Ephemeral films

2,161–2,208 of 19,488 films, free to watch, from the world's open archives.

Where these films come from, and who sees what

Every film here plays from the archive that keeps it: the Internet Archive, Wikimedia Commons, the NASA Image and Video Library, the Library of Congress and Open Images (the Netherlands Institute for Sound and Vision). Nothing is copied to this site. Each film's page names its archive, links to its page there, and states its licence or status as the archive does.

Archive films carry no age ratings, so each is placed from the collections it sits in and the subjects the archive gives it, cautiously. Sexual content and nudity are left out altogether.

Little OnesFilms for young children by name: nursery rhymes, lullabies, preschool.
KidsCartoons and animation, children's and family films, and educational films, unless they deal with war, propaganda, crime, horror or drugs, or carry racial caricature.
TweensDocumentaries, science, nature and space, classic comedies, newsreels, commercials and lectures.
TeensEverything else, including anything we cannot tell about; war, crime, horror and westerns go no lower.
AdultSexual themes (such as the old "sex hygiene" films), gore, surgery, slaughter, atrocity footage.
Internet Archive DOPE 219 1993 · Film · Subtitles Clinton wins, Brownie Mary, cocaine war Bolivia, David Musto, 48hrs-LSD, Clinton Inaugural, Frontline Drug War Failed, Doping horses See scans of liner notes… Internet Archive Amy on the Lips 1981 · Educational Story of a woman who teaches deaf children to speak. This film acquaints children and adults with society's attitudes toward education for the handicapped Internet Archive A portrait of contemporary jazz dance. [motion picture] 1974 · Educational · 17 min Presented by the Department of Theatre and Film, Pennsylvania State University. Producer/director: Christian Stoianovich. Director of cinematography: Charles… Internet Archive Queen Elizabeth Biography 1996 · Film Rare footage, new research, and exclusive interviews bring the story of Queen Elizabeth to life.-- description from box. Internet Archive Earth In Motion 1936 · Educational · 11 min Portrays the earth as an astronomical body and discusses its relation to the sun and its motion. Presents evidence of the earth's sphericity, its axis… Internet Archive The Rise of China 1966 · Educational · 29 min Uses evidence provided by China's recent wars and her industrial development to analyze her effect on world peace. Examines the United States policy of… Internet Archive Myra 1980 · Cartoon CLICK HERE TO SEE THE STUDY GUIDE FOR THIS FILM CLICK HERE TO READ THE BOOK THE FILM IS BASED ON An animated story. When Myra goes to dancing class, she… Internet Archive Once Upon a Time 1934 · Film Driver safety cartoon, told through song, created as part of an insurance company’s public education program. When Pandora opens her box, goblins… Internet Archive Nina Serrano Right To Travel 2016 · Film Longtime poet and activist Nina Serrano describes how she organized, without any prior experience, a demonstration on Market Street to demand the freedom to… Internet Archive Open Window 1961 · Film Examines art works of the 15th through the 19th centuries, covering various approaches to landscape painting by great masters from Belgium, France, Luxemburg,… Internet Archive The House That Jack Built 1965 · Cartoon Eastman color Telecast on the NBC program Exploring Producer, John Korty; narrator, Glynis Johns; music, Vincent Delgado Uses animation and cut-out paper… Internet Archive Bound for Freedom 1976 · Educational · 28 min · Subtitles Dramatizes American history and the struggle for human dignity through an adventure story of two young English boys who came to the American Colonies in 1750… Internet Archive Love, Speed And Thrills 1915 · Film The Keystone Kops, Mack Swain, Chester Conklin, Minta Durfee. Conklin steals Mack Swain's wife away in his sidecar motorcycle, but can't escape the Keystone… Internet Archive Sense Perception Short · 27 min Introduces the idea of sense perceptions, demonstrating that the human brain is the interpreter for sensory reception. Discusses sense perception and aids in… Internet Archive DOPE 202 1992 · Film · Subtitles AIDS Conf, Prop P, Magic J, Brownie Mary, Michelle APAN See scans of liner notes for detailed content. Internet Archive Lasers From Space 1991 · Educational · 24 min · Subtitles The Solar Research Center in Son Valley had a big experiment underway - collecting the sun's energy by satellite, then transmitting that energy to earth… Internet Archive Wonder Of Water, The 1958 · Film Attention is drawn to the interesting chemical structure of water and then to its amazing life-sustaining properties. This film can be purchased on DVD and… Internet Archive DOPE 222 1993 · Film · Subtitles Needle Exchange, Pot Legalize, 60 mins heroin, DEA series, Tim Leary interview, Billie Holiday, Joe McNamara, Karen Norman, Craig Noble pot film Internet Archive Tale of Two Cities (Hiroshima-Nagasaki) 1949 · Educational A documentary record of the effects of the atomic bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki Internet Archive Ascaris - A Human Parasite Short · 11 min Shows the life cycle and methods of treatment for infection by Ascaris lumbricoides, a human parasitic worm, and the sanitary steps needed to prevent… Internet Archive Drive In Intermission 18 Short · 6 min More hot dogs and soda. A complete intermission film. Suggestion: insert this clip between two movies when making a double feature dvd. Internet Archive Short Stack: Water Talkies, Bumper Jumper, Scuba