Library of Congress Adds 25 More Inductees to the National Film Registry
/Each year, the National Film Preservation Board chooses a diverse selection of 25 films for inclusion in the National Film Registry. To be eligible for induction, a film must be at least 10 years old, and this year's inductees include two Oscar winners in their first year of eligibility – 2013's Best Picture "12 Years a Slave" and that year's Best Documentary Feature "20 Feet From Stardom."
The earliest selection is 1921's sepia-toned documentary short "A Movie Trip Through Filmland," which details how Eastman Kodak manufactured motion picture film stock in the 1920s. Shot at company headquarters in Rochester, New York, the film shows factory workers turning cotton into cellulose nitrate, the original material used to make film stock and the origin of the term "celluloid" to describe films in general.
The oldest feature film inductee is George Cukor's 1933 classic "Dinner at Eight," starring a who's who of legends from Hollywood's Golden Age including Jean Harlow, Lionel and John Barrymore, Wallace Beery, Billie Burke, and Marie Dressler.
The registry is not only for scripted, highly produced films. This year the "Bohulano Family Film Collection," home movies recorded by a Stockton, California family, will be added. The recordings cover several decades (1950s to the 1970s) in the lives of family members descended from Filipino immigrants. This collection joins previous family film inductees like the "Fuentes Family Home Movies Collection" and the "Nicholas Brothers' Home Movies."
Popular feature films that will be inducted this year include Disney's 1955 animated classic "Lady and the Tramp," the musical drama "Fame" released in 1980, 1990's holiday favorite "Home Alone," 1993's visually stunning stop-motion animated "The Nightmare Before Christmas," and 1995's historical drama "Apollo 13." One of the most successful film sequels of all time, 1991's "Terminator 2: Judgment Day," also earned a spot in the registry, 15 years after 1984's "The Terminator" was inducted.
Another noteworthy addition is Spike Lee's satirical "Bamboozled," released in 2000. Lee has more films in the registry than any other Black filmmaker with five, as "Bamboozled" joins the ranks of 1986's "She's Gotta Have It," 1989's "Do the Right Thing," 1992's "Malcolm X," and 1997's "4 Little Girls." Additionally, Lee produced 2000's sports drama "Love & Basketball," also being inducted this year.
Established in 1988, the National Film Preservation Board of the Library of Congress works to ensure the survival, conservation, and increased public availability of America's film heritage. Every year since 1989, the National Film Preservation Board has inducted 25 films showcasing the range and diversity of American film heritage as a way to increase awareness for its preservation.
At Broadway Stages we understand how much time, money, and heart goes into creating these films, and we applaud the National Film Preservation Board's efforts to preserve these projects. Check out the full list of films selected this year, and be sure to add any you have not seen to your watch list. If you want to nominate a film for future inclusion in the registry, you may do so here.
Full List:
● A Movie Trip Through Filmland (1921)
● Dinner at Eight (1933)
● Bohulano Family Film Collection (1950s-1970s)
● Helen Keller: In Her Story (1954)
● Lady and the Tramp (1955)
● Edge of the City (1957)
● We're Alive (1974)
● Cruisin' J-Town (1975)
● ¡Alambrista! (1977)
● Passing Through (1977)
● Fame (1980)
● Desperately Seeking Susan (1985)
● The Lighted Field (1987)
● Matewan (1987)
● Home Alone (1990)
● Queen of Diamonds (1991)
● Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991)
● The Nightmare Before Christmas (1993)
● The Wedding Banquet (1993)
● Maya Lin: A Strong Clear Vision (1994)
● Apollo 13 (1995)
● Bamboozled (2000)
● Love & Basketball (2000)
● 12 Years a Slave (2013)
● 20 Feet From Stardom (2013)
