Stockfilm holds 10,563 clips filmed between 1940 and 1949, 7,373 of them licensable directly on this site at $149, scanned at 4K from 31 original home movie reels. 6,321 clips carry a city and 10,480 a country, across 21 countries; United States, France and India lead. Every clip page shows its year and the confidence level behind that date; a matched source reel appears where the catalog can pair the clip with a reel record by year and place, a candidate match rather than a digitization log, which about 46% of searchable clips currently carry. The 51 year and place collections below are the fastest way in; the tables list where and when the footage was shot.
- Clips
- 10,563
- Direct at $149
- 7,373
- Source reels
- 31
- Countries
- 21
- Cities
- 110
- Years
- 1940 to 1949
What people filmed in the 1940s
Subject counts come from the same keyword search the browse pages use, restricted to clips dated 1940 to 1949.
Where it was filmed
10,480 of the 10,563 clips carry a country and 6,321 a city. Each row links to the year and place collection for that place when one exists, otherwise to a search scoped to the 1940s.
Top cities, 1940s| City | Clips |
|---|
| Middletown, United States | 698 |
| Paris, France | 439 |
| Washington, United States | 383 |
| Harrisburg, United States | 325 |
| San Francisco, United States | 266 |
| Sebring, United States | 217 |
| Cincinnatti, United States | 194 |
| Skyline Drive, United States | 176 |
| Ringling Brothers Sarasota, United States | 174 |
| Bombay, India | 171 |
Five highlights
The five 1940s collections with the most directly licensable clips, described by their own keywords.
1948 New York: 600 clips, 428 of them licensable directly, tagged boat, sea and ocean.
Top seller: NEW YORK-1948: Father and Son on Stoop $149 · Editorial only
1947 Paris France: 439 clips, 319 of them licensable directly, tagged bridge, sports and cars.
Top seller: PARIS FRANCE-1947: Crowd Walking on Parisian Street $149 · Editorial only
1946 Egypt: 338 clips, 228 of them licensable directly, tagged boat, ocean and sea.
Top seller: CAIRO EGYPT-1946: Ship Powering Through Ocean $149 · Commercial
1949 California: 269 clips, 225 of them licensable directly, tagged animals, dog and wildlife.
Top seller: SAN DIEGO CALIFORNIA USA-1949: Hand-Drawn Title Cards for Club Rally $149 · Commercial
1946 Harrisburg Pennsylvania: 194 clips, 194 of them licensable directly, tagged sports, football and baby.
Top seller: HARRISBURG PENNSYLVANIA USA-1975: Christmas Greeting from Peg and Jim $149 · Commercial
Every 1940s reel is Standard 8mm; Super 8 did not exist until 1965. Kodachrome 8mm had been on sale since 1936, so both black and white and color stock turn up in the same family's box. A 50 ft Standard 8 reel runs about three to four minutes at 16 frames per second, and most reels were shot over months, one short scene at a time.
Source reels behind the 1940s clips: 31 8mm. Every clip page links to its reel.
How to license 1940s footage
Every one of the 7,373 direct clips is $149 for a royalty-free, worldwide license with no expiry and no attribution required. Checkout delivers the 4K master file, and the clip page shows the source reel and date confidence before you buy. The licensing guide covers editorial, broadcast and commercial use in detail.
