Inside the Archive articles

Object of the week

Object of the week: What’s a Kalamazoo?

This vintage filing system with its colour-coded film records holds an invaluable place on the shelves of the BFI National Archive. Have you checked the Kalamazoo?

By Jez Stewart

Object of the week: What’s a Kalamazoo?

Object of the week

The letter that made Audrey Hepburn a star

By Nathalie Morris

The letter that made Audrey Hepburn a star

Object of the week

Object of the week: production design for the Hindi classic Pakeezah by British sketch artist Ivor Beddoes

By Nathalie Morris

Object of the week: production design for the Hindi classic Pakeezah by British sketch artist Ivor Beddoes

Features

Phantom rides and kisses in tunnels: the Victorian craze for train films

By Bryony Dixon

Phantom rides and kisses in tunnels: the Victorian craze for train films

Rarities of British cinema

Knives out: remembering Murder in the Family, a forgotten drama from the golden age of detective fiction

By Josephine Botting

Knives out: remembering Murder in the Family, a forgotten drama from the golden age of detective fiction

Object of the week

The unique teaser posters for Ealing’s post-war émigré drama Frieda

By Nathalie Morris

The unique teaser posters for Ealing’s post-war émigré drama Frieda

Features

Railway 200 on screen: British cinema’s great train journey

By Steven Foxon

Railway 200 on screen: British cinema’s great train journey

Object of the week

Behind-the-scenes photos of documentary pioneer Humphrey Jennings filming alt-history drama The Silent Village

By Nathalie Morris

Behind-the-scenes photos of documentary pioneer Humphrey Jennings filming alt-history drama The Silent Village

Object of the week

Henry VIII and His Six Wives: a costume drawing for the 1970s historical epic

By Nathalie Morris

Henry VIII and His Six Wives: a costume drawing for the 1970s historical epic

Object of the week

The 3D printer that helps us recreate vintage film equipment

By Ian Shand

The 3D printer that helps us recreate vintage film equipment

Object of the week

The annotated shooting script for The Third Man, minus the ‘cuckoo clock’ speech

By Nathalie Morris

The annotated shooting script for The Third Man, minus the ‘cuckoo clock’ speech

Object of the week

The shooting script for Sally Potter’s Orlando

By Nathalie Morris

The shooting script for Sally Potter’s Orlando

Object of the week

Camels attending a cinema in Sutton in 1962

By Kay Eldridge and Alex Prideaux

Camels attending a cinema in Sutton in 1962

Object of the week

Alan Whicker’s cue cards for interviewing Sean Connery on You Only Live Twice

By Nathalie Morris

Alan Whicker’s cue cards for interviewing Sean Connery on You Only Live Twice

Object of the week

Object of the week: Harold Brown’s handmade film printer, the Mark IV

By Alex Prideaux

Object of the week: Harold Brown’s handmade film printer, the Mark IV

Object of the week

Object of the week: The colourful lists from Peter Wollen’s notebook

By Nathalie Morris

Object of the week: The colourful lists from Peter Wollen’s notebook

Object of the week

Object of the week: promotional still for the lost silent romcom Swim Girl, Swim

By Eva Norton

Object of the week: promotional still for the lost silent romcom Swim Girl, Swim

Object of the week

Object of the week: The Red Shoes wallpaper by the film’s designer Hein Heckroth

By Nathalie Morris

Object of the week: The Red Shoes wallpaper by the film’s designer Hein Heckroth