9 Research Chair in Cultural Heritage at the University of Regina
A project led by Dr. Sheila Petty,
Faculty of Media, Arts and Performance, University of Regina
Dr. Sheila Petty, of the University of Regina, teaches film and researches Moroccan Amazigh cinema. Given the range and reach of her work, she was awarded the SaskPower Research Chair in Cultural Heritage for the 2022-2024 period. “The overall goal of my research program in film, culture and heritage is to lead dialogue and practice concerning living cultural heritage, memory, and identity politics in globalizing cultures, political and cultural sovereignty, control of representation in image production, and modes of resistance to colonialism in African screen media,” she explains.
Collaborative work has already begun amongst students, professors, professionals, and other involved individuals and organizations to capture the understanding of culture and the methods of cultural preservation through living heritage. It focuses on three areas of research: cinema as a medium of transmission of cultural heritage; film festivals as making cultural heritage accessible and contributing to audio-visual memory; and the decolonization of film festivals so as to help them better share ownership with the communities concerned by their focus.
Another example of a project that could take place is a “never-ending” film that would document how living heritage manifests itself in Morocco, Mexico, and Canada. The goal of this project is to understand the manifestation of a specific practice, from a specific culture, in a specific location, and then add to the notion of living heritage by noting how another culture, in another part of the world, exhibits similar traditions or practices.
The hope is that this initiative will change the way history is perceived. Specifically, it aims to change perceptions of heritage as static; rather, it is ever changing. How do we preserve aspects of our heritage for future generations? Another aspiration for this initiative is to create a golden standard for cultural preservation. Cultural preservation through living heritage is the epitome of cultural understanding and awareness. Through collaboration, Dr. Petty says, “it would be nice if some of this lead to very specific policies that worked toward the safeguarding of living and cultural heritage.” The University of Regina continues to work with community organizations and researchers in order to safeguard cultural ways of knowing.
Research chairs are hubs for collaborative projects. In addition to SaskPower funding for this chair, its work and partnerships are also supported through grants from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada. Central to this research chair is Dr. Petty’s commitment to the safeguarding of living heritage and culture and to allowing for relationships in living heritage to be formed with other institutions, including African film festivals in Winnipeg, New York City, and Montreal. In working to safeguard cultural heritage for future generations, Dr. Petty works closely with a team of students. Giovana Nabarrete de Souza Cruz is pursuing a Bachelor’s of Fine Arts; Babatunde Onikoyi is a PhD student, working on transnational African cinemas; and Ricardo Jiminez and Esperanza Sanchez are both Master’s of Fine Arts students who have already contributed to the work.
