Exiles and colonists in the first person: the family archive and its recent (re)writings in Spain

Abstract

Filmoteca Española has among its amateur film collections some very special collections in terms of mobility: films shot during the central decades of the 20^th century in Republican exile and in the African colonies. These are very particular cultural products with a controversial historical character and complex conditions of management, conservation and dissemination by the institution. This article will first describe the particularities shared by both types of mobility images and will trace the lines that distinguish them. Then, the policies that have been carried out by Filmoteca Española for their conservation and dissemination are analysed; for this purpose, the research and curatorial programme implemented between 2018 and 2021 to recover these parcels of history by working with amateur images located in the archive’s collection will be especially taken into account. Finally, we will analyse the two pieces produced within the framework of this programme related to exile and the colonies: Diarios del exilio (Irene Gutiérrez, 2029) and Memorias de Ultramar (Carmen Bellas and Alberto Berzosa, 2020).