Prelinger Archives

3,505–3,552 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 [World War II Snipes: Gable/Barrymore] 1940 · Film · Subtitles Two World War II Snipes: "To The Ladies" with Lionel Barrymore promotes women's enlistment while Clark Gable promotes the March of Dimes. Internet Archive [Panama-Pacific International Exposition] 1915 · Short · 8 min · Subtitles Dignitaries and ceremonies at the Fair. Internet Archive [Home Movies: Croft Collection: Can 36: Andy Family, July 1953] 1953 · Home movie · Subtitles Includes African American minister leading service at Belle Isle and Michigan State Fair Internet Archive Home Movies: Can 11274: Monnier School, Detroit, Michigan, ca. 1947 Home movie · 9 min Home movies shot at Monnier School, Detroit, Michigan, approximately 1947. Sequences include scenes in and around the school and parking lot, art classes,… Internet Archive [San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge Groundbreaking] 1932 · Film · Subtitles San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge Groundbreaking and Dedication from Goat Island in San Francisco Bay / Former President Herbert Hoover, Gov. James Rolph,… Internet Archive [Home Movies: Ransohoff Collection: Scenes at the Beach Club, 1927] 1927 · Home movie · Subtitles title: "Scenes at the Beach Club 1927" people lying around / playing tennis title: "Another Day at the Beach April 1928" Much family activity around beach… Internet Archive Full of Intent: The Story of Westminster Choir College Film · Subtitles Westminster Choir College, Princeton, New Jersey. Written by John T. Cunningham. Narrated by Boyd C. Roche. Produced by Henry Charles. Internet Archive Westinghouse Air Conditioners Commercial 1 1966 · Commercial · Subtitles Westinghouse Air Conditioners Commercial Internet Archive The Challenge Film · Subtitles Film about the traffic control management systems developed by the Sperry Rand Corporation to help regulate the flow of traffic in metropolitan areas and… Internet Archive [Miscellaneous Color Shots 2] Film · Subtitles Someone's In the Kitchen Film contains many artfully shot closeups of housework, cooking, food preparation, food and kitchen activity. PA-0710 section:… Internet Archive Soundie - [Hawaiian Hula Song] 1940 · Short · 1 min · Subtitles Could this be "ANA LANI" with Ray Kinney? Internet Archive [Home Movies: Clinton, N.Y. collection 1] 1959 · Home movie · Subtitles POV driving out of New York Thruway toll station with signs "Albany and Buffalo" and "Westchester and New York" VS driving POVs; approach to Tappan Zee… Internet Archive Citrus in Nutrition 1943 · Film · Subtitles Instruction on the nutritional benefits of citrus fruits, including a discussion of their historical use to prevent scurvy on ships. Notes from Educational… Internet Archive [Home Movies: Colorado Tourism] 2026 · Home movie · Subtitles main street of town with mountains in background, somewhere in Interior West roadside scenes river sign: Timberline Road Camp (which would be in Rocky… Internet Archive Vista Stock Shots: Ocean-Oriented Footage 2026 · Film · Subtitles Internet Archive [Home Movies: C.A. Samsel Family, R2, DeQueen, Arkansas] 1950 · Home movie · Subtitles Begins with shot of mailbox on which is painted: "C.A. Samsel, R.2, Dequeen, Ark." Wooden house / cabin Field with cows VS cows, calves grazing Elderly man… Internet Archive Place to Live, A 1948 · Short · 24 min · Subtitles Problem of housing for senior citizens. Internet Archive Industry on Parade Film · Subtitles Pasadena: "To give us more miles!" -AAA mobile gas economy run; A Message from Industry to You... Quality of Life; Academy for Artists - Correspondence… Internet Archive Selling Facts About Homart Water Conditioning Equipment, The 1950 · Film · Subtitles Shots to be logged. Film on Homart water softeners and conditioners, sold by Sears, Roebuck and Co. Some good animation showing water filtering at… Internet Archive Fun's Fun 1925 · Film · Subtitles Dog and kid comedy. Internet Archive [Home Movies: Thirteenth Test Ordnance Department, Aberdeen MD, Oct 8, 1931] 1931 · Home movie · Subtitles Shaky footage of ordnance demonstrations at the Aberdeen Proving Ground before audiences on bleachers. Includes long shots of Pathe Sound News and Paramount… Internet Archive Your Safety First Short · 12 min · Subtitles 0512 PA8320 Your Safety First Internet Archive Sharp Calculator Commercial Commercial · 1 min · Subtitles Internet Archive Tribune-American Dream Picture 1924 · Film · Subtitles OAKLAND TRIBUNE DREAM FILM. Tribune-American Dream Picture sponsored by American Theatre and Oakland