Physical Media Collecting as a Hobby

[nick]

I have nearly my entire collection surrounding me, by running a single shelf right below the ceiling around the entire room. it's quite the impressive display.

This sounds impressive; however, how often do you have to clean off cobwebs?

cheers
nick

[kieslowski_67]

how do you guys show them off?

We purchased two sets of Danish bookcases (6 in total 72"x30") to store our DVD collection in the library on the main floor. Meanwhile, our book collection is downgraded to my wife's library on the second floor.

[criterionsnob]

Its funny to think I never bought VHS tapes (besides blank ones),
but I have over 500 dvds.....

I never bought movies on VHS either, but with this order, I just passed the 450 mark for DVD's.

I collect DVD's for the convenience of being able to watch whatever I feel like that night. I like having a big selection to choose from. Also, due to all of the special features on DVD's, it takes me a long time to finish a disc. Some nights I want to watch a whole feature, sometimes, I'll just watch some special features or listen to a comentary while I'm doing other things.

I also buy a lot of movies I've never seen or won't have a chance to see because I can't rent them in my city. If I don't like something, I'll sell it on Amazon and get back nearly what I paid for it.

It might take months or years, but eventually I'll watch everything I buy.

Everyone should be allowed at least one weird habit. This is mine.

[toiletduck!]

Everyone should be allowed at least one weird habit. This is mine.

Bingo.

Although Polish film and theatre posters is sneaking in slowly... might have to nip that one in the bud.

-Toilet Dcuk

[oldsheperd]

I've been tempted to sell my collection, but then I think of how bummed I was(and still am) when I sold my video collection.

[Fletch F. Fletch]

lets now discuss our means of storage/display.

I have nearly my entire collection surrounding me, by running a single shelf right below the ceiling around the entire room. it's quite the impressive display.

how do you guys show them off?

Currently, I have 3 and half Ikea bookcases filled with DVDs and quickly eyeballing another one soon.

[Cinesimilitude]

I have nearly my entire collection surrounding me, by running a single shelf right below the ceiling around the entire room. it's quite the impressive display.

This sounds impressive; however, how often do you have to clean off cobwebs?

cheers
nick

well, I just put it up about a month ago, and haven't checked for dust since... I'll have to check that out. It was a brilliant idea, I must say. I still live with my family, and I have the biggest room in the house. But a full bed, a wardrobe, a bigscreen tv, a couch, and my dvd collection left me with literally nowhere to move around. Once I got them above me, it provided much needed walking space.

[exte]

Some nights I want to watch a whole feature, sometimes, I'll just watch some special features or listen to a comentary while I'm doing other things.

I have a collection over 400 dvds, and I too never collected films on vhs, only blank tapes for bootlegging blockbuster rentals...

Pertaining to the quote above, ever since I read an article about a young music director who listens to commentaries on his ipod, I've amassed a gigantic digital library of ripped commentaries on mp3s at 96kb. I now have 6+ dvds worth. Only in the last few days, however, have I finally listened to them on the road in my car.

My first selection is a cd full of Herzog commentaries, from the two Anchor Bay box sets out there. There's already a thread dedicated to the majesty of his voice, but I'll say he's a brilliant and inspiring storyteller as well... I just finished Aguirre yesterday and I'm 40 minutes into Cobra Verde... Anyway, my dvds are my passion. I think special features and commentaries go a long way for me.

Another specialty of mine, btw, is converting lost criterion laserdisc commentaries to mp3. I know members here would love to 'borrow' these tracks, but for the money I've pumped into collecting these off ebay, I resist the thought. Still, it would be nice if criterion put out a dvd of just 'lost laserdisc tracks' or something...

Also, not that you need to know this either, but I recently saw a real deficiency of tracks by Spielberg. I know he doesn't do commentaries, per se, but he has participated in extraordinary documentaries for his films that are sometimes feature length. So now I have ripped those, too, including the docs for Jaws, Close Encounters, Raiders (from the making-of laserdisc), E.T. (from the signature laserdisc, NOT the dvd), Jurassic Park, and Saving Private Ryan.

Actually all of them are from their laserdisc counter parts, except Saving Private Ryan. Usually, if the doc was done for the laserdisc, I give it preference over a dvd doc. I don't know why, I just have this huge affinity for the old format. I guess because I never got in, or could afford to get in at the time it was in...

