There are over 4600 postcards in the collection, largely comprising images of film stars, studios, cinema buildings and more.
The vast majority of these, nearly 3000 in all, are star portraits - mainly studio publicity shots and production stills. The Centre is particularly rich in Chaplin memorabilia, and boasts a collection of nearly 200 postcards devoted to this star alone. Other categories covered by postcards include film and cinema publicity, studios and cinema buildings, cinema audiences and magic lanterns and other optical entertainments.