Prelinger Archives

2,977–3,024 of 10,346 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 Southern Highlanders 1947 · Film · Subtitles PRESENTS MAJESTY OF GREAT SMOKY MOUNTAINS OF NORTH CAROLINA & TENNESSEE. HANDICRAFTS, DANCES & FOLK MUSIC OF PEOPLE OF REGION ARE SHOWN. Internet Archive Driven to Kill 1948 · Film · Subtitles Stresses the necessity for the average American driver to realize fully his responsibility when behind the wheel. Illustrates that violations of safe and sane… Internet Archive Home Movie: 003791 Home movie A mid-century African American family from the Baldwin Hills/Crenshaw/Leimert Park area of Los Angeles, California, at home and on the road visiting friends… Internet Archive [Universal Newspaper Newsreel: Zoo Sets Record For New Arrivals as Stork Brings 18] 1930 · Newsreel · Subtitles title: San Francisco, Cal. Zoo Sets Record For New Arrivals as Stork Brings 18; Graham McNamee Baby animals at San Francisco Zoo baby lions and tigers, with… Internet Archive Passport to Fashion Film · Subtitles A young girl named Linda narrates her experience of traveling to Denmark from her preparations at The School for International Training in Vermont to her… Internet Archive Forest Produces, The 1949 · Film · Subtitles Describes timber and how it grows, explains the watershed's vast underground reservoir, and recalls the facilities of the forest for man's use in physical and… Internet Archive Heritage We Guard, A 1940 · Film · Subtitles The film concerns the damage to soil and wildlife that accompanied the winning of the continent by westward migration, and the value of such life and current… Internet Archive Meet Your Federal Government 1946 · Film · Subtitles Reviews the structure and function of the federal government, as seen through the eyes of a high-school senior. Explains the nature and functions of each of… Internet Archive Seed for Tomorrow 1947 · Short · 20 min · Subtitles Promotes a union of farmers and agricultural workers. Internet Archive Darkness Before the Dawn: The "Pride of Judea" Story 1955 · Film · Subtitles Guidance film targeted at Jewish teenage boys who are not "normal." Numerous psychiatrists are seen. Shot in New York City. Internet Archive Isle Of Youth 1969 · Film · Subtitles A documentary on the Isle of Youth experiment in Cuba, where young people transformed a former prison colony into an experiment in communal living and… Internet Archive [California State Fair Highlights] 1913 · Film · Subtitles California State Fair highlights. Includes shot of Governor Hiram Johnson. Ends with two "diamond stacker" railroad locomotives colliding headon. This was a… Internet Archive Social Seminar: Mr. Edler's Class - Drug Education In One Elementary School 1971 · Educational · Subtitles Shows what elementary schools can do to prevent drug misuse with action being taken to detect, diagnose and treat the problem through the use of experimental… Internet Archive Scientific Expedition Into the Great Arctic 1920 · Film · Subtitles "Canada's Northern Islands are the object of watchful care by the Dominion Government...In the summer of 1922 an expedition was sent into these Arctic regions… Internet Archive [Placerville, California: El Dorado County Fair and John M. Studebaker Wheelbarrow Race] 1950 · Film · Subtitles audiences clapping and looking at wheelbarrow races VS wheelbarrow races Good stunt Internet Archive Report on Tomorrow 1959 · Film · Subtitles Describes activities in a health department and the relationships of those activities to community and personal life in guarding the public health. Many… Internet Archive Symphony In Motion Film · Subtitles Busy city-in-motion footage that could be described as a city symphony. Shot in downtown Los Angeles and set to a soundtrack of Igor Stravinsky's Symphony in… Internet Archive [Home Movies: Virginia 1929] 1929 · Home movie · Subtitles Women on road trip: two-level concrete bridge / sign: Havre de Grace mileage sign to Aldino, Churchville and Belair / preparations for trip, loading up car… Internet Archive Home Movie: 97481: St. Louis Area Family, Reel 13 1965 · Home movie Viewing notes state: Linda in hospital with baby baby through glass (long) more baby shots Xmas girl’s birthday baby with bad haircut parents with baby… Internet Archive Trading Centers of the Pacific Coast 1947 · Short · 10 min · Subtitles The Pacific Rim at the start of the air age. Internet Archive Water 1950 · Film · Subtitles A John Kieran Kaleidoscope. This educational film explains the essential role of water in life and modern civilization, tracing its journey through the… Internet Archive [Home Movies: California] 1935 · Home movie · Subtitles 13:00:54 Mission San Luis Rey color/silent 50016 13:01:03 Pan of old Spanish style building 13:02:05 Polar bears in zoo 13:02:09 CU Grizzly bear ** 13:02:27… Internet Archive Pages from an Open Book 1949 · Film · Subtitles Met Life presents its annual report on film. Includes scenes of Met Life's housing developments: Hancock Village near Dedham, Mass. and Parkchester, Bronx,… Internet Archive Philosophy of Computing Film · Subtitles Educational film explaining digital and analog computers to a lay audience, expressing the state of computing technology in the mid-1950s with a focus on… Internet Archive [Miscellaneous Old Film] Film · Subtitles Miscellaneous clips assembled by John Carlson. Can states "Halloween at Maria's" and "Little of Rumen." Also includes a news segment on the 1976 election.