Mark your calendars for Free the Tapes: Summer Edition!
Free the Tapes, an event highlighting digitized audiovisual materials from members of the community, is back this summer at UGA Special Collections! Join us on Saturday, July 26th, 2025, from 1PM-3PM to view clips of newly digitized and preserved videos from our community, play bingo, interact with different AV formats and equipment, and learn more about our archives!
What is Free the Tapes?
You know that box of videotapes in your attic that you have no way of viewing? The archivists at the Brown Media Archives want to free your videos from their outdated formats so that you can access them again! "Free the Tapes" showcases these materials, in addition to a curated selection of home movies and amateur films from our vault. For this edition of Free the Tapes, our archivists are particularly interested in materials showcasing summer trips, vacations, hobbies, and more!
How does it work?
*Sign up for a date & time at one of our 3 locations to drop off materials (registration link goes live on May 6th, 10am)
- Tuesday, May 13th at Athens Clarke County Library from 9am-12pm
- Wednesday, May 14th at Winterville Cultural Center from 11am-1pm
- Thursday, May 15th at UGA Special Collections Library from 4:30pm-6:30pm
*Spots are limited so SIGN UP IS MANDATORY (we can’t take any items if not signed up ahead of time)
* UP TO 3 AUDIOVISUAL ITEMS PER HOUSEHOLD/FAMILY! Brown Media works with all kinds of formats; from 8mm film to VHS, Betamax to microcassette, our archivists can do it!
*The archivists work their digitizing magic
*It culminates with a big event on July 26th, where all items will be digitized and ready to be returned.
* Plus, we’ll unveil our AV Petting Zoo, giving you the chance to handle and interact with different formats and equipment.
For more information, contact Thomas May (thomas.may@uga.edu).