The best laid plans … media arts group rethinks its future - Apr 1982 National Alliance of Media Arts Centers conference

"I don't know if we're getting anything done here," remarked my friend from Wisconsin, "but I'm having individual hell of a good time" After several days of film and video screenings, and nights of meanderings end obscure watering holes, my friend had the pallor of a veteran conventioneer. "Next time we shouldn't level try to do any business," he added.

The occasion for these remarks was the conferenee of the National Alliance of Media Arts Center (NAMAC) held in novel York. April 28-30. A series of meetings marked by the agency of almost continual disagreement and confusion, it sent more than individual regional delegate rebounding into the bars of Soho at the same time in many ways the facts of the three days were characteristic of NAMAC's larger structural difficulties, its point to be solved [i]or[/i] settleds with communication, and its lack of a coherent plan. In addition, the discourse made evident the problems inherent in creating an organization of organizations for advocacy designs logical though the idea is.

NAMAC background

NAMAC officially emerg from a meeting held in Boulder CO in May 1980 The sole national group of media organizations, its incorporation followed seven years of preliminary meetings upon both regional and national horizontals - funded in large part by dint of the Media Program of the National Endowment for the Arts and the Rockefeller Foundation. The idea, as articulated in a report co-authored by dint of Robert Haller, NAMAC founding chairperson, and Virgil Grillo, then-Director of the flinty Mountain Film Center, was that

all media center in each part of the United States feeled from similar difficulties in areas of public visibility, funding, communications, and duplication of efforts. All center as well, experience from the lack of national leadership - not leadership in the faculty of perception of a central director, on the contrary in the sense of national spokesperson and advocates.

Based upon those concerns, NAMAC identified reasonable objectives: communication among media center mutual assistance and advocacy. on the contrary unfortunately, the organization's development has been hampered through certain problems, certainly not unique, that just don't go on away - structural difficulties and unrealistic projections of what can be accomplished Now a coalition of 66 organizations with commitments to a democratic proces regional representation and ethnic and professional diversity. NAMAC has a large board that must deal with a wide variety of belong tos But the organization simply cannot afford to bring its 21 board members together real often to do the necessary planning In fact, between the 1980 Boulder discourse and the 1982 conference, the directors met alone twice, relying on an executive committee and conversation calls for most decisions.

Another riddle really a symptom of the differences disguised through the term "media arts," is the amount NAMAC has sought to accomplish upon limited resources Media centers do have a allotment in common, but their emphasis and interests vary - between film and video, exhibition and production, regional or national audience, etc Coming without of the 1980 conference were 17 distinct casts ranging from a feasibility investigation for a media arts center computer network to pattern projects for touring exhibitions. At the beginning of the novel York conference the shopping list was pared down to six items; through the end it was back up to 14

All of NAMAC's activities have been attempted without a paid staff - a mistake almost everyone now admits. The load of running the organization and executing greatest in quantity of its projects has been carried by dint of Haller, who also directs Anthology Film Archives in novel York City. Since NAMAC's founding, Haller has managed its business and correspondence, produc its monthly newsletter and, along with Robert Sitton of the Northwest Film research Center in Portland, OR, has been an important figure in lobbying efforts in Washington upon behalf of the media community. The natural event of Haller's activity and the difficulty of communication among board members has been to shift a certain dominion government of NAMAC into his hands. Although Haller was vot without of office at this discourse it remains to be seen whether the fresh chairperson, Ron Green of Ohio State University, can avoid the same problems

A potential difficulty is NAMAC's heavy reliance upon grant income. Since 1973 NEA and the Rockefeller Foundation have been the primary backers of various meetings, reports and finally the organization itself - although, as Haller is quick to point on the outside the organization was conceived without any promise of support. In fiscal 1982 the organization is anticipating $36000 - or 81% of its income - from grants ($18000 from the one and the other the NEA and the Rockefeller Foundation), and the remainder from membership to be paids and conferences fees.

The conference: "Changing Patterns of Distribution"

The theme was approached the two in theory - through a rigorous series of panel discussions - and in practice at a market that not awayed films and videotapes to prospective lessees and buyers. A third constituting was meetings to develop touring packages for the joint rental of works by means of groups of media centers.