Contribution short abstract:

The author critiques the so called linguified films on the UNESCO ICH website that are based on statements by experts or on the off commentary with description from the nomination form. She calls for the complementarity of written and visual modes in heritage research and within UNESCO frameworks.

Contribution long abstract:

UNESCO promotes the mediatisation of intangible heritage: members of the Evaluation Body and participants at sessions of the Intergovernmental Committee for the Safeguarding of Intangible Cultural Heritage do not get to know the heritage elements and their practitioners in local environments, but only virtually – according to data in the nomination form, photographs and film. The author participates in documenting and presenting intangible cultural heritage with films based on visual ethnography, in close cooperation with heritage practitioners. In collaborative film productions they can mediate their (emic) practices, skills and testimonies to UNESCO’s evaluators and the viewers of the UNESCO website. She critiques the construction of knowledge in the linguified films that are based either on (etic) statements by experts or on the off commentary quoting the heritage element’s description from the nomination form. She calls for the complementarity of written and visual modes both in heritage research and within UNESCO frameworks.

Key words: film, intangible heritage, visual ethnography, participation, mediatisation