Ringling Brothers Sarasota Florida-1948: Acrobat Swinging on High Bar

$149 · CommercialDirect license: commercial and editorial use. $149 flat from Stockfilm. Royalty-free worldwide license for commercial and editorial use, delivered as the restored 4K master.

Year1948
Decade1940s
LocationRingling Brothers Sarasota, Florida, United States
Duration5s
Price$149 USD
Collection1948 Ringling Brothers Sarasota Florida

$149 · CommercialDirect license: commercial and editorial use

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

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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.

Acrobat Swinging on High Bar — Clip Details

Shot on 8mm film in 1948, this archival footage captures a circus acrobat performing on a high bar at the Ringling Brothers circus in Sarasota, Florida. The grainy black-and-white image shows the performer swinging and bouncing against a backdrop of rigging and support poles, with faint silhouettes of crew members visible below. The footage exhibits classic Super 8 film characteristics—soft focus, natural grain, and a slightly distorted frame—evoking a nostalgic, authentic mid-century circus atmosphere. This raw home movie clip offers a rare glimpse into vintage entertainment history.

Licensing & Technical Details

Original Format: 8mm / Super 8 Home Movie
Shot details: ExteriorBlack & white
Resolution: 4K restored master (MP4)
License: Direct license: commercial and editorial use
Delivery: Instant Digital Download
Duration: 5s
Price: $149 USD
Clip ID: 124604522

Rights & Clearance

$149 · Commercial Direct license: commercial and editorial use. $149 flat from Stockfilm. Royalty-free worldwide license for commercial and editorial use, delivered as the restored 4K master.

Editorial use is the safest path. For commercial use, a clearance review is recommended for the flags below.

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

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: 1948 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: Ringling Brothers Sarasota, Florida, 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

Archive Intelligence

Archive brief fit: Useful for 1940s documentary or editorial requests needing authentic circus performance footage from a visitor-shot 8mm perspective.
Period detail: The frames may show mid-century circus rigging, a high bar, safety netting, and support poles consistent with the 1948 Sarasota circus metadata.
Home-movie behavior: The value is in the distant, handheld spectator view of an acrobat moving through a live outdoor performance rather than staged publicity coverage.
What appears in frame: Visible elements include a small acrobat silhouette, high bar rigging, vertical support poles, crossbars, safety netting, bare branches, and bright sky.
Film character: Soft focus, high contrast, gate edges, mild blur, and 8mm grain give the brief shot a tactile home-movie record of motion and distance.
Edit role: An editor could use this as a circus insert, transition, memory beat, or visual cutaway for vintage entertainment and outdoor performance sequences.
Historical context: The clip provides visual context for popular outdoor circus spectacle through the viewpoint of an audience member filming apparatus and performer from below.
Research note: People are visible only as distant silhouettes, but likeness, copyright, location, and circus-identification questions should still be reviewed for intended use.
Research search match: Searches such as 1940s 8mm circus acrobat, Ringling Brothers Sarasota home movie, vintage high bar performer, and outdoor circus rigging may match this clip.
Archive pairing path: Pair first with adjacent shots from the same reel, then Sarasota 1948 circus material, then broader 1940s circus, acrobat, and amusement footage.

Still Frames From This Clip

1948 Sarasota circus footage showing a distant acrobat near high bar rigging, support poles, netting, and bare branches. — A small acrobat silhouette appears among high bar rigging and poles during the outdoor circus performance.

Distant 1948 circus frame with high bar structure, support poles, netting, and a small acrobat form against the sky. — Rigging, poles, and branches frame the acrobat's position near the high bar apparatus.

Visitor-shot 8mm view of a circus acrobat near high bar equipment, with poles, netting, branches, and sky visible. — The performer remains small in frame as the high bar structure fills the spectator-shot view.

Soft black-and-white 8mm frame of the Sarasota circus high bar area with a distant acrobat, rigging, poles, and netting. — The final frame holds on the high bar area, with the acrobat still distant among poles and netting.

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