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

Categories in Eras

  • History in Motion  
    This site features clips from newsreels, early documentary films, and early narrative films such as The Great Train Robbery. Browse clips by topic, title, and date. History in Motion is the moving image section of Eyewitness to History, a site that compiles photos, first person accounts, and other historical primary sources for students. The film section focuses primarily on American history.
  • History on/and/in Film  
    This website reproduces papers delivered at the Third Australian History and Film Conference, held in Perth in 1985. These essays, many by well-known scholars, represent a diverse array of approaches to the study of film and history.
  • Hollywood Reporter   Paid Subscription Required
    Website of the daily Hollywood trade paper, with searchable archives dating back to 1950.
  • Independent Television Programme Information   Paid Subscription Required
    Database of UK television listings from 1955 through 1985. Available only to British students.
  • 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.
  • Living Room Candidate  
    The site is an exhibition presented by Museum of the Moving Image, featuring more than 250 campaign commercials from every presidential election since 1952.
  • Louise Brooks Society  
    This website has an extensive bibliography on the silent film actress, with some sources dating back to the 1920s. Also includes a filmography, photo galleries, and extensive information on Louise Brooks ephemera.
  • Magic Lantern and Photochrome Bibliography  
    A list of publications on magic lanterns, photochromes, and early colorization techniques.
  • Magic Lanterns, Magic Mirrors: A Centennial Salute  
    A selection of early equipment, posters, and photographs documenting the advent and very early years of motion pictures.
  • Margaret Herrick Library  
    Huge collection of film-related material, including fan magazines, photographs, clippings, screenplays, and more.
  • Matsuda Film Productions: The Japanese Silent Films Site  
    Matsuda Film Productions is an archival rental house for silent Japanese cinema. Provides information on Matsuda's rental services and includes information on the historical context and development of early cinema in Japan.
  • 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.