Research

The Moving Image Source Research Guide is a gateway to the best online resources related to film, television, and digital media.

ALL RESOURCES

Browse by Type of Resource

Filter Resource List

 Peer Reviewed

General Film History

  • Hollywood Reporter   Paid Subscription Required
    Website of the daily Hollywood trade paper, with searchable archives dating back to 1950.
  • International Association for Media and History   Peer Reviewed
    The International Association for Media and History is an organization of scholars "dedicated to historical inquiry into film, radio, television, and related media." The website provides information on current publications by members as well as volume information on the association's journal The Historical Journal of Film, Radio and Television.
  • International Federation of Film Archives   Peer Reviewed
    FIAF is an international association of film archives dedicated to the preservation of the moving image. Although the actual catalog of associated-archival holdings is only available to paying users, the website also hosts a variety of free information pertaining to film preservation, most notably fully downloadable back issues of the Journal of Film Preservation.
  • Internet Archive: Feature Films  
    A collection of almost 900 public-domain feature films, including some classic silent films by Charlie Chaplin and Mack Sennett.
  • Kine Weekly Online Index @ The British Cinema History Research Project   Paid Subscription Required
    The Kine Weekly online index covers the period from 1955 through the end of the publication in 1971. Also contains some earlier materials. Password required.
  • Lexis-Nexis Academic   Paid Subscription Required Peer Reviewed
    Search the full text of selected newspapers, wire services, and business sources for historical film reviews, business information, or other primary sources.
  • Library of Congress: Variety Stage  
    Explore the relationship between vaudeville and early film. This collection includes 61 short films of vaudeville acts.
  • Like Television  
    Streaming video of classic films with expired copyright.
  • Margaret Herrick Library  
    Huge collection of film-related material, including fan magazines, photographs, clippings, screenplays, and more.
  • Media History Digital Library  
    Providing online access to the histories of cinema, broadcasting, and recorded sound, the Media History Digital Library digitizes collections of classic media periodicals that belong in the public domain for full public access.
  • Midnight Ramble  
    A tribute page by film fan Michael Mills about African American cinema in the silent era and the golden age of Hollywood. The site features a filmography. For each film, the author includes a high-quality still and poster image.
  • Movie Making Locations  
    A fascinating fan-created database of movie locations utilized in American western films and television programs since the early 1930s. Each listing features photos of the location as well as information on the films and programs that were shot there.
  • Moving Image Collection Catalog  
    The Museum of the Moving Image's collection contains artifacts from every stage of producing, promoting, and exhibiting motion pictures, television, and digital media -- currently more than 130,000 objects. Holdings include licensed merchandise, technical apparatus, still photographs, production design materials, costumes, fan magazines, publicity materials, and video and computer games. The online catalog currently contains over 4,000 silent-era and licensed merchandise entries.
  • Museum of Lone Pine Film History  
    Website of a museum devoted to the film history of Lone Pine, Death Valley, and the Eastern Sierra. Also features articles on the many westerns filmed at Lone Pine, as well as an inventory of the museum's collection of western film memorabilia, props, and oral histories.
  • National Film and Sound Archive Collection  
    Search the National Film and Sound Archive of Australia's catalog, which contains items that are in the physical archive in Canberra.
  • Origins of American Animation (Library of Congress)  
    This website, maintained by the Library of Congress, offers 21 animated films and two fragments from the early days of American animation. Included are examples of clay, puppet, and cutout animation, as well as pen drawings, in a variety of formats for both streaming and download.
  • Particip@tions: Journal of Audience & Reception Studies   Peer Reviewed
    Participations is an online, peer-reviewed journal of audience research and reception studies. It is published twice yearly and back issues are archived within the website.
  • SCIPIO: Art and Rare Book Sales Catalogs   Paid Subscription Required
    This site can help users locate relevant auction catalogs, as well as information about which institutions have copies.
  • The Criterion Collection  
    Since 1984, the Criterion Collection has been dedicated to gathering important classic and contemporary films from around the world and publishing them in editions that offer the highest technical quality and award-winning, original supplements. The website offers an “online cinematheque” with the possibility to buy or watch films online, film essays, interviews, reviews, top-ten lists, and festivals online.
  • Thomas Edison Historical Site  
    Basic biographical information on Edison, plus a bibliography and links to his sound and film recordings. Users can also find out how to visit the site's archive and artifact collection and view a full list of Edison's 1,093 patents.