotapes are available.

The program collects recent video works into two main areas: social action and performance. There will be facilities for impromptu playbacks of “off the street” tapes and replays of programmed tapes.

Bring your own tapes – ½ inch reel-to-reel and ¾ inch U-matic playback facilities will be available.

[Extract from Access Video News, Vol. 3, Nos. 1 & 2:]

A weekend of video-playbacks and discussions, organised by SOAP and independent video makers, at the Filmmakers Co-op, St. Peters Lane, Darlinghurst.

At long last tapemakers in Sydney are doing something about distributing and promoting software. The Sydney Filmmakers Co-op in conjunction with SOAP and the access centres have organised a weekend of playback-discussion called “Video May Fair”. The venue will be the Filmmaker’s Co-op, St. Peters Lane, Darlinghurst. Date: 21, 22 May. Time: 12 noon to 7pm each day.

Tapes will cover the usual wide range of subject areas: socio/political, theatre, education, performance, etc. Some of the highlights include SOAP’s “Shipbuilding” and “Painters and Docker’s” tape, the Media Collectives “The Greatest Advertising Campaign the Country’s Ever Known” (based on the Nov. 11 coup), Paddington’s “Not guilty not insane” (Free Sandra Wilson Campaign), tapes from “Open Processes” (Stephen Jones, Watters Gallery video installation), plus multi-screen contributions from Paul Frame and Clive Scollay.

We envisage two separate playback areas, one programmed and the other open-ended, plus allowing for at least 10 mins. discussion after each tape. Advertising and promotion of May Fair through local, metropolitan, and student press is already under way. Owing to the short period we have left to plan the festival, we must restrict the structured format to tapes we know are available in Sydney. But don’t let that discourage you. We invite all access centres and production collectives to send in tapes. Every tape we get will receive a showing in the upstairs continuous playback area, plus pre-publicity on the day. We expect upwards of 200 hundred people during the weekend.

Long overdue is a video-tapemakers’ festival on a national level. This idea will be floated at a meeting scheduled for 7pm Sunday after the final weekend’s showing. Any ideas on possible venue, format, time (August?) will be acknowledged — put them in writing or on tape and send them to Video May Fair, Filmmakers Co-op, St. Peters Lane, Darlinghurst 2010.

Sue Lambert (Filmmakers Co-op) 
Tom Zubrycki (SOAP) 
Susan Varga (NAMA)