Often I'll use an audio editor to piece together segments, like the broken up parts for Saving Private Ryan. Also, this idea of ripping documentaries now have led me to ripping the Scarface and The Abyss documentary, which plays perfectly while doing other work. No visual required! And perhaps the biggest laserdisc documentary of them all, the Frighteners documentary was just ripped a few days ago...

I know some of you may roll your eyes, but God I love this! I may not have the time to listen to all of them, but I've listened to most. It's certainly my niche, I guess you could say. WHO GIVES GOOD COMMENTARY!

[scotty]

We purchased two sets of Danish bookcases (6 in total 72""x30") to store our DVD collection in the library on the main floor. Meanwhile, our book collection is downgraded to my wife's library on the second floor.

I could never give my books second place to anything, much as I love movies. You must have reached the breaking point space-wise.

[porquenegar]

Well considering how much I used to spend on alcohol in my younger days, DVD collecting seems like a bargain.

[milk114]

I also have 400+ dvds and yet never bought vhs. But for me, I have OCD. So there are some dvds that will come home from DVDPlanet or ordered online that I never gave much thought to buying and there are others that I've been "pricing out" for years, trying to find the best deal. Because of money (like many) I've slowed down my buying and am even more selective now, but it still humors me (when I view my habits from afar) the selections I end up making.

But beyond buying, I find great satisfaction in sharing my films and love of films with others, as mentioned before. I've used libraries everywhere I've lived, and if I really like a film I've watched there for the first time, I've invariably bought it (McCabe & Mrs Miller, for example) and "turned on" my friends. I too don't have many "cineaste" friends and wouldn't consider myself one, but I have a general knowledge of world cinema and now, thanks to my dvd library, have access to world cinema. Most people I know who say "Im into foreign and independent films" are referring to amores perros and clerks. I like both movies. But there is a lot more out there. And a lot more in my collection.

The accessability aspect of ownership is part of my "collecting." But more importantly is that sharing component. Friends who'll bitch and moan about watching "another of your movies" will invariably end up quoting it or bringing up scenes, will remember it, far longer than the latest blockbuster, their normal viewing diet.

But writing this makes me wonder, what type of proportion of everyone's films are in different genres or eras or languages? I own almost no silent films anymore (sold off a bunch of them when I hit rock bottom). I own a few African films made from late 60s to present, but no Indian films (which is an area I want to grow). I own zero non-R1 b/c... I have no really good reason. I own few Hollywood blockbuster but of course many Criterion. I've never seen J-horror, but I'm aware of it. I wonder if distribution of content of our dvd libraries are somewhat consistant or vary greatly.[/i]

[LightBulbFilm]

I often feel disgusted with myself for owning so many DVDs... Because in fact it does go back to the same old "vault" idea. I LOVE film, there's no doubt about it, and I put film in front of DVDs of course... But there's something about bringing home a new film and making it apart of your collection... It's exciting and I'm sure it is for many other people than me.

I do agree that people spend WAY too much money on DVDs, but it's something they enjoy... So you shouldn't really criticize them. We all have our moments. Besides... Films are keeping all of us off the streets and away from drugs.... Right.... RIGHT!?

[Kinsayder]

I collect both books and films, and while I'm happy to display my book collection prominently on shelves and in bookcases throughout my house, most of my DVDs and old VHS tapes are squirreled away like a guilty secret in drawers and cupboards in a spare room.

It's probably just snobbery, but I do feel there's something inherently unattractive about bookcases full of DVDs. Even if, like this guy, you've carefully arranged all your special edition severed monster heads along the top shelf.

[Cobalt60]

It's probably just snobbery, but I do feel there's something inherently unattractive about bookcases full of DVDs. Even if, like this guy, you've carefully arranged all your special edition severed monster heads along the top shelf.

I agree that bookcases full of DVD's are pretty ugly. Also, it almost always looks tacky when people display film related collectables on the same shelves as their DVDs. I would never hang my posters or display my masks next to the DVDs. It makes any room look like a 17 year old kids bedroom.

[filmghost]

I often feel disgusted with myself for owning so many DVDs... Because in fact it does go back to the same old "vault" idea. I LOVE film, there's no doubt about it, and I put film in front of DVDs of course... But there's something about bringing home a new film and making it apart of your collection... It's exciting and I'm sure it is for many other people than me.

