Educationals from the world's archives

49–96 of 22,182 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 Beginning Responsibility: Lunchroom Manners 1959 · Educational · 9 min The rude, clumsy puppet Mr. Bungle shows kids how to behave in the school cafeteria - the assumption being that kids actually want to behave during lunch.… Internet Archive Sixth Chair, The 1949 · Educational · 17 min · Subtitles Problems of underfunded and outdated schools. Internet Archive Baja California: the Pacific Coast of Mexico 1949 · Educational · 12 min Johnson is another "lost" filmmaker, who worked out of Coronado, California. This film boasts beautiful color footage of old Baja, before Pemex stations lined… Internet Archive The Miracle of Life 1983 · Educational · 29 min · Subtitles The Miracle of Life Reel 1 A documentary which shows the actual conception and development of a baby. Looks inside the male and female reproductive organs to… Internet Archive What About School Spirit? 1958 · Educational · 14 min · Subtitles School spirit and its social function for teenagers. Internet Archive A Man Called "Bee": Studying the Yanomamo 1975 · Educational Follows anthropologists Napoleon Chagnon as he collects anthropological field data among the Yanoama Indians of southern Venezuela Photography, Timothy Asch… Internet Archive Crisis in Levittown 1957 · Educational · 32 min The Black upper middle-class Myers family moves into all-white Levittown, PA in August, 1957, and are snubbed and mistreated, in this powerful landmark… Internet Archive Basic Brown, Basic Blue 1969 · Educational · 10 min Ever wonder how Matt Groening of 'The Simpsons' got his quirky sense of humor? Probably from his filmmaker dad, Homer Groening, who passed away in 1996.… Internet Archive Fred and the Voice of Food Safety: How to Avoid Food-Borne Illness Educational Food and Drug Administration gov.ntis.ava18185vnb1 Fred and the Voice of Food Safety: How to Avoid Food-Borne Illness About 2 million cases of food poisoning… Internet Archive Journey to the Center of a Triangle 1977 · Educational · 9 min 'Journey to the Center of a Triangle' (1976) 8m, dir. Bruce & Katharine Cornwell. Another fabulous film by the Cornwells, created on the Tektronics 4051… Internet Archive Congruent Triangles 1977 · Educational · 7 min Bruce and Katharine Cornwell are primarily known for a series of remarkable animated films on the subject of geometry. Created on the Tektronics 4051 Graphics… Internet Archive Hollywood: The Golden Years 1961 · Educational · 53 min · Subtitles Hollywood: The Golden Years Traces the growth of the motion picture industry from nickelodeon days to the advent of sound. Features such stars as Charles… Internet Archive Colonial Naturalist 1964 · Educational · 56 min From WorldCat: Presents a dramatization of the extended field trip made by Mark Catesby in colonial Virginia and the ultimate publication of his two-volume… Internet Archive Silent Snow, Secret Snow 1966 · Educational · 15 min Alienation, angst, and schizophrenia are powerful themes addressed by Kearney in this forgotten masterpiece. From a story by Conrad Aiken. Internet Archive Reading, Writing and Reefer (1979) 1979 · Educational · 51 min Reading, Writing and Reefer (1979) A factual report on the widespread, habitual use of marijuana among today's teenagers. Presents a simplified chemical… Internet Archive Madeline 1955 · Educational · 6 min · Subtitles Madeline Surveys the origins, rituals, and symbols of the major religions of the world, including Hinduism, Buddhism, Judaism, Christianity, and Mohammedanism… Internet Archive The Living Planet a Portrait of the Earth 12 New Worlds 1984 · Educational · 58 min · Subtitles Title from data sheet Intended audience: Ages 16 through adult Issued also as videorecording Host David Attenborough looks at the mixed fortunes of a wide… Internet Archive Ku Klux Klan: The Invisible Empire 1965 · Educational · 46 min · Subtitles Producer and writer, David Lowe; reporter, Charles Kurait A study of the Ku Klux Klan today, describing their aims and the characteristics of the membership… Internet Archive Violent Earth 1973 · Educational · 51 min Also issued as videocassette Shorter version (25 min.) issued under title: Earth--the restless planet French volcanologist Haroun Tazieff conducts a tour of… Internet Archive And So They Live 1940 · Educational · 24 min · Subtitles Stark, realistic documentary showing poorly educated "mountain peoples" living in poverty and stricken with disease. Their solace comes in strong family bonds… Internet Archive Fundamentals of Boundary Layers 1968 · Educational · 24 min Uses demonstration - experiments in water and glycerine to illustrate boundary layer concepts and phenomena. Demonstrates fusion welding from operation and… Internet Archive A Shooting gallery called America [motion picture] 1975 · Educational · 51 min Originally aired on 04/29/1975 on NBC. A sober and frightening examination of the grave effects of the rising explosion of handguns. Criminals, victims, and… Internet Archive Beauty and The Beast 1968 · Educational · 56 min Telecast on ABC-TV on December 13, 1968 Scenery and costumes, Tony Duquette Danced by the San Francisco Ballet: Lynda Meyer (Beauty) and others Storyteller… Internet Archive Denali