United States-1958: Motorboat Towing a Water Skier Across a Lake

Catalog date: estimated · Catalog location: estimated. Review source evidence · Request a source quality check

$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.

Year1958
Decade1950s
LocationUnited States
Duration7s
Price$149 USD
Collection1958 · United States
StatusStockfilm Exclusive

$149 · CommercialDirect license: commercial and editorial use

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

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From the same film reel

1958 · United States · Reel ab74d233 contains 9 published Stockfilm-exclusive clips. Watch them in reel order and review the available reel documentation.

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What is in this clip

water sports
outdoor leisure
recreational boating
lake recreation
amateur filmmaking
physical balance

Shot type: wide
Camera: pan · handheld · Approximately level across the lake
Setting: outdoor · Open lake bordered by wooded shores and low hills
Time and weather: daytime · Likely summer · Fair, with a pale hazy sky
Lighting: Natural daylight with subdued contrast and dark shoreline shadows
People: 3 · At least two occupants are visible in the motorboat, with one standing water skier behind it; distance and soft detail obscure ages and faces.
Vehicles: light-colored motorboat
Objects: water skis · boat windshield · lake · boat wake · water spray · shoreline trees
Colors: blue-gray · dark green · gray · off-white
Master dimensions: 3840 × 2160
Audio: Silent
Date confidence: Low
Location confidence: Low

Moments in the footage

Select a time to watch that moment in the preview.

A runabout and its trailing skier share the wide lake view.
The boat reaches the left edge while the skier follows with one arm raised.
The skier continues past a wooded point as the boat moves out of view.
The camera keeps the skier near the right edge above the spreading wake.

Motorboat Towing a Water Skier Across a Lake — Clip Details

In the United States, circa 1958 home movie footage shows a light-colored runabout towing a standing water skier across a lake. The boat moves toward the left edge while the skier follows through its wake with one arm raised. The camera pans along the action as a wooded shoreline and low distant hills shift across the background. This continuous wide view includes rippled water, trailing spray and visible film scratches.

Licensing & Technical Details

Original Format: 8mm / Super 8 Home Movie
Shot details: Exterior
Resolution: 4K restored master (MP4)
License: Direct license: commercial and editorial use
Delivery: Instant Digital Download
Duration: 7s
Price: $149 USD
Clip ID: 800003864

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: 1958 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: 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: Supports documentary and museum requests for American lake recreation and motorboat-towed water skiing circa 1958.
Period detail: The rounded runabout and low windshield may show late-1950s recreational boat styling, consistent with the tentative circa 1958 estimate.
Home-movie behavior: The skier's raised arm and the camera's effort to follow the passing action give the scene an informal home-movie perspective.
What appears in frame: The shot includes a light-colored runabout, boat occupants, a standing skier, two skis, trailing spray, rippled water and a wooded shoreline.
Film character: Muted color, soft projected detail, grain and vertical scratches give the moving lake scene a visibly physical-film texture.
Edit role: Works as a brief establishing shot for lake recreation, with the boat's departure allowing the skier to carry the action through the end.
Historical context: The scene records recreational motorboating and water skiing, with no visible sign or landmark identifying a particular lake.
Research note: People and a privately owned boat are visible, but faces and branding are indistinct; film copyright and any likeness or property permissions remain separate considerations.
Research search match: Matches searches for circa 1958 American water skiing, vintage runabout recreation and small-gauge lake home movies.
Archive pairing path: Pair first with the reel's family motorboat and swimming scenes, then other United States lake footage circa 1958, followed by broader water-sports material.

Still Frames From This Clip

In the United States, circa 1958, a runabout and trailing water skier cross open water beneath a low wooded horizon. — The runabout and trailing skier appear together in a wide view across the lake.
License this still · $49

A runabout exits left as its skier raises an arm over the wake on a United States lake, circa 1958. — The skier follows the wake as the boat passes beyond the left edge.
License this still · $49

A water skier passes a tree-covered point on a United States lake, circa 1958, with two ski tips visible above the water. — The skier remains in view after the towing boat has left the frame.
License this still · $49

Near the end of a United States home-movie shot, circa 1958, the skier holds one arm overhead beside a dark wooded shore. — The camera continues following the skier against the tree-lined shore.
License this still · $49

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