Prelinger Archives

1,969–2,016 of 10,345 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 Trip, The 1939 · Film · Subtitles Screen ad, in Technicolor, for the 1940 Chevrolet models. Internet Archive Woodworker, The 1940 · Film · Subtitles Shots: Rough carpentry in woodworking; building forms for concrete; plywood; hog houses; chicken coops; sheathing; erecting roofs; installing inside finish;… Internet Archive Negro Colleges in Wartime 1944 · Short · 8 min · Subtitles Education and training of African Americans as part of the World War II effort. Internet Archive Friendship Begins At Home 1949 · Short · 15 min · Subtitles How a strong family group helps teenagers learn to form strong friendships. Internet Archive No Time for Ugliness (Part I) 1965 · Short · 10 min · Subtitles Shows that cities' approaches are marred by billboards and neon signs. Intimates that a demanding citizenry can have these unsightly signs removed. Internet Archive Immunization (2nd Ed) 1955 · Short · 8 min · Subtitles Explains what immunization is and how it is built up either by having a disease or by being inoculated with vaccine. Shows how smallpox vaccine is produced… Internet Archive Gags and Gals (Musical Shorts program) Film · Subtitles A compilation of Soundies - whimsical musical shorts that revolves around themes of love, companionship, and service. It includes catchy tunes about seeking a… Internet Archive Carving Magic 1959 · Film · Subtitles Home economist Martha Logan tells the story of a husband who enjoys showing off his carving ability. She demonstrates how to carve 21 popular cuts of meat,… Internet Archive What It Means To Be an American 1952 · Short · 22 min · Subtitles Much discussion about how Americans can feel free to speak openly without fear. stresses value of cooperation and independence. Most visuals are less than… Internet Archive Ninth Element, The 1954 · Film · Subtitles Great industrial stock shots: mining, factory, mill, spinning globe, laboratory, test labs, minerals. Beautifully shot industrial production. Woman in… Internet Archive Dynamic American City, The 1956 · Film · Subtitles There could be no better film than this to show how old, character-filled neighborhoods in cities across the nation were wantonly destroyed during the "new is… Internet Archive San Francisco Earthquake Aftermath, Part 4 1906 · Film · Subtitles Scenes from an early newsreel of the fire and earthquake destruction of San Francisco in 1906 Internet Archive Seeing Green 1937 · Short · 9 min · Subtitles Inside the electrochemical "brain" of the traffic light. Internet Archive The Great Blue Heron Story 1989 · Film · Subtitles From distributor pamphlet: "High in the tree tops, heron nests sway with every breeze and provide a setting for this intimate film that examines the life of… Internet Archive Lost Landscapes 2022: Bay and Gateway: Past Glimpses and Possible Futures 2022 · Film · Subtitles This is the 17th Lost Landscapes film, premiering on December 13, 2022 at Herbst Theater in San Francisco in association with Long Now Foundation. It is also… Internet Archive What Makes A Good Party? 1950 · Film · Subtitles Shows how to plan a party. Illustrates the skills which enable the guests to have fun together. Skeletal Entry Internet Archive Pilgrims, The 1955 · Film · Subtitles Follows the Pilgrims from England to Holland and to New England. Discusses the Mayflower compact and the hardships in the New World. Internet Archive Centralization and Decentralization 1952 · Film · Subtitles Depicts the problems created by the gradual transfer of decision making from local committees to centralized bodies operating at state and national levels.… Internet Archive [Home Movies: Texas Travels and Televised Moon Walk] 1969 · Home movie · Subtitles Container marked: "No. II." and "1. Texas Shots. 2. Trip to Waco. 3. Ft. Worth. 4. Waco & Austin. 5. Sparkles. 6. 1st Man on Moon." Large Christmas tree /… Internet Archive Sao Paulo 1949 · Film · Subtitles Presents the industries, commerce, art, architecture and educational trends of Sao Paulo, Brazil. Internet Archive Fun of Making Friends, The 1950 · Film · Subtitles Discusses the values of friendships and how to make and keep friends. Don't miss the CU of little Susie's abominable snowface mittens (with the button eyes). Internet Archive House in the Middle, The 1954 · Film · Subtitles Illustrates the importance of good housekeeping and heat reflectant value of white paint. Photographed during the atomic blast at the Nevada proving grounds. Internet Archive [Golden Gate Bridge Opening] 1936 · Short · 4 min · Subtitles Scenes on opening day. Internet Archive Chevrolet Leader News (Vol. 3, No. 1) 1937 · Newsreel · 9 min · Subtitles Promotional newsreels featuring a variety of Chevrolet-centric stories. Internet Archive Detroit News Newsreel (1917) 1917 · Newsreel · 7 min · Subtitles Happenings in and around Detroit shot for local news