Research Guides: Film Research Guide: Moving Image (Video) Resources

General Video Resources

For resources by subject, scroll down this page.

Youtube The largest video site, but you should be careful for the legality of videos and potentially offensive comments. There is an ‘Education' category, where videos are uploaded by colleges or universities. For example, Stanford University provides access to whole courses filmed in their classrooms.
Vimeo Self-claimed as "a respectful community of creative people", it seems there are more users who are aware of copyright rules. Unlike Youtube, you can download videos in their compressed format, as long as the creator has given the permission. It can be a useful site for media, film and creative arts teachers and students as it has High Definition, high quality art videos.
iTunes U Universities such as Oxford and Harvard are uploading videos of lectures and course materials. All videos should be watched using iTunes installed on your computer.
Internet Archive - Moving Image Archive Many videos are Creative Commons-licensed, free to download. It ranges from classic full-length films, to daily alternative news broadcasts, to cartoons and concerts.
Archive-It Web archiving service for collecting and accessing cultural heritage on the web. The content includes videos and websites that no longer exist on the current Web, such as performance art videos at biennials.

U.S.-based Video Resources

American Memory - Motion Pictures The Library of Congress's motion pictures collections. It ranges from Coca-Cola advertising to Presidential Inaugurations.
Smithsonian Institution - Collections Search Center Nearly 200 videos are available from the Smithsonian's collections.
ʻUluʻulu (Moving image heritage of Hawaiʻi) ʻUluʻulu preserves of film and videotape related to the history and culture of Native Hawaiians and the people of Hawaiʻi.

Europe-based Video Resources

Europeana Provides historical images/sounds/videos contributed by 1500 European institutions. You can filter your search by media type (sound, video, etc.).
Open Images Started by the Netherlands Institute for Sound and Vision, it offers interesting videos such as historical footage from the late 19th century. Provided under the Creative Commons licensing model, the content can be downloaded and remixed into new works including Wekipedia.
ARTtube A collective video channel for art and design in the Netherlands and Belgium. It includes interviews with reputable artists and designers, and curators who talk about museum's master pieces.
Search Your Film Archives You can search multiple film archives across the UK. Videos include footage of British people traveling Africa and Asia. Use Advanced Search to find "Only records with video online" if you would like to view videos on your desktop.
Sistine Chapel 3D View Not technically "video", but this provides high quality Sistine Chapel views that you can explore in a virtual reality setting. The zoom-in feature allows you to look at Michelangelo's Last Judgment and the ceiling frescoes very closely. (Courtesy of Villanova University of Pennsylvania for its contribution)

Historical Film Resources

Travel Film Archive A collection of travelogues and educational and industrial films that show the world the way it was between 1900 and 1970.
ʻUluʻulu (Moving image heritage of Hawaiʻi) ʻUluʻulu preserves of film and videotape related to the history and culture of Native Hawaiians and the people of Hawaiʻi.

Contemporary Art-related Video Resources

Rhizome ArtBase One of the oldest online archives of digital art containing projects from artists all over the world.
UbuWeb A resource for the avant-garde, ethnopoetics, and outsider arts. The film index is available by artist/provider's name.
Video Data Bank (VDB) Created by a not-for-profit organization located at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago, this is a leading resource in the United States for video by and about contemporary artists.
Videoart.net It serves as an international network for video art and experimental films.

Wong Audio Visual Center

Hamilton Library holds nearly 10,000 DVDs and over 24,000 VHS tapes. You can also explore their Online Video Resources lists.

Films on Demand

Films on Demand delivers entertainment, educational and documentary films to your desktop (a UH account required).

Streaming Hawaii/Pacific Videos

Streaming videos from the UH Hawaiian and Pacific collections are available through OneSearch Manoa, the online library catalog (a UH account required).

Streaming Asia/Pacific Videos

AsiaPacificFilms.com streams films currently featuring China, Japan, India, Thailand, Fiji, and the United States (an UH account required).

Film Research Guide

Looking for film-related articles, scripts, criticism, full text databases, etc.? Go to Film Research Guide.

Citing Moving Image and Sound

Confused about citations for audiovisual materials in your paper/thesis?

See Audiovisual Citation: BUFVC Guidlines For Referencing Moving Image and Sound

Featured Free Film Resource

See the world the way it was between 1900 and 1970. The Travel Film Archive is a collection of travelogues and educational and industrial films--many of them in color.