AVinDH Charter Statement

Download the AVinDH Charter Statement 2026 PDF

Overview

The Audio/Visual Studies in Digital Humanities (AVinDH) Special Interest Group is part of the Alliance of Digital Humanities Organizations (ADHO).

The purpose of AVinDH SIG is to exchange knowledge, expertise, methods and tools by scholars and practitioners who study, use or produce audiovisual media using digital and computational tools, mainly but not limited to film, television and online video.

The SIG facilitates communication and interaction between disciplines and domains, namely film and media studies; visual culture broadly understood, including art and art history, photography, graphics and design; history and screen heritage, including cultural and media history, archives and preservation science; computer science and informatics, including computer vision, computational music, computational creativity and design; cultural analytics and informatics; and computational social science. We welcome participation from ADHO members from all career stages.

Annual Workshop

AVinDH organises one guaranteed half-day workshop in the days leading up to the annual ADHO conference, open to all registered conference attendees. Each year, the AVinDH workshop features a combination of several activities in line with the annual ADHO conference theme. Common activities may include:

  • Networking: Conversations for meeting new colleagues, exchanging approaches, building common resources, addressing shared challenges, and/or sharing opportunities.
  • Lightning Talks: Short presentations where participants can share works-in-progress or summaries of work-in-progress research.
  • Panel Presentations: Panels for the common exploration of key themes, developments, or challenges for the AVinDH community.
  • Tool Cavalcade: Practical sessions to test new methods, tools and frameworks, designed to build technical capacity in the AVinDH community.
  • Keynote Lecture: A featured perspective from an established member of the research community, usually including an element of strategic positioning and disciplinary orientation designed to elicit conversations and steer the community.
  • Annual Updates: Highlights and notes from the Steering Committee about the previous year’s activities, ongoing initiatives, or upcoming events.
  • Tutorials: Resources such as guides and workflows that can be reproduced and be followed by participants, in person or asynchronously.

Calls for participation in the AVinDH workshop will be shared as part of the ADHO call each year. The SIG’s steering committee will decide the modality for delivery for the annual workshop by assessing its specific objectives, theme and feasibility.

Governance

AVinDH is governed by a Steering Committee (SC) that is responsible for:

  1. Owning and maintaining the relation with ADHO. This includes all official communications, requests and requirements.
  2. Organising the annual SIG workshop.
  3. Communicating effectively with the AVinDH community, including appropriate mechanisms for managing membership and opportunities.
  4. Organising the election and/or renewal of its members and definition of their roles according to this charter.

The SC has two named roles: chair, vice-chair, and up to five regular members. All SC roles are voluntary. Responsibilities are listed below.

Chair (1)

Term: 2 years, with an option to extend for 1 year.

Responsible for setting the strategic direction, representing the SIG to ADHO and presiding over meetings. The chair has a casting vote on all SC matters. Duties include:

  • Confirming the annual SIG event at the ADHO conference and leading on preparing the proposal.
  • Registering the SIG each year.
  • Owning the relation with ADHO.
  • Leading the SC meetings.
  • Leading on the planning and organization of the annual SIG workshop.

Vice Chair (1)

Term: 2 years, with an option to extend for 1 year.

Supports the Chair and acts in lieu if and when needed. Provides succession continuity. Duties specific to the role include:

  • Leading on the organization and delivery of the annual SIG workshop.
  • Owning and coordinating the programme of the SIG workshop, including the CFP.
  • Liaising with the local ADHO organisers to negotiate access to venues, equipment and dissemination.
  • Leading on communicating with the AVinDH community through channels including the website, mailing list, and email.

Steering Committee Member (5)

Term: 2 years, with an option to extend for 1 year.

  • Represents the AVinDH membership by attending approximately 4 SC meetings per year.
  • Supports the planning, organization and delivery of the annual SIG workshop.

Steering Committee Election

Members of the AVinDH SC are appointed for 2-year terms through a selection process as follows: the standing SC will determine the number of vacancies to fill and then distribute an annual call for candidates through the AVinDH mailing list. The SC will select candidates by simple majority according to the following criteria:

  • All candidates must be members of ADHO at the time of nomination.
  • Candidates must commit to participating in all SC meetings, decisions, and the organization of the annual workshop.
  • No more than one member of the SC may be affiliated with the same institution.
  • No more than two members of the SC may be based in the same country, in order to encourage broad geographic representation across the AVinDH community.
  • The SC should include at least one Early Career Researcher, defined as a scholar within five years of completing their PhD or equivalent terminal degree.
  • The SC will actively seek to assemble a slate of candidates that reflects disciplinary breadth while keeping the focus on audiovisual media.

If the number and/or quality of candidates warrants it, the SC may decide to open the selection process to the wider membership. The results of the selection process will be communicated to the candidates and to the wider membership. The decision of the SC is final, however any candidate or member can request additional information about the selection process. These requests will be responded to at the discretion of the Chair or Vice Chair.

The Chair and Vice Chair roles are appointed when the incumbent’s term expires or are up for renewal. This is done by a simple majority vote of existing SC members, usually during the SIG’s annual in-person meeting at ADHO. Candidates to Chair or Vice Chair are expected to have served in the SC at least one year before putting themselves forward for these roles. The Chair is an ex-officio member of the SC for the following year.

Membership

Membership to the AVinDH SIG is open to all members of ADHO interested in working with audiovisual data. To become a member of the AVinDH SIG, interested colleagues need to join our Mailing List via the AVinDH SIG Google Group.

Members of AVinDH can submit proposals for the annual workshop and put themselves forward to serve in the SC.

Membership lapses if a member opts out of the mailing list or does not renew their ADHO membership; lapsed members may rejoin at any time by rejoining the mailing list and renewing their ADHO membership. The SC will regularly track the mailing list and send relevant membership updates to its members. Members’ names are not published on the website, although they might be visible in the Google Group. For any questions about membership, please reach out to the current Vice Chair of the AVinDH Steering Committee.

Communication Channels and Platforms

AVinDH maintains the following official channels for communicating with its membership and the broader DH community:

  • Mailing List: The AVinDH Google Group serves as the primary channel for announcements, calls for participation, and community discussion.
  • Website: The AVinDH website hosts information about the SIG’s activities, workshop programmes, resources, and governance documents including this charter.

The Vice Chair holds primary responsibility for maintaining these channels. SC members may be delegated specific platform responsibilities as agreed within the SC.

Amendments to this Charter

This charter may be amended by a simple majority vote of the SC. Proposed amendments should be circulated to all SC members at least two weeks before a scheduled vote. Any substantive changes to the charter will be communicated to the AVinDH membership via the mailing list following ratification.

Transitional Provisions

The inaugural SC, including the Chair and Vice Chair, shall be appointed by consensus among the founding members of AVinDH, those who have been actively involved in organising the SIG and its workshop prior to the formal adoption of this charter. This reflects recognition of the work already undertaken to establish the SIG. Regular elections under the terms described above will commence from 2026 onwards.

Dissolution

In the event that AVinDH becomes inactive or the SC determines that the SIG can no longer fulfil its purpose, the standing SC is responsible for managing an orderly wind-down. This includes notifying ADHO and the AVinDH membership, and determining the appropriate disposition of SIG assets, including the website, mailing list, and any shared resources or materials. The SC will make these decisions collectively at the time of dissolution, in consultation with ADHO as required.