cameras. Internet Archive Lost and Found 1935 · Film · Subtitles Some good shots to be logged. How a minister helps an "at-risk" young man go straight; a burglary at a gas station; youth culture of the 1930s. Shot on the… Internet Archive Early Settlers of New England (Salem 1626-1629) 1940 · Film · Subtitles Appraisal. Excellent for showing the homes and their construction, the crude agricultural methods, the wide reliance on fish and game for food, and the… Internet Archive Life Is a Lark at Willow Grove Park 1956 · Film · Subtitles Features bands playing at music stand; plus 20 minute film of amusement park, rides and circus. Internet Archive Marijuana Man Film · Subtitles Content warning: This film includes a brief sequence depicting violence against women. Film following a humble marijuana farmer in the hills of California,… Internet Archive [Technical Photography Sample Reel] 1940 · Film · Subtitles Some of the following shots may actually be on "Animation Sample Reel" At vis. timecode 18:54:23, great shot of stop motion animation of dinosaurs in primeval… Internet Archive Sound Recording for Motion Pictures 1960 · Film · Subtitles WORK OF MOTION PICTURE SOUNDMAN. COMPARES RECORDING IN STUDIO TO RECORDING ON LOCATION. ACOUSTICAL TREATMENT OF SET, MICROPHONE PLACEMENT CONTROL OF… Internet Archive American Look 1958 · Film · Subtitles A "tribute to the American stylist," American Look shows families at leisure, children dressed in cowboy and cowgirl outfits watching television, a father… Internet Archive World of Tomorrow, The 1939 · Film · Subtitles Great footage from the 1939-40 New York World's Fair. Great footage of various pavilions, especially: Soviet, American, British, Polish, and partial coverage… Internet Archive Frontiers of the Future (A Screen Editorial With Lowell Thomas) 1937 · Film · Subtitles Full of GREAT stock shots of 1930s manufacturing, research laboratories and industry Lowell Thomas sitting at desk in studio Art card: map of United States… Internet Archive We Work Again 1930 · Short · 10 min · Subtitles How the New Deal benefits African Americans. Internet Archive A Visit to Santa 1963 · Film · Subtitles Two children dreaming of Christmas are whisked away to Santa's workshop in the North Pole. The film has become famous as a low-budget, eccentrically produced… Internet Archive [Home Movies: House 1941, Las Vegas 1945, Las Vegas 1946] 1941 · Home movie · Subtitles ca. 1941 - 1946 woman in nurse's cap walking toward camera, posing; looks like street in southern California fancy newish house built on hill with stone… Internet Archive [Countdown Leader: Technicolor Corporation] 1960 · Short · Subtitles Countdown leader. Internet Archive How Textile Mills Are Modernizing 1948 · Film · Subtitles How electricity can modernize textile mills. Great shots of cotton mills, processing and textile manufacturing; technical narration laced with industry… Internet Archive How You See It 1936 · Film · Subtitles MOTION PICTURES ARE MADE POSSIBLE BY PERSISTENCE OF VISION. ITS PRINCIPLES EXPLAINED WITH ANIMATION, DIAGRAMS. STUNT DRIVER ROLLS CAR OVER. GOOD SHOTS… Internet Archive Children Must Learn, The 1940 · Film · Subtitles "This film is an authentic record of real people, living their usual lives. It documents one of several experiments carried on by various state universities… Internet Archive Posture and Personality 1949 · Film · Subtitles Shows the correlation between posture and personality by showing the influence of posture on personal appearance and efficiency in sports and games, in making… Internet Archive [Fly, The] Film · Subtitles 12:39:35:28 Intertitle �A fly may seem insignificant, but the magnifying glass reveals it as a monster.�VS CU of flies.12:40:48:24 VS strange shot through the… Internet Archive Marriage Is a Partnership 1951 · Film · Subtitles DOTTY, ON A TRAIN BY HERSELF, REFLECTS BACK ON FIRST YEAR OF MARRIED LIFE. FLASHBACKS DRAMATIZE SOME OF THE MAJOR PROBLEMS THAT AROUSE BETWEEN PETE & DOTTY;… Internet Archive [Amateur film: Medicus collection: New York World's Fair, 1939-40] (Reel 5) (Part I) 1939 · Home movie · 17 min · Subtitles Detailed documentation of the "World of Tomorrow" in beautiful Kodachrome. Internet Archive Operation Crossroads: Able and Baker Day Tests, Bikini Atoll, Summer 1946 1949 · Film · Subtitles Documents the Able Day and Baker Day blasts of the atomic bomb tests at Bikini Island in the Pacific, Summer 1946. Commander Joint Task Force One presents,… Internet Archive [Home Movies: 1927 Home Movies] 1927 · Home movie · Subtitles CITIES, Washington, D.C., RAILROAD TRAVEL, OCEAN LINER BON VOYAGE. Belmont Park Racetrack, New York, N.Y., first race (Meet of 1927) VS track and spectators;… Internet Archive How to Use the Dial Phone 1927 · Film · Subtitles Gould can 1095. HOW TO USE THE DIAL PHONE. Instructional film on use of the dial telephone, produced for showing in the Fresno, California market.