"Our archives hold the stories of our past and therefore play a unique role in building understanding and learning for our future. It is important that public archives are easily accessible, whether that is in physical buildings or online, so that the benefit is spread to as wide a range of people as possible." Barbara Follett, Culture Minister.

How can the stories and histories, the hidden gems and treasures contained within currently inaccessible archives be released and made available through innovative uses of digital media?

Do you have the skill and imagination to design sustainable archive-based services which can make a valuable contribution to democracy, to learning, history and culture within the communities they serve?

The Digital Treasures Archive Lab has been arranged following the successful Digital Treasures conference, organized in November by Screen WM and Arts Council WM's in partnership with the MLA. From the keynotes at Digital Treasures by BBC's Tony Ageh and Shadow Arts Minister, Ed Vaizey, it was clear that there are a myriad of opportunities for innovation with digital tools and platforms for both original archive content and for new or more efficient ways to manage the archiving process.

Feedback from the event indicated a strong appetite to create a space for further exploration and development of ideas. It was also clear that there is a real necessity to forge meaningful partnerships in order to unlock the opportunities - rights holders working with archivists, academics and digital media production companies who can combine to develop strong projects with buy-in at every level. 



We are delighted to be able to offer just such an opportunity through this Crossover Labs event, which will be held between March 3rd and 5th in the West Midlands. The lab will bring together creative professionals from diverse disciplines – including film or television, social media, web design, games, mobile and location based services,  – to work with curators and archivists on developing innovative digital archive projects.