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381 films

Family

Family films are made to be watched across generations. Disney's animated features, MGM's Technicolor adventures, British children's classics and later Pixar and Studio Ghibli titles set the tone: stories of growing up, friendship and courage, told with humour and heart. The best do not talk down to children and give adults something to enjoy as well.

Where
The United States, Britain, Japan, Germany
When
From the 1930s to today
Key figures
Walt Disney, Victor Fleming, Hayao Miyazaki, Steven Spielberg, Brad Bird
Landmark films
Snow White (1937), The Wizard of Oz (1939), E.T. (1982), My Neighbor Totoro (1988)
Legacy
Created a shared cinema experience for children and parents together

What to look for

  • Child or animal protagonists
  • Humour that works at two levels
  • Clear moral stakes
  • Music and memorable characters
  • Warm, hopeful endings

Directors with the most films in this genre

James Algar7 filmsHarold Lloyd6 filmsIshiro Honda6 filmsLasse Hallström6 filmsMichel Ocelot6 filmsNorman Taurog6 filmsBob Clark5 filmsHrishikesh Mukherjee5 filmsSatyajit Ray5 filmsBrad Bird4 filmsCecil B. DeMille4 filmsHayao Miyazaki4 filmsHenry Koster4 filmsMajid Majidi4 filmsMamoru Hosoda4 filmsMichael Curtiz4 filmsPriyadarshan4 filmsWilfred Jackson4 filmsYash Chopra4 filmsBuster Keaton3 filmsGeorge Cukor3 filmsHenry Selick3 filmsJohn G. Avildsen3 filmsMarc Forster3 films
See all 271 directors
Rob Marshall3 filmsRobert Zemeckis3 filmsSteven Spielberg3 filmsTakashi Yamazaki3 filmsVictor Fleming3 filmsAlfonso Cuarón2 filmsBen Sombogaart2 filmsBryan Forbes2 filmsByambasuren Davaa2 filmsCarlo Verdone2 filmsCarol Reed2 filmsCatti Edfeldt2 filmsCharles Walters2 filmsCharlie Chaplin2 filmsClive Donner2 filmsDaniel Rezende2 filmsDavid Lowery2 filmsDelbert Mann2 filmsEErik Gustavson2 filmsErnesto Contreras2 filmsEsmé Lammers2 filmsFrancis Ford Coppola2 filmsGaston Kaboré2 filmsGeorge Stevens2 filmsGeorges Méliès2 filmsGints Zilbalodis2 filmsIsao Takahata2 filmsJames Cameron2 filmsJavier Fesser2 filmsJean-Jacques Annaud2 filmsJoe Dante2 filmsJohn Ford2 filmsJohn Hughes2 filmsJohn Huston2 filmsJosef Fares2 filmsKarel Zeman2 filmsKenneth Branagh2 filmsKKriv Stenders2 filmsLloyd Bacon2 filmsMervyn LeRoy2 filmsMike Newell2 filmsMohammad Ali Talebi2 filmsNadia Tass2 filmsNiki Caro2 filmsNils Gaup2 filmsNorman Jewison2 filmsPeter Farrelly2 filmsPhillip Borsos2 filmsRichard Donner2 filmsRichard Fleischer2 filmsRiri Riza2 filmsStéphane Aubier2 filmsVincente Minnelli2 filmsWilliam Dieterle2 filmsYandy Laurens2 filmsYoji Yamada2 filmsAbbas Kiarostami1 filmAgnieszka Holland1 filmAlan Parker1 filmAlberto Lattuada1 filmAleksandr Ptushko1 filmAAlexander Korda1 filmAlexander Nanau1 filmAAlfonso Arau1 filmAlice Guy-Blaché1 filmAnca Damian1 filmAndrei Konchalovsky1 filmAntonio Margheriti1 filmAparna Sen1 filmAri Folman1 filmArne Sucksdorff1 filmBarry Jenkins1 filmBen Sharpsteen1 filmBBerit Nesheim1 filmBille August1 filmBirger Larsen1 filmBo Widerberg1 filmBrian Desmond Hurst1 filmCCarine Tardieu1 filmCarl Schultz1 filmCarla Simón1 filmCCarlos Bolado1 filmCarlos