… Internet Archive South Chile 1945 · Film · Subtitles Pictures the southernmost part of South America. Shows the life and agriculture of Patagonia. Internet Archive [Carmel, California, August 2, 1955] 1955 · Film · Subtitles Steady (tripod) shots by professional cinematographer. Good driving POV along California Highway 1, Cambria (California) sign on right. Scenics, coastline,… Internet Archive Heritage For Victory B Film · Subtitles Western Electric-sponsored film about the history of their company. Internet Archive Color it Clean 1966 · Film · Subtitles Shows the detailed steps necessary to achieve a high standard of cleanliness in a public restroom and presents the opinions, attitudes and personal feelings… Internet Archive Unid. Soundie "Stardust" (Juvenile Jubilee) 1940 · Film · Subtitles 00:23:38:14 - 00:26:25:16 B/W Sound 1940s Male crooner in tuxedo sings the Hoagy Carmichael song "Stardust" on a nightclub set w/ nighttime city skyline… Internet Archive Ring of Steel 1941 · Short · 8 min · Subtitles U.S. armed forces protect the homefront. Internet Archive Partners 1948 · Film · Subtitles EMPHASIZES THE NECESSITY FOR CAREFUL BREEDING, TRAINING & NUTRITION IN DEVELOPMENT OF SUPERIOR DOGS. SETTERS, POINTERS & RETRIEVERS ARE SHOWN IN HUNTING SCENES. Internet Archive Getting Acquainted With Engineering (Part II) 1950 · Short · 7 min · Subtitles Discusses the problem of capable boys who are lost to engineering because of their misconceptions about the type of work involved. Stresses the importance of… Internet Archive Pipeline to the Clouds 1951 · Film · Subtitles STORY OF WATER SUPPLY IN AMERICAN COMMUNITY OF TODAY. COVERS SUCH SUBJECTS AS SOURCES OF WATER, REASONS FOR WATER SHORTAGES, HOW SHORTAGES ARE BEING MET &… Internet Archive Modern Trends in Swine Production 1961 · Film · Subtitles Shows the most commonly used up-to-date methods of hog raising and includes suggestions on breeding, feeding, farrowing and management. Internet Archive Precipitins 1930 · Film · Subtitles Identification of human vs. animal blood, stains through chemical tests - scientists, labs, chemists, rabbits, experiments, blood, nurses, lab technicians,… Internet Archive Soundie - Row Row Row Film · Subtitles song from the Broadway show "Ziegfield Follies Of 1912" (William Jerome / James V. Monaco) Internet Archive Mr. Bell (Part II) 1947 · Short · 16 min · Subtitles Dramatization of the invention of the telephone. Internet Archive Social Seminar: “Tom” 1971 · Film · Subtitles Tells about a 26-year-old man who is a heavy user of drugs. Questions what the drugs offer him and to what they serve as a transition. Examines his feelings… Internet Archive [Home Movies: Budapest and Germany, June 1937] 1937 · Home movie · Subtitles Budapest skyline, Prague, Dresen on the Rhine River. Images of Germany; Rhine River; German cities; Prague; possibly also images of Hitler Youth or Nazi… Internet Archive [Gould can 5230.3] 1926 · Film · Subtitles KINOGRAMS NEWSREEL: Lakehurst, New Jersey: The Graf Zeppelin reaches the United States after 93 hours aloft / several views of the zep in the air / flying… Internet Archive These People 1944 · Short · 15 min · Subtitles Frigidaire plant converts to military production during World War II. Internet Archive Lost Landscapes 2023: City and Bay in Motion: Transportation and Communication 2023 · Film · Subtitles This year’s new LOST LANDSCAPES film (the 18th!) sets the Bay in motion, revolving around the myriad mobilities and means of communication that have kept… Internet Archive Henry Wallace Speech 1942 · Short · 12 min · Subtitles Vice President Henry A Wallace talks about U.S. involvement in World War II. Internet Archive Fundamentals of Tennis 1962 · Film · Subtitles DONALD BUDGE ILLUSTRATES BACKHAND, FOREHAND & SERVICE STROKES & PROPER FOOTWORK FOR PLAYING TENNIS. Internet Archive To Each Other 1943 · Film · Subtitles About stepping up wartime steel production. Locations of mills across the country are pictured. Internet Archive John Schmidt Collection: Reel 02 Film Leisure activities filmed around a Northern California property, with a strong focus on gardening and nature. Includes images of seedlings, crops, plants,… Internet Archive People's Park 1969 · Film · Subtitles Content warning: This film contains images of police beating protestors in the head with batons, as well as still images of bloodied protestors. Newsreel #33.…