![Picking out a film can from the vaults](https://www.mmu.ac.uk/sites/default/files/styles/page_header_half/public/2021-10/CanVault2.jpg?h=292a78af&itok=x17R-5Xf)
About the collection
What kinds of film do we look after?
Introduction
Since 1977, we have been gathering, preserving and sharing thousands of moving images made in or about Greater Manchester, Lancashire, Cheshire, Merseyside and Cumbria.
The material includes both professional and amateur footage, from the pioneer days of film to the digital video productions of today.
Neil MacInnes quote
We’ve worked closely with the North West Film Archive for over 10 years, and I consider it a centre of excellence in the city. It’s a phenomenal resource for telling the story of the North West and bringing history to life
Section heading
Our collection includes:
- cinema newsreels
- documentaries
- advertising and promotional material
- educational and travel films
- home movies
- corporate videos
- regional television programmes
![A member of staff at the NWFA views a film on a Steenbeck flatbed editing suite](https://www.mmu.ac.uk/sites/default/files/styles/16_9_two_column/public/2021-10/Steenbeck.jpg?h=a2a2f083&itok=lVcCoU-p)
![A female mill worker beside a loom "kissing the shuttle" in 1919](https://www.mmu.ac.uk/sites/default/files/styles/16_9_two_column/public/2021-10/NWFA%2037%20Messrs.%20Barlow%20and%20Jones%20Ltd.%20Manchester%20and%20Bolton%20crop2.jpg?h=4d0c51f6&itok=u9AeDpQ4)
We hold a wide variety of material so just ask, but strongly represented are films covering:
- work and local industry
- leisure, holidays, sport and entertainment
- local traditions and community activities
- transport
- housing
- wartime experiences
We also hold photographs, taped interviews and original documentation that link to some of our films and to the region’s film and cinema industries.