Best movies & TV Shows like The Archiveologists

Archival footage of an American Nazi rally that attracted 20,000 people at Madison Square Garden in 1939, shortly before the beginning of World War II.

Essay documentary explores eroded emulsions and images for lost vestiges of lesbian and gay culture. First feature by a pioneer of lesbian cinema, Hammer weaves gay and lesbian couples with footage that unearths the forbidden and invisible history of a marginalized people.

Mentally ill. Deviant. Diseased. And in need of a cure. These were among the terms psychiatrists used to describe gay women and men in the 1950s, 1960s, and early 1970s. And as long as they were “sick”, progress toward equality was impossible. This documentary chronicles the battle waged by a small group of activists who declared war against a formidable institution – and won a crucial victory in the modern movement for LGBTQIA+ equality.

The true history of a collection of some 500 films dating from 1910s to 1920s, which were lost for over 50 years until being discovered buried in a sub-arctic swimming pool deep in the Yukon Territory, in Dawson City, located about 350 miles south of the Arctic Circle.

2020: A year so [insert adjective of choice here], even the creators of Black Mirror couldn't make it up… but that doesn't mean they don't have a little something to add. This comedy event that tells the story of the dreadful year that was — and perhaps still is? The documentary-style special weaves together some of the world's most (fictitious) renowned voices with real-life archival footage.

Documentary about Fidel Castro, covering 40 years of Cuban Revolution. Rare Fidel Castro footage: he appears swimming with a bodyguard, visiting his childhood home and school, playing with his friend Nelson Mandela, meeting kid Elián Gonzalez, and celebrating his birthday with the Buena Vista Social Club group.

A chronicle of Nelson Mandela's life journey from his childhood in a rural village through to his inauguration as the first democratically elected president of South Africa.

Frank Morgan is hired to put together a movie using odds and ends from the MGM vaults. He does so by splicing together a string of completely unrelated short subjects and musical numbers, interspersed with a repeated loop of a scene from some melodrama. (Contains in their entirety the shorts, "Musical Masterpieces," "Our Old Car," and "Badminton," as well as clips from other projects)

In 1959, Berry Gordy Jr. gathered the best musicians from Detroit's thriving jazz and blues scene to begin cutting songs for his new record company. Over a fourteen year period they were the heartbeat on every hit from Motown's Detroit era. By the end of their phenomenal run, this unheralded group of musicians had played on more number ones hits than the Beach Boys, the Rolling Stones, Elvis and the Beatles combined - which makes them the greatest hit machine in the history of popular music. They called themselves the Funk Brothers. Forty-one years after they played their first note on a Motown record and three decades since they were all together, the Funk Brothers reunited back in Detroit to play their music and tell their unforgettable story, with the help of archival footage, still photos, narration, interviews, re-creation scenes, 20 Motown master tracks, and twelve new live performances of Motown classics with the Brothers backing up contemporary performers.

Take a stroll down Sesame Street and witness the birth of the most influential children's show in television history. From the iconic furry characters to the classic songs you know by heart, learn how a gang of visionary creators changed the world.

An examination of the history of the U.S. through archival footage and contrasting views of society, incorporating audiovisual material ranging from political campaign films to animated cartoons to children’s phonograph records, featuring Al Jolson, Mickey Mouse, the young Jack Smith, and a half-dozen American presidents.

Moe, Larry and Curly appear in short subjects linked by ventriloquist Paul Winchell and his dummies.

This documentary captures Elvis Presley on his 1972 American tour and includes rehearsals, interviews, archival television appearances and backstage moments. With Elvis at his most flamboyant, the film features well-known hits and cover songs showcasing his country, gospel and rhythm-and-blues influences.

Explore the unlikely partnership and enduring legacy of one of the most prolific power couples in entertainment history. Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz risked everything to be together.

This documentary film tells the dramatic story of Richard and Mildred Loving, an interracial couple living in Virginia in the 1950s, and their landmark Supreme Court Case, Loving v. Virginia, that changed history.

Director Michael Apted revisits the same group of British-born adults after a 7 year wait. The subjects are interviewed as to the changes that have occurred in their lives during the last seven years.

The candid, and naked, Katie Morgan takes us through a history of porn. From ancient paintings and sculpture, to early pornographic silent films, to modern day adult films.

BooBoo, a young telepath, and her father, Yogi, are revolutionaries pitted against the "New Electromagnetic Order". Their story, set in the year 2007 in a blighted Nevada outpost, is interwoven with a history of the development of electromagnetic technologies, from X-rays to atom bombs, from television to the Internet.

