As I'm sure I mentioned at some point, part of the film archiving Masters program is that I have to go on a 4-week (minimum) placement/internship at a film archive. There is no rule about where you can go. Anywhere you want really. They pretty much leave it up to you to arrange it on your own, so the placement is actually not affiliated with the school at all. It is just required for the degree. Anyway, I digress...

People usually choose to go to an archive that they would like to work for (in hopes that the internship will lead to a job-offer which, historically, it has for some people). My choices were no-brainers: Sweden or Denmark. I also had a soft spot in my heart for Belgium, but to be realistic, the language issue will not have disappeared. They still speak French & Dutch over there. Anyway, language-wise I had to narrow it down to English, Swedish, or Danish-speaking countries. So, US, UK, Canada, and Scandinavia. But I narrowed that down to just Scandinavia because I've been yearning to "reconnect with my roots", for one, and I'm really interested in what the Danish and Swedish Film Institutes are doing.

After sending my CV and letter of interest off to them, I have been offered an internship at the Danish Film Institute archive. They are currently involved in a long-term project of moving their film to a new building, a project that will not finish until 2006/7 (Hello, Job Opportunity?). While they are moving the film, they are checking its condition and re-cataloging it. These are films that haven't been seen for 60 years or more! This is an opportunity that I cannot miss! I'll be there for the month of April. Then I need to come back here to write my MA dissertation. If there is time later in the summer, maybe I'll try to go up to the Swedish Film Institute for a week or two.

So... that's why we've purchased those new reference materials. If things go the way we hope, we'll be moving AGAIN! To ANOTHER country! And poor Kristen will have to learn to speak Danish.

-RP-