The Story of British Video Activism
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Description
The coming of videotape, cheaper and more flexible than film, transformed the production and distribution of moving images, and political activists were among the first to recognise its potential. The Story of British Video Activism is the first book-length account of this vitally innovative but unjustly neglected filmmaking. Ed Webb-Ingall traces the democratising impact of portable video recording technology from the late 1960s to the early 21st century. He introduces pioneering and dynamic videomakers from John 'Hoppy' Hopkins to Liberation Films and Ceddo Film and Video Workshop, showing how video played a powerful role in local and national campaigns on issues including housing, labour struggles and racial justice.
This book reveals the grassroots radicalism of generations of video activists who put cameras in the hands of campaigners and marginalised groups to equip them to challenge authority and fight for tangible change. Close-Ups highlight innovative hardware and campaigns from the miners' strike to AIDS activism. Webb-Ingall shows that the spirit of analogue videotape lives on in today's digital video activism.
Table of Contents
British Screen Stories: Editors' Introduction
Introduction
1. Video Happenings
Close-up: The Sony Portapak
2. See Yourself on TV!
Close-up: Community Arts and the Basement Project
Montage: Have a Go and Pass It On
3. Housing for All
Close-up: From Newsreel to Reel News
4. Starting to Happen
Close-up: Inter-Action and the Media Van
5. The People's Account
Close-up: The Miners' Campaign Tapes
Montage: Distribution Catalogues
6. Getting the Word Out
Close-up: AIDS Activist Video
Epilogue: Video Activism 2.0
Further Reading
Playlist
Notes
Index
Illustration Credits
Product details
| Published | 05 Feb 2026 |
|---|---|
| Format | Ebook (PDF) |
| Edition | 1st |
| Extent | 184 |
| ISBN | 9781839022227 |
| Imprint | British Film Institute |
| Illustrations | 100 colour illus |
| Series | British Screen Stories |
| Publisher | Bloomsbury Publishing |
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