Ephemeral films

2,737–2,784 of 19,487 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 The Pygmies of the Ituri Forest 1975 · Educational With teacher's guide Examines the life and customs of the Efe Pygmies as observed and photographed by the anthropologist Jean-Pierre Hallet Internet Archive Campfire: Eviction Stories from the Mission District 2014 · Film Three residents of the Mission District of San Francisco: Polo Gonzalez, Sarah Brendt, and Rio Yañez share their stories of eviction. They are lifelong San… Internet Archive The Violent Universe, Part 5 (1969) 1969 · Educational · 27 min The Violent Universe, Part 5 (1969) Examines the forces that combined after the Supreme Court desegregation decision to ignite the civil rights movement in… Internet Archive An Army Camp: Nanking (Part 1) 1976 · Educational · 29 min · Subtitles This is one of a 12 part series filmed with official approval in direct-cinema mode during the Cultural Revolution. The filmmakers sought to achieve a certain… Internet Archive B-Roll of Sc98: Images of Earth and Space II 1998 · Film This videotape tours the Solar System and outer space using scientific visualizations from Goddard Space Flight Center, Jet Propulsion Laboratory, and the… Internet Archive The Owl and the Pussycat 1962 · Educational A film version of Edward Lear's narrative poem about the owl and the pussycat who went to sea in a pea-green boat Internet Archive Convective Clouds 1971 · Educational Director, John Friedman; adviser, Wallace Howell; editor, David Nelson Describes the formation of clouds and the forces at work in the development of storms Internet Archive Healing 1978 · Educational · 57 min Healing Search Educational Film Journals at Media History Project for references to this film Summary Explores the phenomenon of faith healing, focusing on… Internet Archive The Fragile Mountain 1982 · Educational · 55 min Narrator, Robin King Photography, Ivan Strasburg, Jim Dibbling ; editor, David Gladwell ; music, Ed Bogas Title also appears in Tibetan Originally produced… Internet Archive Downsizing Your Driving 1983 · Film Addresses the advantages and limitations of small cars and points out special adjustments in driving habits which are required to more safely utilize these… Internet Archive Jane Goodall: Studies of the Chimpanzee. Tool Using (1976) 1976 · Educational · 24 min Jane Goodall: Studies of the Chimpanzee. Tool Using (1976) Presents candid scenes of ceramist Dik Schwanke at work in his studio. Demonstrates his method of… Internet Archive The Making of the President: 1968 1969 · Educational · 51 min Also issued in color Producer and director, Mel Stuart; narrator, Joseph Campanella A detailed account of the 1968 United States presidential campaign and… Internet Archive Shopping With Susan 1993 · Film "How to get rid of those foods you think you can live without. How to shop for you and your family. Menus for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Low fat, delicious… Internet Archive And Women Must Weep 1962 · Film Anti-union film dramatizing a strike staged by the International Association of Machinists in Princeton, Indiana, in 1956–57. Note: The film was based on a… Internet Archive The Jam Makers 1919 · Cartoon Cartoon in which Buddy, Susie, and a cat scheme for a taste of homemade jam. Preserved in collaboration with the New Zealand Film Archive and UCLA Film &… Internet Archive The Disease Concept of Alcoholism II 1984 · Educational Discusses the concept of alcoholism as a primary disease that is chronic, progressive and incurable. Explores specific causes, symptoms and effects Internet Archive William Penn and the Quakers: The Pennsylvania Colony 1982 · Educational Describes the Quaker's struggle for freedom of worship in 17th century England. Discusses how under William Penn's leadership a colony was founded in America… Internet Archive Profiles of Nature: Imprinting 1984 · Educational Title from data sheet A foreign film (Canada) Ages 12 through adults Explores the bonding of baby animals to their natural or adoptive parents through the… Internet Archive DOPE 358 2001 · Film · Subtitles Ed Rosenthal trial, Marijuana Logs, WAMM bust See scans of liner notes for detailed content. Internet Archive Meat On The Move 1962 · Film The story of meat production from farm to supermarket. Shows the intricate maze of production, transportation, marketing, testing, cutting, curing,… Internet Archive STS-51L: Challenger Investigation Film Space Shuttle Challenger Accident Investigation. VTV-26 51-L documentation tape by the Rogers Commission. To license this film and get a higher quality… Internet Archive Molecular Theory Of Matter 1932 · Film Diagrams and explains by laboratory experiments the action of molecules in gases, liquids, and solids. Shows molecular action as a bulb of bromine is broken… Internet Archive Tough! AC-Delco 1973 Campaign 1973 · Film An internal film for distributors and buyers of AC Delco products. Starts as a Laugh In knockoff, ends in a bizarre skit featuring Alex Karras. Wow! Internet Archive A True Madness 1969 · Educational Examines the nature of schizophrenia through conversations with schizophrenics and the doctors who treat them. Also