Carrera1 filmCaroline Link1 filmChetan Anand1 filmChito S. Roño1 filmCChris Menges1 filmChristine Jeffs1 filmChristophe Honoré1 filmChung Yoon-chul1 filmClaude Zidi1 filmCédric Kahn1 filmD. A. Pennebaker1 filmDanny Boyle1 filmDariush Mehrjui1 filmDarrell Roodt1 filmDelmer Daves1 filmDhimitër Anagnosti1 filmDjibril Diop Mambéty1 filmDoris Dörrie1 filmEdwin S. Porter1 filmElem Klimov1 filmEEli Cohen1 filmElia Kazan1 filmElissa Down1 filmElla Lemhagen1 filmEmilio Martínez-Lázaro1 filmErtem Eğilmez1 filmEuzhan Palcy1 filmFrank Capra1 filmFred Zinnemann1 filmGavin Hood1 filmGene Kelly1 filmGianni Amelio1 filmGillian Armstrong1 filmGulzar1 filmGurinder Chadha1 filmGuy Ritchie1 filmHector Olivera1 filmHenri Safran1 filmHHicham Ayouch1 filmHirokazu Kore-eda1 filmHlynur Pálmason1 filmHou Hsiao-hsien1 filmIIda Lupino1 filmJ. A. Bayona1 filmJacques Tati1 filmJacques Tourneur1 filmJafar Panahi1 filmJames Foley1 filmJJan Jakub Kolski1 filmJan Svěrák1 filmJan Švankmajer1 filmJayaraj1 filmJiří Menzel1 filmJoachim Rønning1 filmJocelyn Moorhouse1 filmJohannes Schaaf1 filmJohn Boorman1 filmJohn Cromwell1 filmJohn Sayles1 filmJonathan Kaplan1 filmJoram Lürsen1 filmJJosef von Báky1 filmJoseph Losey1 filmJJuha Wuolijoki1 filmJules Dassin1 filmJulien Duvivier1 filmJuraj Jakubisko1 filmK. Balachander1 filmKarel Kachyňa1 filmKate Woods1 filmKay Pollak1 filmKen Loach1 filmKing Vidor1 filmKjell Grede1 filmKlaus Härö1 filmKutluğ Ataman1 filmLarry Peerce1 filmLautaro Murúa1 filmLee Jeong-hyang1 filmLeo McCarey1 filmLewis Milestone1 filmLi Han-hsiang1 filmLucio Fulci1 filmLuigi Comencini1 filmMakoto Shinkai1 filmMani Haghighi1 filmMani Ratnam1 filmManoel de Oliveira1 filmMartin Ritt1 filmMartin Scorsese1 filmMascha Halberstad1 filmMMassoud Kimiai1 filmMatteo Garrone1 filmMemduh Ün1 filmMia Hansen-Løve1 filmMichael Anderson1 filmMichael Apted1 filmMichael Powell1 filmMichael Steiner1 filmMike Hodges1 filmMMiloš Makovec1 filmNasser Taghvai1 filmNicholas Ray1 filmNick Cassavetes1 filmNicolas Philibert1 filmNicolas Roeg1 filmNikolaj Arcel1 filmOldřich Lipský1 filmOlivier Assayas1 filmP.J. Hogan1 filmPai Ching-jui1 filmPatricia Rozema1 filmPaul Grimault1 filmPaula Hernández1 filmPawo Choyning Dorji1 filmPhilippe Falardeau1 filmPhilippe Garrel1 filmPierre Étaix1 filmPieter Verhoeff1 filmRalph Nelson1 filmRamin Matin1 filmRaoul Walsh1 filmRichard Loncraine1 filmRichard Williams1 filmRob Reiner1 filmRobert Altman1 filmRobert Wise1 filmRoberto Benigni1 filmRoman Polanski1 filmRonald Neame1 filmSang-il Lee1 filmSatyen Bose1 filmSergei Parajanov1 filmSeyfettin Tokmak1 filmShekhar Kapur1 filmShin Sang-ok1 filmShohei Imamura1 filmSidney Lumet1 filmSophie Hyde1 filmSpike Jonze1 filmStanley Donen1 filmSøren Kragh-Jacobsen1 filmTage Danielsson1 filmTakashi Miike1 filmTay Garnett1 filmTim Burton1 filmTom Hooper1 filmTom Shoval1 filmTomm Moore1 filmTorun Lian1 filmUli Edel1 filmVijay Anand1 filmVVincent Bal1 filmVishal Bhardwaj1 filmVladimír Michálek1 filmVojtěch Jasný1 filmWalt Disney1 filmWilliam Wyler1 filmWolfgang Petersen1 filmYasujiro Ozu1 filmZahir Raihan1 filmZoltán Fábri1 filmÅke Sandgren1 filmÉmile Cohl1 filmÜmit Köreken1 film