Thirties in Colour: Countdown to War takes black-and-white films from the era and colourises the footage, bringing the past vividly back to life.

Series which gives a definitive guide to the history of performance magic from Ancient Egypt to 21st century Las Vegas, and why it has played such an important role in our social and cultural history.

America: land of liberty, opportunity, and some Seriously Amazing Objects, many of which are on display or in the archives of the Smithsonian Institution. Join us as we whisk unsuspecting museum visitors inside the vaults to get up close and personal with some of history's great treasures. From the Spirit of St. Louis to the Model T, and from Edison's light bulb to Seinfeld's "puffy shirt," this series celebrates our nation's explorers, trailblazers, and megastars, sharing their stories through unforgettable objects.

Alison Ellwood’s intimate, meticulously crafted patchwork of rare archival material, concert footage, and unseen home movies explores the evolution and enduring popularity of one of America’s truly defining bands.

Established in 1884, Redbridge Rovers F.C. are one of the oldest club's in England - and one of the worst. A sitcom that introduces us to the characters who gather within the social club of a non-league football club.

Tony had a perfect life. But after his wife Lisa suddenly dies, Tony changes. After contemplating taking his own life, he decides instead to live long enough to punish the world by saying and doing whatever he likes from now on.

An examination of how America’s changing style through the decades has mirrored the political, social, and economic climate of the time. Using archival footage and interviews with fashion experts and cultural figures, the series highlights the most iconic moments from fashion and pop culture, giving audiences a front row seat to the runway of American history.

Explore Richard Nixon’s life and times; tracking his rise, fall, incredible comeback and political destruction during some of America’s most tumultuous decades. From his early political maneuvers in California, to the game-changing Kennedy-Nixon debates through his disgraceful Watergate exit, featuring never-before-seen footage this fully archive based series offers fresh insight into a riveting story of politics, power and scandal.

Infographics and archival footage deliver bite-size history lessons on scientific breakthroughs, social movements and world-changing discoveries.

Mandy is a woman with dreams. Big dreams. Most of all she dreams of breeding Doberman Pinchers. But there are hurdles to overcome before that dream can become a reality. In the series we'll see her go on a health kick, rent out her small back bedroom on Airbnb and attempt a series of short-lived jobs in the modern gig economy.

Harry Hill takes the lid off a different genre of TV each week.

In six films, Adam Curtis traces the different forces across the world that have led to now. It covers a wide range—including the strange roots of modern conspiracy theories, the history of China, opium and opioids, the history of Artificial Intelligence, melancholy over the loss of empire and, love and power. And explores whether modern culture, despite its radicalism, is really just part of the new system of power.

What it felt like to live through the collapse of communism and democracy. A series of films by Adam Curtis.

Examining the life and times of Adolf Hitler and following the full arc of his ascent, tyrannical reign, criminality and undoing.

This new CBC documentary series uses contemporary interviews and archival footage to chronicle Canada’s long history of anti-Black racism, including episodes on police brutality and the rise of hip-hop music.

Before Barenaked Ladies, Broken Social Scene and Rush rose from Toronto's music scene, there was Rompin' Ronnie Hawkins, Robbie Robertson and Gordon Lightfoot making a name for themselves on Yonge Street. This three-part documentary reveals the history of how Toronto's main drag became the leading destination for singers, musicians and music fans not only in the city but across Canada as well. It began in the mid-1950s and flourished until the early '70s, and in between such artists as David Clayton-Thomas, Neil Young, Joni Mitchell, Levon Helm, Led Zeppelin and Jeff Beck performed on Yonge Street. In addition to archival audio and video footage, featured interviewees include Hawkins, Robertson, Lightfoot, music producer Daniel Lanois and festival promoter John Brower.

A sentimental journey through life in the North East of England over the past three generations: with the help of collectors, cine enthusiasts and historians, Tyne Tees have restored and revived hours of forgotten footage, cine-club archives and private collections to build up this fantastic nostalgia series showing first hand the changing landscapes and lifestyles of our wonderful region and its people. Containing rare colour pre-war film as well as early black-and-white footage of life in various parts of the North East. This gem is a fascinating and evocative recollection of the social history of the North East and North Yorkshire from the 1920s to the 1980s. Industry: Footage includes:-Sea the fishing industry, Oilrigs, farming, when coal was king, women in the workplace, giants of industry-ICI, Consett steel industry, days of steam, the fight to keep the North York Moors railway open, food & drink, Vaux brewery, the life of a Co-op store manager and the golden age of shipbuilding.