Dallas-Fort Worth History and Culture

The G. William Jones Film & Video Collection holds a significant repository of media-related materials that capture and preserve the history of the Dallas-Fort Worth area and provide a detailed record of the ever-evolving culture in the region.

Film Festivals

Dallas VideoFest

The Video Association of Dallas Collection contains a nearly complete record of Dallas VideoFest from 1987 through approximately 2007. Founded by Bart Weiss, whose personal collection is also preserved at the archive, Dallas VideoFest grew into one of the world's largest video-based film festivals. The collection includes festival screenings, submissions, and recordings of events and guest speakers. Highlights include the annual Texas Show, which showcases independent Texas filmmakers and artists, and coverage of the Ernie Kovacs Award honoring comedians and creative innovators.

USA Film Festival

Starting in 1970 as the Screen Generation Film Festival, the USA Film Festival officially kicked off in 1971. Founded by Dr. G. William Jones and L. M. Kit Carson, the Festival was held every year on the SMU campus and served as a fundraising event for the Archive. The Jones Collection holds audio recordings of events during the Festival’s first 10 years, featuring guests and speakers such as Steven Spielberg, Terence Malick, and Robert Altman.

Radio and Television

Our collections include decades of local television news that document the people, events and everyday life of Dallas-Fort Worth. The WFAA Collection includes footage from 1960 to 1977, covering local government, education, sports, entertainment and community life. The KERA Collection extends this record from the mid-1960s through the 2010s with news reporting, documentaries, broadcasts and raw footage from Dallas' public television station. Explore the News Film Collection to learn more about these materials and other collections documenting North Texas journalism.

Dallas Theater Center

The Dallas Theater Center Collection documents the history of the Tony Award-winning regional theater founded by Paul Baker in 1959. The collection traces Baker's work from his years at Baylor University through the construction of the Kalita Humphreys Theater. It includes recordings of productions and previews, including the theater's annual performance of A Christmas Carol, along with audition tapes and other production-related film and video.

Advertising

The Glenn Advertising Collection preserves commercial advertising produced in the Dallas-Fort Worth area during the 1960s and 1970s. It includes both raw footage and finished commercials created for clients such as Lone Star Beer, Morton's Foods and Zales Jewelers.

SMU History

The G. William Jones Film & Video Collection also preserves moving image materials from Southern Methodist University. Film and video from the Division of Film & Media Arts, the Division of Journalism and the Division of Dance document student work as well as campus life during the time it was created.

The SMU Mustang Band Collection highlights performances and traditions, including the annual Pigskin Revue. The Meadows School of the Arts Collection includes student and faculty productions along with recordings of Meadows Awards ceremonies and events honoring recipients such as Stephen Sondheim, Angela Lansbury, Jacob Lawrence and Paul Taylor.