Often combined with

Drama Comedy Adventure Fantasy Animation Romance

Top 100 rated films

  1. Jibon Theke Neya 1970 · Zahir Raihan · IMDb 9.3
  2. It's a Wonderful Life 1946 · Frank Capra · IMDb 8.6
  3. Spirited Away 2001 · Hayao Miyazaki · IMDb 8.6
  4. Children of Heaven 1997 · Majid Majidi · IMDb 8.2
  5. Howl's Moving Castle 2004 · Hayao Miyazaki · IMDb 8.2
  6. The Kid 1921 · Charlie Chaplin · IMDb 8.2
  7. Hachi: A Dog's Tale 2009 · Lasse Hallström · IMDb 8.1
  8. Ratatouille 2007 · Brad Bird · IMDb 8.1
  9. Scrooge 1951 · Brian Desmond Hurst · IMDb 8.1
  10. The Circus 1928 · Charlie Chaplin · IMDb 8.1
  11. The Color of Paradise 1999 · Majid Majidi · IMDb 8.1
  12. The Sound of Music 1965 · Robert Wise · IMDb 8.1
  13. The Wizard of Oz 1939 · Victor Fleming · IMDb 8.1
  14. Wolf Children 2012 · Mamoru Hosoda · IMDb 8.1
  15. A Brother and 7 Siblings 2024 · Yandy Laurens · IMDb 8.0
  16. A Tree Grows in Brooklyn 1945 · Elia Kazan · IMDb 8.0
  17. Castle in the Sky 1986 · Hayao Miyazaki · IMDb 8.0
  18. Fiddler on the Roof 1971 · Norman Jewison · IMDb 8.0
  19. Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban 2004 · Alfonso Cuarón · IMDb 8.0
  20. The Cameraman 1928 · Buster Keaton · IMDb 8.0
  21. The Incredibles 2004 · Brad Bird · IMDb 8.0
  22. The Princess Bride 1987 · Rob Reiner · IMDb 8.0
  23. The Tale of the Princess Kaguya 2013 · Isao Takahata · IMDb 8.0
  24. Toto and His Sisters 2014 · Alexander Nanau · IMDb 8.0
  25. A Christmas Story 1983 · Bob Clark · IMDb 7.9
  26. Captains Courageous 1937 · Victor Fleming · IMDb 7.9
  27. E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial 1982 · Steven Spielberg · IMDb 7.9
  28. Kes 1969 · Ken Loach · IMDb 7.9
  29. The Nightmare Before Christmas 1993 · Henry Selick · IMDb 7.9
  30. The Rainbow Troops 2008 · Riri Riza · IMDb 7.9
  31. The Song of Sparrows 2008 · Majid Majidi · IMDb 7.9
  32. The Ten Commandments 1956 · Cecil B. DeMille · IMDb 7.9
  33. A Christmas Carol (1984) 1984 · Clive Donner · IMDb 7.8
  34. Coraline 2009 · Henry Selick · IMDb 7.8
  35. Ernest & Celestine 2013 · Stéphane Aubier · IMDb 7.8
  36. Flow 2024 · Gints Zilbalodis · IMDb 7.8
  37. Good Morning 1959 · Yasujiro Ozu · IMDb 7.8
  38. I Remember Mama 1948 · George Stevens · IMDb 7.8
  39. Kiki's Delivery Service 1989 · Hayao Miyazaki · IMDb 7.8
  40. Sherina's Adventure 2000 · Riri Riza · IMDb 7.8
  41. The Ballad of Narayama 1983 · Shohei Imamura · IMDb 7.8
  42. The Boys of Paul Street 1968 · Zoltán Fábri · IMDb 7.8
  43. The Deer 1974 · Massoud Kimiai · IMDb 7.8
  44. The Three Veterans 1984 · Oldřich Lipský · IMDb 7.8
  45. To Be and to Have 2002 · Nicolas Philibert · IMDb 7.8
  46. Welcome, or No Trespassing 1964 · Elem Klimov · IMDb 7.8
  47. Cosas imposibles 2021 · Ernesto Contreras · IMDb 7.7
  48. Fantasia 1940 · James Algar · IMDb 7.7
  49. Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire 2005 · Mike Newell · IMDb 7.7