Tribune which gave a prize for the most unusual dream… Internet Archive Home Movie: 000432: Anti-Vietnam War demonstration, San Francisco, April 15, 1967 1967 · Home movie Home movie (8mm) depicting anti-Vietnam War demonstrators on the streets near Golden Gate Park and in the Park, San Francisco, April 15, 1967 Internet Archive [San Francisco Ironworkers Strike] 1917 · Film · Subtitles San Francisco, California. [?] Ironworkers strike. Includes destruction of streetcar. Internet Archive [Gould can 5423.6] 1912 · Film · Subtitles Unknown footage from Lewis material involving collapsing stairs. (Lewis shot footage of Chinatown, San Francisco, California). Internet Archive Seeing America's Greatest Chinatown: San Francisco (Part II) 1912 · Film · Subtitles Chinatown, San Francisco, California: Captain Lewis was a licensed Chinatown guide; these films represent what was salvaged from a multi-reel film. Chinese… Internet Archive Flying the Lindbergh Trail (Part II) 1937 · Short · 22 min · Subtitles Aerial travelogue of South America. Internet Archive More Than Machines Film · Subtitles Promotes awareness of the importance of fine honing of engine parts, specifically fine grain fit between pistons and cylinders in combustion engines and… Internet Archive Ten Years After Film · Subtitles American Legion Parade in Paris, September, 1927 American military veterans marching down Champs-Elysées by Arc de Triomphe General Gouraud Major Jimmy Walker… Internet Archive Johnny Learns His Manners 1946 · Film · Subtitles A moralizing tale for children in which a little boy turns into a pig because of his slovenly manners, which he has cultivated out of fear of being called a… Internet Archive Lady And The Stock Exchange, The 1962 · Film · Subtitles The video begins with a welcome to the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE), which has expanded its staff to accommodate visitors from around the world attending… Internet Archive [Home Movies: Travels Including San Francisco] 1951 · Home movie · Subtitles Totem pole; flowers; replica of old fort; bridge over a bay; elderly women standing; pans of a city; waterfront with steep slopes covered with pine trees;… Internet Archive [Gould can 5314 -- Extra.1] 1919 · Film · Subtitles San Francisco's own 363rd Regiment returns to the city / Ferry pulling into the pier / dignitaries on hand including Mayor Rolph / parade up Market Street… Internet Archive Your Hit Parade Commercial Commercial · 1 min · Subtitles Television commercial for Hit Parade cigarettes. Internet Archive Sons of the Surf 1920 · Film · Subtitles To be logged. Surfing at Waikiki Beach, Hawaii Internet Archive [Home Movies: Medicus Collection: California and Alberta] 2026 · Home movie · Subtitles Tia Juana (Tijuana, Baja California, Mexico); San Diego Bay; grounds of Santa Barbara Biltmore Hotel; VS Santa Barbara; Mission Santa Barbara; Del Monte… Internet Archive Close Harmony 1942 · Film · Subtitles Film sponsored by General Motors to educate the public as to why it was taking so long for factories to retool for wartime production. Contains racist scene… Internet Archive [Amateur Film: Girls Dancing] 1960 · Film · Subtitles kids in playground Internet Archive Dial Comes To Town Film · Subtitles Internet Archive The Truck Farmer 1939 · Film · Subtitles Overview of farming practices in South Texas. "Treats the geography of the Rio Grande delta and provides authentic recordings of the problems and activities… Internet Archive Conquest of Light, The Film · Subtitles Skeletal Entry Internet Archive Pan American Bazaar 1940 · Film · Subtitles concerns special Macy's in-store promotion of Latin American products and artworks, in line with the U.S. Good Neighbor Policy of the 1940s people shopping,… Internet Archive Our Productive Land 1955 · Film · Subtitles Explains why soil is a valuable natural resource. Compares early-day farming and movement of crops to market with modern methods, stressing the need for… Internet Archive Live and Let Live 1947 · Film · Subtitles Demonstrates causes and effects of such unsafe driving practices as passing on a curve, driving after drinking, following too closely, and speeding. Lots of… Internet Archive Common Fallacies About Group Differences 1957 · Film · Subtitles Prompted by a discussion between painters sitting at lunch, this film analyzes seven common notions about races, heredity and group differences in the light… Internet Archive Azania 1968 · Film · Subtitles Content warning: This film depicts colonialism in Eastern Africa (present day Kenya). "Presents the region of East Africa (called Azania by Herodotus and…