I do agree that people spend WAY too much money on DVDs, but it's something they enjoy... So you shouldn't really criticize them. We all have our moments. Besides... Films are keeping all of us off the streets and away from drugs.... Right.... RIGHT!?

Hmmmmm....WRONG!

[Nihonophile]

speaking of storage, has anyone found a good alternative to shelving such as a container just for the discs that is easy to browse through, durable, and classy?

[Gregory]

Perhaps there are some Judge John Hodgman listeners on the forum. To appreciate this fake court conceit, you don't have to know or appreciate him as an actor or author, in his past lives as a Daily Show correspondent, the PC, or someone who did something adjacent to stand-up comedy years ago. Fifteen years in now, this podcast is the longest-running thing he's done in his career.

Anyway, this week's case holds particular Criterion Forum interest: A fellow physical media enthusiast with conventional arthouse tastes wants his spouse to keep all of his collection in the event of his passing, but she is not a movie person and wants other people to have these discs. I relate to this as a physical media accumulator who can foresee most of it ending up in a landfill sooner than I'd like to think would be the case. I'm sure most on this forum will dislike Hodgman's opinion that any collection of Blu-rays is unsightly, and I disagree: they can look really nice if they're organized well and include attractively packaged items and not a lot of ugly plastic spines with bad fonts on them. But Hodgman is personally biased against collecting and accumulating because he physically doesn't have room in his life for all that "stuff."

And we're not even talking about thousands of discs. The litigant's movie collection is 451 titles, which counts all the titles in box sets individually. This would be a perfectly compact bequest.

If you watch it on YouTube, you can see the collection, how it's stored, etc. I don't take this show extremely seriously because it's not really built like that, and I thought others may find this episode an enjoyable way to pass the time and perhaps reflect on our own physical media "legacy."

[colinr0380]

I suppose that it will really just come down to recognising that you cannot force someone else to appreciate things that you do and if it was the other way around and the wife wanted him to keep a collection of things that she felt was important but that he did not find a connection to, then it would be wrong for her to set an ultimatum as well. The best thing is to either ask them to find a good home for the collection rather than just trashing everything, or even try and pre-emptively set up some sort of plan for a donation or person who would appreciate the objects instead. Although you would hope that the spouse would at least find some films that they might want to keep from the collection!

For example my mother was really into Lilliput Lane miniature cottages and whilst I think they look good where they are at the moment, and occupy space that would otherwise be entirely empty, she did not leave any kind of ultimatum or demand about what was to be done with them after she passed because you just cannot force people to appreciate the things you do entirely. I guess that people often tolerate things because they care for you and rather than worrying about them keeping the collection after you have passed, appreciate that they are happy to live with your hobbies because they want to be with you whilst you are alive!

[The Curious Sofa]

I just assume that by the time I'm dead, Blu-ray as a format will be so outdated that nobody I know will want my collection. They will end up in landfill but I really don't care.

Any collector will consider it sacrelege to be told to get rid of their physical media. I have my 1600something DVDs & Blu-rays on shelving in my bedroom, but in a functional rather than a display way. Unlike books, I don't think they are that sightly and I can't stand novety packaging.

[colinr0380]

I still have about 1000 VHS tapes on my shelves from when I started recording back in 1993 (by the way, if anyone has any spare VHS players they don't need feel free to send them my way! Hopefully I will get some of my tapes digitised before my current player falls apart, but that is a concern!). They are not particularly neat looking, but there is something about seeing my handwriting having changed on the labels over the years that is interesting to look over!

In celebrity terms the ultimate example of this collector instinct is perhaps Bob Monkhouse, who kept a recording of lots of jokes for material, but went beyond that and archived a lot of UK television across the decades, most of which was wiped by the broadcasters themselves

(Plus Jonathan Ross and his toy collection - watch out for a surprise pop-up appearance of the Criterion Zatoichi boxset at one point! Along with a rummage around in his barn, which reveals that Ross keeps his Studio Canal DVDs of Ealing films tucked away in there!)

[Gregory]

There was an American, Marion Stokes*, who had possibly even more VHS tapes of TV broadcasts, seventy thousand of them. I think it was mostly news footage from 1977 to 2012, when she died. The documentary about it is Recorder. These were to be digitized at the Internet Archive, and some of them were.

