Matthew White, Archival Industry Leader, Dies at 64

It is with great sadness that we report the news that Matt White passed away earlier this month after battling cancer for two years. Whether working as an archivist, filmmaker, entrepreneur or business leader, Matt was a tireless advocate for the archival industry throughout a career that spanned 35 years.

Matt’s first major foray into the world of archives began in 1986, when he founded White Production Archives (WPA). Initially a production company specializing in archive-based documentary programming, Matt transformed WPA over the years into  a leading stock footage sales and distribution company. He joined National Geographic in 2000, where he served as both VP, Film Library and later, VP, Digital Markets until 2006.

Matt was instrumental in launching ACSIL, the US stock footage trade association, and held both the roles of President and later Executive Director. He also served as the Executive Director of the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB)’s American Archive Project from 2010 to 2012. But it was his work as the creator and a producer of the Beatles: Eight Days a Week documentary that he seemed to bring all his passions together into one project, and which served as a capstone to his long service to our industry. Matt was a big force in our community for many years and will be missed both as a friend and a colleague.