Scope (2 minute overview) 1998 · Film From tape: SHORT STACK Water Talkies Bumper Jumper Scuba Scope 2 minute overview 10/98 Internet Archive Electric Eel, The 1954 · Film Electric eel introduced as one of the catfish family, details of its electrical activity are given. Explains 2 types of electrical discharge, how they are… Internet Archive Manila is Bombed 1941 · Newsreel · 10 min The Japanese attacked Manila and the Phillipines on December 7, 1941, and caught one of America's great generals, Douglas MacArthur relatively unprepared. The… Internet Archive Operation Plumbbob - Rainier 43771 2017 · Film Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=szbb00ncNNs Uploader: Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory Upload date: 2017-03-13 Internet Archive Saturn Launch Complex 34 1962 · Short · 16 min Dr. Kurt Debus, director of the Launch Operations Center, uses models and diagrams to discuss the building and operation of Saturn complex 34, comparing it… Internet Archive The Garden Party 1974 · Educational Based on the story of the same title by Katherine Mansfield Presents a story about a garden party which continues uninterrupted by a neighborhood death.… Internet Archive Health Hazards of Pesticides 1958 · Short · 14 min Emphasizes the potential public health hazards resulting from the widespread use of pesticides and explains the work of the Communicable Disease Center's… Internet Archive The cinematographer. 1969 · Educational · 16 min Presents the job of the "DP" (Director of Photography). Bruce Seth Green has captured all that is involved in performing this task of bringing the motion… Internet Archive Cassette: "Jazz Loon" 1992 · Film SEEKING SOUND FILMSTRIPS FOR PRESERVATION. Sound filmstrip was a 35mm film-based still image educational media format used in schools and industry. I am the… Internet Archive Fifty Miles from Poona 1960 · Educational · 19 min Examines traditional Hindu customs and beliefs. Pictures the life of an Indian family that lives in the village of Phursangi. Explains that people everywhere… Internet Archive Ferries Ply the Bay Short · 2 min From the PRelinger Archive's silent footage of San Francisco in the 1920s, this is an edited excerpt featuring the ferries and Ferry Building Internet Archive DOPE 486 2006 · Film · Subtitles Immigrant rights boycott, pimps in Oakland, Mexico legalizes drugs. See scans of liner notes for detailed content. Internet Archive Storytelling Can You Tell It In Order 1953 · Film A teacher uses a puppet clown, the blackboard, and mounted pictures in teaching primary school children to arrange events chronologically when telling a… Internet Archive “SIGNAL 30” INFAMOUS 1959 OHIO STATE PATROL DRIVER SAFETY FILM XD47844 Film Produced by Richard Wayman and narrated by Wayne Byers, "Signal 30" is one of the most notorious driver's education films ever produced. The title of the film… Internet Archive Block Cutting and Printing 1950 · Educational · 12 min · Subtitles Block Cutting and Printing Search Educational Film Journals at Media History Project for references to this film SummaryShows how to cut and print a two -… Internet Archive Space flight around the earth. [motion picture] 1965 · Educational · 12 min A view of the Earth from space shows its roundness, oceans, land areas, and the air around it. What causes night and day is seen as the space vehicle moves… Internet Archive DOPE 464 2005 · Film · Subtitles Big Pot Bust SF, Pres. Bullshit Inaugural. See scans of liner notes for detailed content. Internet Archive The Tender Tale of Cinderella Penguin 1981 · Cartoon Title from data sheet Intended audience: General Issued also as videorecording An animated story, without words, set to a wide variety of musical… Internet Archive Drive In Intermission 19 Short · 12 min Another chance to get some goodies at the snack bar before the next movie. A full intermsission show. Suggestion: insert this clip between two movies when… Internet Archive Child of the Future 1966 · Educational · 57 min Narrated by Marshall McLuhan Describes types of teaching techniques that give children personal involvement in the subjects they are learning, allow children… Internet Archive Medieval Knights 1956 · Educational Also issued in b&w With film guide Producer, Milan Herzog; collaborator, Sidney Painter; adviser, Jacques Haquard Discusses the place of the knight in the… Internet Archive Soapy The Germ Fighter 1951 · Film Billy Martin, a regular boy, meets a partner, one 'SOAPY THE GERM FIGHTER,' who helps him understand that being clean is not 'SISSY,' but is related to good… Internet Archive His Neglected Wife 1919 · Film Comedy about a writer’s neglected wife who devises her own story to make her point. Preserved in collaboration with the New Zealand Film Archive and the… Internet Archive Mixed Blood 1992 · Film "'Mixed Blood' takes a personal view of interracial relationships between Asian Americans and non-Asian Americans. Soe combines interviews with over 30… Internet Archive Discover flying 1969 · Film Discussed man's constant desire to fly, the relationship of the engineer with today's computerized technology to the design of today's aircraft. This film can… Internet Archive Greece the Golden Age (1962) 1962 · Educational · 25 min Greece the Golden Age (1962) Studies the growth of the fetus, from implantation to early overall development and through the development of fetal organ… Internet Archive Anthony Burgess' Rome 1978 · Educational Also issued as videocassette Made in Canada Producer and director, John McGreevy Author Anthony Burgess takes the viewer on a grand tour of Rome