www.story-of-the-movies.com Privacy Policy

Last updated: 20th July 2026

This Privacy Policy explains how Story of the Movies (“we”, “us”, “our”) collects, uses and protects your personal data when you visit our website and interact with our content. We are committed to respecting your privacy and complying with UK data protection law, including the UK General Data Protection Regulation (“UK GDPR”) and the Data Protection Act 2018.

If you have any questions about this Privacy Policy, you can contact us at:
Email: story-of-the-movies@outlook.com

Who we are

Story of the Movies is an online resource dedicated to the history and analysis of cinema. We decide how and why your personal data is processed and act as the “data controller” for this website under UK GDPR.

If you contact us by email or through any contact form on the site, we will receive and process the information you provide so that we can respond to your enquiry.

What data we collect

The types of personal data we may collect include:

Contact details (such as your name and email address) when you contact us directly.
Technical data (such as IP address, browser type and version, device type, time zone setting, operating system and platform) collected via your browser and cookies.
Usage data (such as pages visited, time spent on pages, links you click, referring/exit pages) to help us understand how visitors use the site.
Any other information you choose to provide in free‑text fields (for example, in an email or contact form submission).

We do not intentionally collect special category data (such as information about your health, ethnicity, political opinions or religious beliefs).

How we collect your data

We collect personal data in the following ways:

Directly from you when you contact us by email or via any contact form.
Automatically when you interact with the site, through cookies and similar technologies that your browser provides.
Indirectly from third‑party services (for example, analytics providers) that help us understand how the website is used.

Where personal data is not obtained directly from you, we will usually receive only technical or usage information from analytics or hosting providers and we will process this in line with this Privacy Policy.

Why we use your data (purposes)

We use your personal data for the following purposes:

To respond to your enquiries and correspondence.
To operate, maintain and improve the website, including troubleshooting and site security.
To understand how visitors use the site and to develop our content (for example, which articles are most read).
To manage our relationship with you, including notifying you about changes to this Privacy Policy.
To comply with our legal obligations and to establish, exercise or defend legal claims where necessary.

We will not sell your personal data to third parties.

Lawful bases for processing

We rely on the following lawful bases under UK GDPR to process your personal data:

Legitimate interests: For most technical and usage data, and for responding to routine enquiries, we rely on our legitimate interests in running and improving a website about film history, provided that these interests are not overridden by your rights and freedoms.
Consent: Where we place non‑essential cookies (such as analytics cookies) or subscribe you to any optional updates, we will ask for your consent first. You can withdraw your consent at any time (see “Your rights” and “Cookies” below).
Legal obligation: We may process certain information where this is necessary to comply with legal or regulatory requirements (for example, record‑keeping obligations).

Cookies and similar technologies

Our website may use cookies and similar technologies to distinguish you from other users of the site. A cookie is a small text file placed on your device when you visit a website and can help sites function effectively and collect information about usage.

We generally use two types of cookies:

Strictly necessary cookies: These are required for the basic operation of the site (for example, to help pages load properly or maintain security). They are set without your consent because they are essential to provide the service you request.
Optional analytics or performance cookies: These help us understand how visitors use the site, for example which pages are most visited and how long visitors stay. These cookies are not essential and will only be set with your consent in accordance with the UK Privacy and Electronic Communications Regulations (PECR).

When you first visit the site, you may see a cookie banner or pop‑up asking you to consent to non‑essential cookies. You can accept or reject these cookies and you can change your preferences at any time by adjusting your browser settings or revisiting the cookie banner if it is available.

If you disable or refuse cookies, some parts of the site may not function properly, but you will still be able to access core content.

Analytics and third‑party services

We may use third‑party analytics services (for example, tools similar to Google Analytics or privacy‑friendly alternatives) to help us understand how visitors use the site and to compile aggregated statistics. These services may collect information such as your IP address, browser type, pages visited and time spent on the site, usually in an anonymised or pseudonymised form.

Where analytics cookies or similar technologies are not strictly necessary, we will obtain your consent before they are set on your device, and they will not run until you have given that consent.

Sharing your data

We may share your personal data with the following categories of recipients, where necessary:

Service providers who host the website, provide analytics, security or IT support, under appropriate contracts that protect your data.
Professional advisers (such as legal or accounting advisers) where we need specialist advice.
Public authorities or law enforcement agencies where we are required to do so by law or in order to protect our rights, the rights of others or to detect and prevent crime.

We do not allow our service providers to use your personal data for their own purposes and we only permit them to process your data for specified purposes and in accordance with our instructions.

International transfers

Some of our service providers or their servers may be located outside the UK. Where this results in a transfer of your personal data to a country that is not subject to a UK adequacy regulation, we will put in place appropriate safeguards, such as standard contractual clauses approved by the UK Government, to protect your data.ico+2

You can contact us if you would like more information about the safeguards we use for international data transfers.

How long we keep your data

We will keep your personal data only for as long as is reasonably necessary for the purposes set out in this Privacy Policy. This means, for example:

Emails and correspondence will generally be retained for as long as needed to answer your query and for a reasonable period afterwards, in case of follow‑up questions or to establish, exercise or defend legal claims.
Technical and usage data collected for analytics will typically be kept only in aggregated or anonymised form, or for a limited period required to analyse trends and improve the website.

When we no longer need your personal data, we will delete or anonymise it securely.

Your rights

Under UK data protection law, you have a number of rights in relation to your personal data, subject to certain conditions. These include:

The right to be informed about how we use your data (which this Privacy Policy aims to explain).ico
The right of access to your personal data and to receive a copy of it.
The right to rectification of inaccurate or incomplete data.
The right to erasure of your personal data in certain circumstances.
The right to restrict processing of your data in certain circumstances.
The right to data portability in certain circumstances (to receive your data in a structured, commonly used and machine‑readable format and to transmit it to another controller, where technically feasible).
The right to object to certain forms of processing, including processing based on our legitimate interests and, at any time, to direct marketing if we ever engage in it.
Where we rely on consent, the right to withdraw that consent at any time, without affecting the lawfulness of processing before consent was withdrawn.

You can exercise any of these rights by contacting us at story-of-the-movies@outlook.com. We may need to verify your identity before fulfilling your request, and we will respond within the time limits set by UK GDPR.

Complaints

If you are concerned about how we handle your personal data, please contact us first so we can try to resolve your concern. You also have the right to lodge a complaint with the UK’s data protection regulator, the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO):

Information Commissioner’s Office
Wycliffe House
Water Lane
Wilmslow
Cheshire
SK9 5AF
Website: https://ico.org.uk

Security

We take appropriate technical and organisational measures to protect your personal data from unauthorised access, accidental loss, destruction or damage. However, no method of transmission over the internet or method of electronic storage is completely secure, so we cannot guarantee absolute security.

Links to other websites

Our website may contain links to other websites, plugins or embedded content that are not operated by us. If you click on a third‑party link, you will be directed to that third party’s site and their own privacy policy will apply, so we encourage you to review their policies before providing any personal data.

We are not responsible for the privacy practices or content of third‑party websites.

Children

This website and its content are primarily aimed at adults and older students interested in film history and analysis. We do not knowingly collect personal data relating to children under 13 years of age, and if you believe that a child has provided us with personal data, please contact us so that we can delete it.

Changes to this Privacy Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in our practices, technologies, legal requirements or for other operational reasons. When we make significant changes, we will update the “Last updated” date at the top of this page and, where appropriate, provide additional notice on the website.

By continuing to use the website after changes are posted, you acknowledge the updated Privacy Policy.