Sir Alan Parker donates his personal archive to the BFI
Director Sir Alan Parker has donated his personal archive to the British Film Institute.
The collection includes scripts, production papers, posters and his filmmaking diaries. They cover his 45-year career from his time as a commercials director to his films including Bugsy Malone, Midnight Express, Fame and Evita. The BFI Southbank will host an exhibition focusing on the director from 24 September to 4 October. "It seems that I've accumulated an awful lot of stuff over 40 years of filmmaking and I can't think of a better home for it than the BFI National Archive," said Sir Alan. "As a past chairman of the BFI, I know how everything is so diligently cared for out at Berkhamsted and it's good to know it's in safe hands and will be available to future students of film." The BFI National Archive is based in Berkhamsted, Hertfordshire, where items are stored in special conditions to preserve them. The director's collection fills 70 large boxes, which are being archived. They will then be open to the public, and some items will be digitised for online access. The archive also includes a collection of photographs and production stills by photographers including Greg Williams, Mary Ellen Mark and Terry O'Neill. Nathalie Morris, senior curator of Special Collections at the BFI, said they are "incredibly grateful" for the "generous donation" and called it "an exceptionally rich archive". "Sir Alan Parker is one of several distinctive talents to emerge from a very particular place and moment - the British advertising industry of the late 60s and early 70s," she said. "His archive will provide a wealth of insights into his working process as a writer and director, as well enhancing our understanding of the film industry and filmmaking, over the past 40 years. The BFI National Archive is delighted to be preserving this archive for the nation."