Urban utopia beckons in this idealistic vision of postwar Manchester – fascinating to revisit as Northern Powerhouses and city devolution return to the agenda. Sponsored by the city council, it’s…

This “Theater of Life” series short looks at traffic problems in Los Angeles, California, as described and experienced by Sgt. Charles Reineke, a traffic enforcement officer with the Los Angeles…

This short film, produced at the end of WWII, warns that although Adolf Hitler is dead, his ideas live on.

The film illustrates the fact that Australia’s Newcastle, like its British counterpart, has developed into a large city but still retains its essential mining atmosphere. The great steel industry which…

Short documentary film about the Dumbarton Oaks plan and the proposed formation of the United Nations.

Scripted by poet Dylan Thomas, this affecting docu-drama recalls the incendiary bombing of Coventry on 14 November 1940. The film focusses on reconstruction and morale: we see the city’s rebirth…

Documentary short film intended to drum up support for the Fifth War Loan Campaign. It shows a happy family in the future of 1960 enjoying the prosperity and advantages made…

German training film from World War II. Sharpshooter: Master of Camouflage and Deception.

This government documentary short film depicts and explains proper procedures for functioning as a flight engineer on the B-29 bomber. Lieutenant Anderson is normally the co-pilot of this B-29, but…

A dramatised account of Norwegian fishermen outwitting occupational forces during World War II, directed by Jiří Weiss and written by acclaimed author Laurie Lee.

Documentary which shows some of the spare-time activities of service personnel and civilians during the war.

A training film for OSS agents who are to be dropped behind enemy lines.

The Japanese attack on Midway in June 1942, filmed as it happened.

This short looks at the illness anthropophobia, the fear of people. In 1901, young Catherine Starr, who lives in a small English coastal town, has an argument with her fiancé….

Chronicles combat action of Hitler’s elite bodyguard regiment from 1940 to 1941. From Rotterdam to Greece, German frontline cameramen captured footage of early victorious campaigns. Scenes of camp life and…

Rey Scott received an Honorary Academy Award for this documentary “For his extraordinary achievement in producing Kukan, the film record of China’s struggle, including its photography with a 16mm camera…

World War II propaganda short which focuses on the dangers of inadvertent dispersal of military information.

Nazi documentary about the Jews being filthy, evil, corrupt, and intent on world domination. Street scenes are shown, along with clips from Jewish cinema of the day and photos of…

Combines airplane trips and fashion. Heavy on the fashion.

This 1940 presentation features highlights of earlier (1928 onward) Oscar ceremonies including Shirley Temple and Walt Disney, plus acceptance speeches for films released in 1939 with recipients and presenters including…

The world’s press gather at Dover, England awaiting a threatened German attack.

This short documentary, presented and directed by MGM sound engineer Douglas Shearer, goes behind the scenes to look at how the sound portion of a talking picture is created.

This feature documentary offers a complete record of the 1939 Royal Tour of Canada by King George VI and Queen Elizabeth. The film opens as the royal couple makes a…

Promotion reel/souvenir of a 1939-40 meeting of the Paramount Studios sales people.

Few amateur films with sound were produced in the 1930s and fewer remain extant. A charming artifact that demonstrates the expressive possibilities and technical limitations of amateur talkies, “The Spider…

This short Depression-era documentary describes the importance of the Mississippi River to the United States. It laments the environmental destruction committed in the name of progress, particularly farming and timber…

This advocacy documentary about the Lincoln Brigade was shot during the Spanish Civil War to raise funds for bringing wounded American volunteers home. Some 2,800 Americans enlisted in the International…

This Nazi propaganda film attempts to justify and extols the “benefits” of euthanasia.

Night Mail is a short (25 minute) black and white documentary made in 1936. It shows the special train on which mail is sorted, dropped and collected on the run,…

“The Immortal Swan”, is a 1935 documentary tribute filmed not long after Pavlova’s death that depicts the star dancing, including her most famous solo, “The Dying Swan”.

Public information film aimed at the unemployed, commissioned by the Ministry of Labour.

A lyrical documentary on the lives of Coal miners in the Donbass who are struggling to meet their production quotas under the Five Year Plan.

A series of short movies in which Hollywood actresses including Phyllis Crane and Raquel Torres model Spring fashions in colour.

A nature documentary depicting the variety of changes undergone by plants and animals as the seasons of the year change. A deer is shown shedding his antlers, then growing new…

A look at an exhibition in Reval (now known as Tallinn).

This small Promotional Film showed Greta and a group of friends. They have tea on the rooftop terrace of the Strand Hôtel and later having a picnic in the park.

The film is a commercial for the department store PUB in Stockholm . It is the film debut for Greta Garbo who at that time was working as a clerk…

Documentary footage showing the alligator in several stages of growth, from babyhood to a ripe old age; a film taken at an alligator farm in California. In early 1913 as…

Lost educational film on the effects of alcohol abuse.