Informal Archiving in a Riverine System

Abstract

Two informal archives have enabled the circulation of rare Philippine films: first, Video 48, a legendary brick-and-mortar video store specializing in Tagalog feature-length fiction films; and second, the Kalampag Tracking Agency, a microcuratorial initiative and screening program helmed by Merv Espina and Shireen Seno that retrieves and recirculates experimental shorts from Manila's alternative scene. Both Video 48 and the Kalampag Tracking Agency revalue residual media from various historical eras and facilitate essential flows between private collections originating in insider circles and a broader public who would otherwise be unable to access these films. Conceptualizing archival circulation as a riverine system involving formal and informal entities, social actors, and practices, the chapter analyzes four short films from Kalampag's screening programs: ABCD (Roxlee, 1985); Juan Gapang (Johnny crawl; Roxlee, 1986); Bugtong: Sigaw ni Lalaki (Riddle: Shout of man; R. J. Leyran, 1989); and Class Picture (Tito & Tito, 2011).