Websightings: Film Online

Sean Martin

The first place to look online for more information about all of the films discussed in this issue of the newsletter is the Internet Movie Database (www.imdb.com). This comprehensive site, including information on both movies and television productions, includes a database that is truly impressive in its ability to pinpoint specific information about films, their directors and producers, and their casts. One can find information on titles from the early days of film and from most, if not all, foreign countries where films are produced. The database allows the researcher to search by title, cast/crew, character, word, language, genre, plot summary, and filming location, among other options. Trivia buffs will be pleased with the "On this Day in History" feature, compiling information about events in film for each day of the year. Those interested in following film production and releases in specific foreign countries will appreciate the "Recent Releases" search option, which allows the researcher to highlight a country to identify which films have just been released there. Films are listed by the day of release, allowing the researcher a glimpse into what's playing across the world. The Internet Movie Database is easy to navigate and serves the needs of the casual viewer and the researcher looking for specific information about specific titles. In addition to the database itself, the site includes features on DVD and videos, TV, movie and TV news, showtimes and tickets for U.S. cities, and video gaming. 

Facets Multimedia (www.facets.org/asticat), a film distribution company based in Chicago, also provides a wealth of information about film and, like mainstream companies like Netflix and Blockbuster, offers an opportunity to rent films online. Facets is devoted to all aspects of film, and its comprehensive online (and print) catalog will offer many options for private and classroom viewing. The site also includes a section especially devoted to children. Facets sponsors the Chicago International Children's Film Festival (www.cicff.org), billed as "the largest festival of films for children in North America".

Film festivals seem to update their sites yearly and so do not necessarily serve as the best sources of information on specific films. Still, it may be worthwhile to see which films have been highlighted in a specific year. For example, the 2005 New York Children's International Film Festival (www.gkids.com/index.html) featured a series of Czech animated films. To follow the festival circuit, film fans might want to point their browser to the site of the European Children's Film Association (www.ecfa.web), where can be found information on the 2005 Conference of International Children's Film Festivals in Europe, held in Poznan, Poland.  

Those interested in the preservation of film should visit Moving History (www.movinghistory.ac.uk), a site initiated by the Centre for British Film and Television Studies and hosted and managed by the University of Brighton. The site allows the researcher to view over one hundred film clips, as a small sample of what is available in film archives throughout Great Britain. Two of the archives for which information is included are the British Film Archives and the archives of the Imperial War Museum. British regional archives can be found here as well. The site also allows one to browse film titles by themes, which include family life and gender and cultural diversity.

Scholars may also be interested in learning more about the International Association for Media and History (www.iamhist.org), based in Washington, Connecticut. This site provides an impressive listing of conferences and professional activities related to the field that will benefit any student or researcher

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