*Rather than have her be mentioned here as just some "hoarder" I'll add that she was an access television producer, businesswoman, civil rights demonstrator, activist, librarian, and archivist.

[Drucker]

I'm excited to watch this, thanks for the recommendation, Gregory! This has always been a topic on my mind. From an early age, my dad would talk about his record collection (~2000 LPs or so, standard 50s-70s rock fair) and how he would pass it to my brother and I. He remains insistent that he'd like the collection kept together after he passes. As you may surmise, I come from a line of people with some hoarder-ish tendencies.

When I was a kid the idea of having my dad's entire collection sounded great. But at nearly 40 I've already picked up nearly every LP he owns that I want my own copy of (sometimes in superior, import versions). So I'm not sure I'll be able to honor his wish. My brother, who owns no media player of any kind, insists he would also like the collection and would use it as an excuse to get into records. This is too much for me to bare, of course.

[The Curious Sofa]

I still have about 1000 VHS tapes on my shelves from when I started recording back in 1993 (by the way, if anyone has any spare VHS players they don't need feel free to send them my way! Hopefully I will get some of my tapes digitised before my current player falls apart, but that is a concern!). They are not particularly neat looking, but there is something about seeing my handwriting having changed on the labels over the years that is interesting to look over!

In celebrity terms the ultimate example of this collector instinct is perhaps Bob Monkhouse, who kept a recording of lots of jokes for material, but went beyond that and archived a lot of UK television across the decades, most of which was wiped by the broadcasters themselves

(Plus Jonathan Ross and his toy collection - watch out for a surprise pop-up appearance of the Criterion Zatoichi boxset at one point! Along with a rummage around in his barn, which reveals that Ross keeps his Studio Canal DVDs of Ealing films tucked away in there!)

I threw out most of my VHS tapes when it became clear that DVD is here to stay. But I mostly lived in small flats and moved around the world for work, so there are lots of belongings I couldn't hold on to.

Talking of Jonathan Ross, among the few VHS tapes I held on to for a long time was his Incredibly Strange Film Show which I taped off the telly.

[Gregory]

I'm excited to watch this, thanks for the recommendation, Gregory! This has always been a topic on my mind. From an early age, my dad would talk about his record collection (~2000 LPs or so, standard 50s-70s rock fair) and how he would pass it to my brother and I. He remains insistent that he'd like the collection kept together after he passes. As you may surmise, I come from a line of people with some hoarder-ish tendencies.

When I was a kid the idea of having my dad's entire collection sounded great. But at nearly 40 I've already picked up nearly every LP he owns that I want my own copy of (sometimes in superior, import versions). So I'm not sure I'll be able to honor his wish. My brother, who owns no media player of any kind, insists he would also like the collection and would use it as an excuse to get into records. This is too much for me to bare, of course.

I remember an interview with Bob Pollard where he said that part of his rationale for having an extensive record collection was that it'd be a great resource for his future children to learn about all the good stuff from the past. But later, when he had kids, he realized that neither of them cared to listen to any of it. People have to find their own stuff for the most part.
My father had a sizable record collection but would never, ever play a record. The stereo gathered dust for decades on end, while in high school I'd borrow LPs and take them up to my room and play them, having my mind blown by stuff from the 1950s-60s that I'd never heard anywhere else.

I threw out most of my VHS tapes when it became clear that DVD is here to stay. But I mostly lived in small flats and moved around the world for work, so there are lots of belongings I couldn't hold on to.

Talking of Jonathan Ross, among the few VHS tapes I held on to for a long time was his Incredibly Strange Film Show which I taped off the telly.

Great user name, by the way, and I can't help noticing the alignment of it with the subject of large VHS collections. Gorey had a large collection of taped TV shows, even though he'd usually just end up watching reruns when they were on. He said he'd seen every episode of The Golden Girls at least fifteen times. I imagine it was kind of a parasocial thing for him, as that show is kind of just "hanging out with" funny people. When he finally left NYC for the Cape, it allowed him to accumulate large collections of all manner of things.
Edward Gorey books are one of the many things I've accumulated large collections of, starting in childhood.

[Michael Kerpan]

We visited the Gorey House on our visit to Cape Cod last week.