New York City-1956: Men About To Play Music

$149 · Editorial onlyDirect license: editorial use only. $149 flat from Stockfilm for documentary, news and educational use, plus internal and organic social use. Not permitted in advertising, sponsored or branded content, broadcast promotion or any paid commercial placement.

Year1956
Decade1950s
LocationNew York City, New York, United States
Duration5s
Price$149 USD
Collection1956 New York City

$149 · Editorial onlyDirect license: editorial use only

$149 USD flat · royalty-free worldwide · 4K restored master (MP4)

Before you add to cart: Editorial use only: documentary, news, educational, internal and organic social use. Not permitted in advertising, sponsored or branded content, broadcast promotion or any paid commercial placement. Checkout will only offer editorial, educational, internal and social/web scopes.

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Stockfilm licenses the rights identified in the applicable agreement. Additional use-specific review may be required. See the Licensing Guide and Archive Integrity.

Men About To Play Music — Clip Details

A grainy 8mm home movie from 1956 captures a group of young men in a dimly lit indoor setting, likely a living room or basement. One man in a light-colored shirt and tie smiles at the camera, while another holds a stringed instrument, possibly a guitar or mandolin. The footage shows natural, unposed moments of friends gathering, with warm, low-light ambiance and classic Super 8 film grain. The scene evokes a sense of casual camaraderie and vintage Americana.

Licensing & Technical Details

Original Format: 8mm / Super 8 Home Movie
Resolution: 4K restored master (MP4)
License: Direct license: editorial use only Editorial use only: documentary, news, educational, internal and organic social use. Not permitted in advertising, sponsored or branded content, broadcast promotion or any paid commercial placement.
Delivery: Instant Digital Download
Duration: 5s
Price: $149 USD
Clip ID: 124557962

Rights & Clearance

$149 · Editorial only Direct license: editorial use only. Editorial use only: documentary, news, educational, internal and organic social use. Not permitted in advertising, sponsored or branded content, broadcast promotion or any paid commercial placement.

Editorial use only; commercial use is not offered for this clip. Review the flags below for your editorial context.

People visible: Yes
Minors visible: No
Logos / trademarks: No
Audible music: Yes

Flags come from automated catalog metadata, not a legal opinion. The source is an original 8mm / Super 8 Home Movie reel. For high-stakes commercial use, request a full rights review.

Source & Documentation

Source reel: Reel record not linked for this clip
Date: 1956 Estimated (Catalog estimate from the footage and file metadata; not independently confirmed.)
Date evidence: Catalog estimate based on source metadata and visual or technical evidence; no reel-level note is linked.
Location: New York City, New York, United States Estimated (Catalog estimate from the footage and file metadata; not independently confirmed.)
Location evidence: Catalog estimate based on source metadata and visual evidence such as signage, landmarks, or terrain; no reel-level note is linked.
Licensing route: Direct license available from Stockfilm

Confidence labels are defined on Archive Integrity. Fields without a recorded value are shown as not recorded rather than assumed.

Open Clip Documentation Record Request source information

Topics & Keywords

tunes
friends
smiles
happy
fun
menabout
play
music
people
new york city
1956
1956 New York City
vintage 8mm film
Super 8 home movie
men playing music
string instrument
1950s friends
vintage party
classic American youth
retro film footage
old home movie
8mm archival
1950s nostalgia
casual gathering
vintage film grain
old film
1950s fashion
vintage social scene
8mm footage
vintage music

Archive Intelligence

Archive brief fit: Supports requests for 1950s New York City home-movie footage of young men gathering indoors around music for documentary, education, or period atmosphere use.
Period detail: The light shirt and tie, dark jackets, low-lit interior, and small stringed instrument may show mid-1950s casual social dress and apartment or basement leisure space.
Home-movie behavior: The value is in the informal, unstaged glances, smiles, and conversation as friends settle in before or during music making.
What appears in frame: Visible elements include young men, collared shirts, ties, dark jackets, a small stringed instrument, dim interior walls, close grouping, and heavy film grain.
Film character: The clip has dense 8mm grain, underexposed shadows, warm color shifts, handheld framing, and contact-print softness that read as physical home-movie texture.
Edit role: An editor could use it as a brief insert, transition, or memory beat for youth culture, private social life, or amateur music scenes in the 1950s.
Historical context: The footage offers a private social view of men gathering indoors in New York City in 1956, without identifiable public landmarks or documented event context.
Research note: People, faces, private interiors, and audible music require review for likeness, property, and music rights separate from any footage copyright assessment.
Research search match: Useful for searches such as 1956 New York City home movie musicians, 1950s friends indoors, 8mm men with guitar, and vintage amateur music gathering.
Archive pairing path: Pair first with adjacent shots from the same reel, then other 1956 New York City interiors, then broader 1950s home-movie scenes of friends and music.

Still Frames From This Clip

1956 New York City home-movie frame of young men gathered in a dark interior, with one man in a light shirt and tie visible near center. — Men sit close together in a dark room during an informal gathering.

Grainy 1956 New York City interior frame showing a man leaning forward among seated friends in low light. — A seated man leans toward the group in a shadowy interior.

1956 New York City home-movie still of a smiling young man in a light shirt and tie looking toward the camera among friends indoors. — A young man smiles toward the camera during the indoor gathering.

1956 New York City frame showing a young man holding a small stringed instrument as another man sits nearby in a dark private interior. — A man holds a small stringed instrument as friends gather around him.

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