Movies, video recordings, radio programs, and TV programs are important parts of each country’s heritage and, as such, are important to protect. Fortunately, there is a holiday that encourages every country to protect their audiovisual media and draws attention to the importance of protecting all of this media.

This officially UNESCO-declared holiday is called World Day for Audiovisual Heritage and is observed every October 27th and is celebrated by people all over the world. It’s a great day for lovers of audiovisual media to get involved and ensure that their cultural heritage captured on film and in sound is safe for future generations to enjoy.

The History of World Day for Audiovisual Heritage

This holiday was first created in 2005 by the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization to raise awareness about the importance of recorded audiovisual media and sound recordings.

It was also created to highlight the preservation risks of this media. It’s a holiday that has been observed around the world ever since with exhibits, publications, and meetings on this subject.

Observing World Day for Audiovisual Heritage

This holiday has several main objectives. These include:

• raising the public’s awareness about the need for preserving video and audio media
• highlighting the accessibility of archives
• raising the cultural status of audiovisual media
• bringing attention to the media currently in danger
• attracting the media’s attention to heritage issues
• providing opportunities to celebrate local or international aspects of this cultural heritage

Events are usually held in many countries thanks to partnerships with audiovisual associations such as the International Council on Archives, the International Federation of Film Archives, the Association of Moving Image Archivists, and other such organizations. People can observe this holiday by ensuring that they advocate for their favorite films and audio media and by using the hashtag #WorldDayForAudiovisualHeritage on their social media accounts.