Diversity within Wessex Film and Sound Archive collections

In the context of this guide, diversity is taken to include on-screen representations, and (in some cases) filmmaker characteristics such as:

• disability
• ethnicity
• gender identity
• sexuality

Why this guide is needed

The catalogue does not use a controlled vocabulary and therefore the keywords that are used in its entries do not come from a defined set of terms.

As part of work funded by the British Film Institute (BFI)’s Resilience Fund, we have started to implement inclusive terminology in our cataloguing.

We have developed an Inclusive Cataloguing Resource Pack for staff and volunteers. This has been designed to give cataloguers confidence to use terminology describing disability, ethnicity, gender identity and sexuality.

The absence of definitive data on protected characteristics of those who make and feature in archives has meant that the voices of some individuals and communities have previously been hidden.

Adapting to changing terminology

We know that things change, and the way we do things should change accordingly. As such, we will review our cataloguing guidelines and preferred terms periodically to reflect these changes in line with wider developments in society.

As demographic descriptors and preferred terminology change, our language choices may not be deemed suitable by everyone, now and in the future.

However, the only way to improve the visibility of records in the collection is by taking this risk, applying a broad key term, and inviting researchers to delve into these records.

By doing so, we can learn more about the items we hold and, in turn, update our keywords to more effectively represent those on screen, or who were involved in the making of films and videos.

How to use this guide

This guide provides rationale for our approach to this work and provides a list of key terms that we have started using in our cataloguing. By selecting appropriate keywords from the lists, you can locate items within the collection that might be of interest to you.

Term accuracy

Where possible we have applied specific key terms to ensure people in the collection are not misidentified.

In most cases cataloguing is being undertaken retrospectively and contact with those seen on screen to enable them to self-describe is not possible. As such, we hope to use more general terms (e.g. ‘on-screen diversity’) to allow researchers to locate records as potential sources of interest.

Using a general term is not our preference, and we do so on the understanding that it makes such records visible in the first instance and creates opportunities for us to improve our cataloguing.

In these cases, we invite researchers to tell us what they learn about these sources, so that we might improve the words we use to describe them.

Where to find more information about inclusive cataloguing at WFSA

You can read more about the background to developing this finding aid and our approach to inclusive cataloguing in our Inclusive Cataloguing Resource Pack.

We are keen to see this document evolve and grow over time and we welcome input that can positively shape its development. If you would like a copy or have suggestions, please get in touch.

Helping us to improve our cataloguing

We acknowledge that the broad terms ‘on-screen diversity’ and ‘possible LGBTQ+ content’ are far from ideal. These terms should not be overused when more specific terms are appropriate.

We ask users accessing records to help us improve our cataloguing. Where we have applied a broad term in the knowledge that it falls short on capturing the specificity of people’s experiences, if, after viewing items, you have knowledge and expertise, we’d welcome your input to improve the words that we use.

Using keywords to identify items

Using the ‘Advanced Search’ function on our online catalogue we advise searching for:

• AV* (to narrow your search to audio-visual items only)
• Any of the keywords listed

As we are at the beginning of the process of adding these terms to the catalogue, the number of results returned may be small to begin with, but this will increase over time.

Preferred terms and how to interpret them