Wilderness 1982 · Educational · 27 min Title from data sheet Cameramen, Kevin Peer, Bob Landis Intended audience: General Issued also as videorecording Follows the life cycles of the area's… Internet Archive Francesca Baby 1977 · Educational · 47 min Producer, Martin Tahse Presents an adaptation of the novel of the same title by Joan L. Oppenheimer, about a teenage girl and her younger sister who try to… Internet Archive She's Nobody's Baby: A History of American Women in the 20th Century 1982 · Educational · 56 min · Subtitles Title from data sheet Intended audience: Ages 15 through college and adult Issued also as videorecording Hosts Alan Alda and Marlo Thomas trace the… Internet Archive Television Tomorrow Educational · 12 min · Subtitles 0641 PA8692 Television Tomorrow 16 B&W comp print Internet Archive Solar System (2nd Ed) 1977 · Educational Tom Smith headed up the Special Effects team at Industrial Light & Magic, where he created all the goodies for the 'Star Wars' films. This is his academic… Internet Archive FDA Approved - The Slide Show Educational Food and Drug Administration gov.ntis.ava17487vnb1 FDA Approved - The Slide Show A slide show about what FDA approved means. Internet Archive A Day Of Thanksgiving (2K scan) 1951 · Educational · Subtitles Cold War-era educational film. A family who cannot afford a turkey at Thanksgiving reviews what they have to be thankful about. Notable for its lack of focus… Internet Archive A Baby is Born 1974 · Educational · 24 min A Baby is Born Life of a nine-year-old autistic boy at home and at Loyola University's Child Guidance Center. Internet Archive Zen and now. 1969 · Educational · 13 min · Subtitles Producer, Elda Hartley; script and narration, Alan Watts Discusses the Zen philosophy of living for the present, developing sensory awareness, and… Internet Archive Discovering dark and light. 1965 · Educational · 18 min · Subtitles Executive producers, Paul Burnford, Jack Stoops Variation in dark and light is called value. Value can be a natural part of any object, or it can be created… Internet Archive Madness and Medicine 1977 · Educational · 29 min · Subtitles Madness and Medicine Reel 2 Reel 1 available here A critical look at mental institutions and their diverse treatment programs which help some patients but… Internet Archive Mowgli's Brothers 1976 · Educational Mowgli's Brothers is a 1976 television animated special directed by American animator Chuck Jones. It tells a story about a human baby called Mowgli who is… Internet Archive Girls at 12 1974 · Educational With teacher's guide and resource book Producer, director, and editor, Joyce Chopra; camera, Joan Weidman Uses a cimema-verité look at the lives of three… Internet Archive Dwight David Eisenhower 1963 · Educational · 25 min Dwight David Eisenhower Basic education concerns itself with those matters which, once learned, enable the student to learn all the other matters, whether… Internet Archive Stuart Little 1968 · Educational · 53 min · Subtitles Stuart Little The story of a normal family into which a mouse is born. Narrated by Johnny Carson. Summary Tells the story of a boy, born five inches tall and… Internet Archive Student-Directed Curriculum: An Alternative Educational Approach 1971 · Educational · Subtitles Describes an experimental student-directed curriculum project at San Francisco Polytechnic High School, with many street scenes of San Francisco. Internet Archive Meetings, Bloody Meetings 1976 · Educational Booklet title: How to run a meeting Director, Peter Robinson; writers, John Cleese, Antony Jay Illustrates the basic principles for conducting more… Internet Archive Otto:Zoo Gorilla 1978 · Educational · 50 min Otto:Zoo Gorilla Summary Takes a .ehind - the - scenes look at the Lincoln Park Zoo in Chicago. Focuses on the transfer of the great apes to new quarters, a… Internet Archive The Case of the Ancient Astronauts 1979 · Educational · 58 min The Case of the Ancient Astronauts Search Educational Film Journals at Media History Project for references to this film Summary Examines the claims made by… Internet Archive The Cricket in Times Square 1972 · Educational An adaptation of the book by George Selden about a country cricket with unique musical talents which lands in the middle of New York's Times Square where he… 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 Surrealism (and Dada) 1971 · Educational · 17 min · Subtitles 617 feet Director, Guido Guerrasio; photographer, Adriano Bernacchi; music, Erik Satie Illustrates the history of surrealism and dada in twentieth century… Internet Archive Williamsburg: Story of a Patriot 1957 · Educational · 36 min · Subtitles Williamsburg: Story of Apatriot With the aid of his parrot, Polynesia, Doctor Dolittle learns to converse with animals and becomes a vet. Based on the book,… Internet Archive Above the horizon. 1967 · Educational · 21 min · Subtitles Also issued in super 8 mm A view of the field of meteorology. Describes interrelationships, potentials, and unsolved problems of the atmospheric sciences.… Internet Archive A Jury of Her Peers 1980 · Educational · Subtitles Title from data sheet Issued also as videorecording Dramatizes the short story by Susan Glaspell about the isolation and oppression of a farmwoman in rural…