gives a cross section of researchers'… Internet Archive Normalization: The Right of Respect 1973 · Film Depicts handicapped persons in real life situations to illustrate what normalization is for persons with developmental handicaps. Narrated by Lloyd Nolan… Internet Archive Sticky My Fingers ... Fleet My Feet 1970 · Educational · 23 min Shows a group of Madison Avenue touch football buffs who are beaten by a teenaged boy and begin to feel their age Internet Archive Cassette: "Take a Hike with Richard Simmons" 1991 · 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 25 Years of Progress, Episode 13: Space Shuttle Matures 1983 · Film In its 25th year (1983) NASA maintains its momentum of achievement. Pioneer 10 becomes the first man-made object to leave the Solar System. Challenger, the… Internet Archive Filmstrip: "A Woggle of Witches by Adrienne Adams" 1974 · Educational SOUND FILMSTRIP IS AN AT-RISK MEDIA FORMAT. I am the only person on earth preserving American filmstrips. The media format is largely forgotten and very… Internet Archive Great Little Railways: The Other Poland 1982 · Educational Narrated by Brian Blessed; produced by the BBC Documents the face Poland exhibits to the ouside world by focusing on the withdrawn, elusive nature of the… Internet Archive The Bead Game 1977 · Cartoon Title from data sheet Also issued as videocassette An animated art film in which swaying and pulsating colored beads are used to depict the evolution of… Internet Archive "WONDERFUL WORLD OF WHEELS" 1960s AUTOMOBILES SPORTS CARS & CUSTOMS BIG DADDY ROTH 68014 1966 · Film A short version of a longer form documentary with the same name that aired on CBS in 1966, “Wonderful World of Wheels” was produced and directed by Gene… Internet Archive India, haunting passage. 1965 · Educational · 26 min A colorful country fair sets the mood as the camera records the teeming excitement of India, The Rajatham puppets enact the Hindu epic, the Ramayana; the… Internet Archive Filmstrip: "Marriage Makes a Difference" 1960 · Educational SOUND FILMSTRIP IS AN AT-RISK MEDIA FORMAT. I am the only person on earth preserving American filmstrips. The media format is largely forgotten and very… Internet Archive Cruisng with the Asiatic Fleet 1934 · Short · 9 min This fascinating travelogue was made in 1934, in the era when China was in the grip of the Imperial nations. America operated its own fleet of warships in… Internet Archive It's Not Working 1980 · Educational · 27 min This film discusses alternatives to plant shutdowns such as locally-based cooperative enterprises engaged in joint production strategies which would make… Internet Archive The Girl Stage Driver 1914 · Film Long section from a Western filmed in Tucson, Arizona. Preserved in collaboration with the New Zealand Film Archive and The Museum of Modern Art. Internet Archive Drive-in: Coming-Red Curtain-Searchlights Film runs only a few seconds. suggestion; insert clip directly before any trailers when creating drive-in dvd. Internet Archive 1963 SOVIET PROPAGANDA FILM OLEG PENKOVSKY & GREVILLE WYNNE SPY TRIAL ALCOHOLISM SALARIES 53234 Film Made during the Soviet era, this propaganda / news film starts with the high treason criminal case against Oleg Penkovski, looks into the ravages of… Internet Archive El-Hajj Malik El-Shabazz: Malcolm X 1978 · Educational · 56 min Focuses on the qualities and characteristics that predicated Malcolm X's rise as leader and spokesman of the Black American movement Internet Archive Ellis Island 1967 · Educational Narrated by Richard Basehart An examination of the first governmental agency encountered by the newly arrived immigrant on Ellis Island. The crucial role of… Internet Archive Fish Tales 1997 · Film "A health education video from the Seafood Consumption Information Project at Save San Francisco Bay Association."-- description from box. Internet Archive The Long Search: Protestant Spirit U.S.A. 1977 · Educational · 25 min The Long Search: Protestant Spirit U.S.A., Reel 1 Reel 2 available here Visits various Protestant churches in Indianapolis and observes how services are… Internet Archive 1942 GERMAN NEWSREEL BATTLE OF STALINGRAD OPERATION BARBAROSSA EASTERN FRONT 84584 Newsreel Made for the home market in Germany during WWII by Degeto, this silent newsreel shows the start of the Battle of Stalingrad in the summer of 1942. At :38 a… Internet Archive Working It Out At Madison 6 1992 · Film "... an award-winning teen guidance series that provides real life solutions to personal and social conflicts."-- description from box. Internet Archive Not Together Now: End of a Marriage 1975 · Educational · 24 min Not Together Now: End of a Marriage Discusses some of the ways in which psychologists are developing new testing methods for measuring and increasing human… Internet Archive NASA CONNECT: Proportionality, The X-Plane Generation 2000 · Film Students meet NASA researchers and other professional who (a) describe the relationship between force, energy, and motion; (b) discuss how NASA’s experimental… Internet Archive Intro To Amplifiers 1981 · Film Introduction to Amplifiers is a training video for testing and understanding discreet components in the electronics industry.