  50. How Green Was My Valley 1941 · John Ford · IMDb 7.7
  51. The Bear 1988 · Jean-Jacques Annaud · IMDb 7.7
  52. The Goonies 1985 · Richard Donner · IMDb 7.7
  53. The King and the Mockingbird 1980 · Paul Grimault · IMDb 7.7
  54. The Thief of Bagdad 1924 · Raoul Walsh · IMDb 7.7
  55. The Way Home 2002 · Lee Jeong-hyang · IMDb 7.7
  56. A Little Princess 1995 · Alfonso Cuarón · IMDb 7.6
  57. Aniki-Bóbó 1942 · Manoel de Oliveira · IMDb 7.6
  58. Cemara's Family 2018 · Yandy Laurens · IMDb 7.6
  59. Finding Neverland 2004 · Marc Forster · IMDb 7.6
  60. Kabei: Our Mother 2008 · Yoji Yamada · IMDb 7.6
  61. Marathon 2005 · Chung Yoon-chul · IMDb 7.6
  62. Monica and Friends: Lessons 2021 · Daniel Rezende · IMDb 7.6
  63. Na samote u lesa 1976 · Jiří Menzel · IMDb 7.6
  64. Our Little Sister 2015 · Hirokazu Kore-eda · IMDb 7.6
  65. Princes and Princesses 2000 · Michel Ocelot · IMDb 7.6
  66. Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs 1937 · Walt Disney · IMDb 7.6
  67. Speedy 1928 · Harold Lloyd · IMDb 7.6
  68. The Boy and the Beast 2015 · Mamoru Hosoda · IMDb 7.6
  69. The Kid Brother 1927 · Harold Lloyd · IMDb 7.6
  70. The White Balloon 1995 · Jafar Panahi · IMDb 7.6
  71. Willow and Wind 1999 · Mohammad Ali Talebi · IMDb 7.6
  72. Yankee Doodle Dandy 1942 · Michael Curtiz · IMDb 7.6
  73. Cinderella (1957) 1957 · Ralph Nelson · IMDb 7.5
  74. Cops 1922 · Buster Keaton · IMDb 7.5
  75. Hugo 2011 · Martin Scorsese · IMDb 7.5
  76. Incredibles 2 2018 · Brad Bird · IMDb 7.5
  77. Kirikou and the Sorceress 1998 · Michel Ocelot · IMDb 7.5
  78. Lunana: A Yak in the Classroom 2019 · Pawo Choyning Dorji · IMDb 7.5
  79. Marona's Fantastic Tale 2019 · Anca Damian · IMDb 7.5
  80. Meet Me in St. Louis 1944 · Vincente Minnelli · IMDb 7.5
  81. Scrooge (1970) 1970 · Ronald Neame · IMDb 7.5
  82. Sounder 1972 · Martin Ritt · IMDb 7.5
  83. Stand by Me Doraemon 2 2020 · Takashi Yamazaki · IMDb 7.5
  84. The Cave of the Yellow Dog 2005 · Byambasuren Davaa · IMDb 7.5
  85. The Feather Fairy 1985 · Juraj Jakubisko · IMDb 7.5
  86. The Freshman 1925 · Harold Lloyd · IMDb 7.5
  87. The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh 1977 · Ben Sharpsteen · IMDb 7.5
  88. The Secret of Kells 2009 · Tomm Moore · IMDb 7.5
  89. The Sorcerer's Apprentice 1978 · Karel Zeman · IMDb 7.5
  90. Whale Rider 2002 · Niki Caro · IMDb 7.5
  91. Yoyo 1965 · Pierre Étaix · IMDb 7.5
  92. 5 Centimeters per Second 2007 · Makoto Shinkai · IMDb 7.4
  93. A Monster Calls 2016 · J. A. Bayona · IMDb 7.4
  94. A Town Called Panic 2009 · Stéphane Aubier · IMDb 7.4
  95. Alice (1988) 1988 · Jan Švankmajer · IMDb 7.4
  96. Autumn Spring 2001 · Vladimír Michálek · IMDb 7.4
  97. It's Not Me, I Swear! 2008 · Philippe Falardeau · IMDb 7.4
  98. Leila 1996 · Dariush Mehrjui · IMDb 7.4
  99. McFarland, USA 2015 · Niki Caro · IMDb 7.4
  100. Oliver! 1968 · Carol Reed · IMDb 7.4