Into Film Clubs
Find out everything you need to know about starting an Into Film Club.
We are delighted to expand our free* Into Film+ streaming platform with a new collection of thirteen archival films, made available in partnership with the BFI National Archive.
This latest selection spans everything from classic fairy tale animations to vivid glimpses of Charles Dickens' London, offering educators an even richer window into Britain's cultural and cinematic past. Archive film allows young people to appreciate the quality of timeless storytelling as well as the contrast of life frozen in time. It shines a light on historical periods and sparks discussion around themes that continue to resonate today, from gender equality to scientific progress.
The BFI National Archive houses one of the world's largest collections of archive film and television, preserving and restoring works so they may be enjoyed by future generations. For the past four years, we have regularly integrated batches of archive films on our streaming platform to be enjoyed on their own, as part of a collection or alongside more recent and carefully paired feature films. We are thrilled to collaborate once again with the BFI to bring educators an even wider range of titles to explore with their learners.
Archive animations
Halas & Batchelor, sometimes referred to as the British Disney, was an animation studio active from the 1940s that produced some of the most memorable adverts, public information pieces, feature films and TV cartoons of the twentieth century. Run by husband-and-wife team John and Joy, the studio was known for its satirical scripts and stylised cel animation aesthetic, as seen in the acclaimed 1954 adaptation of Animal Farm.
We are delighted to bring to Into Film+ a series of short animations from the Halas & Batchelor archive, including a series of classic fairy tales directed by Joy Batchelor, featuring beloved stories such as The Frog Prince, Rumpelstiltskin, Hansel and Gretel, Sleeping Beauty, The Ugly Duckling and Little Tom Thumb, animated in simple yet delightful cut-out collages based on bold watercolour designs.
For yet more fairy tales, discover Lotte Reiniger's animations, also previously added to Into Film+ thanks to the BFI National Archive.
Additional literary adaptations include the animation The Christmas Visitor, based on Clement Clarke Moore's poem ‘The Night Before Christmas', and The Owl and the Pussycat, which brings to life Edward Lear's nonsense poem.
In tribute to Batchelor and Halas' joyful and visionary exploration of the very fabric of film and animation, we are also pleased to present a special episode from their popular children's TV series Snip and Snap, a pioneering stop-motion animation featuring a paper origami dog and his scissor companion, and The History of the Cinema, a witty, award-winning, animated potted history of the silver screen.
British history
In a further celebration of British history through archive film, we are proud to bring to Into Film+ two short documentaries from the 1950s directed by women. To Be a Woman offers a compelling overview of attitudes towards women in the workplace at the time, providing an insight into a little-known feminist movement. Atoms At Work also showcases professional and industrial progress taking place during this era, specifically in the field of atomic energy and its peaceful, commercial and medical uses, as carried out by scientists at a pioneering nuclear research establishment in Oxfordshire.
Finally, the 1927 silent film Dickens' London transports audiences back to Victorian times by visiting the various locations of that inspired or feature in Charles Dickens' novels, including 'Oliver Twist', 'David Copperfield' and 'The Old Curiosity Shop'. You can catch this gem on Into Film+ alongside the feature films Oliver!, The Personal History of David Copperfield and The Man Who Invented Christmas.
Please note: Film is a powerful tool for learning, helping to develop critical thinking, empathy, and an understanding of different perspectives. Our films have been selected with consideration to age-appropriateness, safeguarding, the curriculum and statutory and non-statutory guidance to schools. Some of our films and resources include sensitive content which is highlighted in the guidance that Into Film provides with each film. Educators should carefully watch or read all elements of any content and must ensure they are following their own school's policies and guidelines prior to using films and resources in the classroom or in after-school clubs. The final decision to use any film or resource sits with teachers, who should decide what is appropriate for their students using their professional judgement and their knowledge of their students, their school context and their community. Teachers must follow their school's safeguarding protocol if a student is distressed or makes a disclosure as a result of the use of any film or other content.
How Do I Get Started?
To access Into Film+, all you'll need is an Into Film Account - it's completely free, and only takes a moment to set up. Into Film+ is free to use for all UK state schools that hold a valid Public Video Screening (PVS) Licence from Filmbankmedia.
Filmbankmedia PVS Licences are paid for on behalf of schools by all local authorities in England and by some local authorities in both Wales and Scotland. Into Film NI cover the license cost for some schools in Northern Ireland. For further information on licensing in your locality please see our FAQs.
If you're a state school in England that's funded by the Department for Education, you will automatically have access to Into Film+ Premium, which offers an extended catalogue of 900+ titles. Find out more about Into Film+ Premium in our FAQs.
If you don't have a PVS Licence, or aren't already covered, then a licence can easily be obtained from Filmbankmedia.
Filmbankmedia
Filmbankmedia licenses and distributes film and TV entertainment to many groups and is the licensing authority we work with to ensure schools, libraries and youth groups have the permissions to screen films from our catalogue.
* Screenings for an entertainment or extra-curricular purpose require a PVS (Public Video Screening) Licence from Filmbankmedia. State-funded schools in England are covered by the PVS Licence.
The core Into Film programme is free for UK state schools, colleges and other youth settings, thanks to support from the BFI, awarding National Lottery good cause funding, and through other key funders including Cinema First and Northern Ireland Screen.
