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About the WWII Exhibit



In honor of the 70th anniversary of D-Day and the Battle of Normandy, the IU Libraries Moving Image Archive (IULMIA) presents this exhibit of 117 digitized public domain WWII films spanning the years 1940-1945.  The original 16mm film prints were produced during the war by government agencies and offices in the United States and allied countries, Hollywood studios, and independent companies such as General Motors. The films were then distributed by university film libraries, school systems, and commercial distributors to students, workers, and other members of the public. Indiana University distributed these films as teaching and training aids during and after the war years as part of the Indiana University Bureau of Audio-Visual Aids (later the Indiana University Audio-Visual Center). They are now part of IULMIA’s core collection of educational films, which is one of the largest such collections in the world. These 117 films are only a selection of films from World War II housed at IULMIA.

IULMIA consulted historical catalogs and correspondence related to the Bureau of Audio-Visual Aids while curating this digitized collection excerpt, with films presented online much as they would have been in the 1943 Bureau of Audio-Visual Aids War Films bulletin. This War Films bulletin was prepared to facilitate the effective utilization of films both by schools and adult discussion groups during the wartime years, and suggests films under subjects such as "Women at War", "War Savings", and "Pre-Flight Training.”

A special thanks to The Office of Archives and Records Management at Indiana University Bloomington for providing the digitized copy of the War Films bulletin. Website developed by Colleen Martin and the Indiana University Libraries Moving Image Archive staff. Thanks to IU Libraries, IU Bloomington Library Technologies, and The IU Office of Archives and Records Management.  

Moving image files in this exhibit are supported by Avalon Media System.

All films have been digitized, without restoration, from their original 16mm release prints and may exhibit signs of use.