The National Film Registry

Today, the 2019 inductees to the National Film Registry of the Library of Congress have been announced. Included in this year's intake are Amadeus (1984), Boys Don't Cry (1999), Clerks (1994), Coal Miner's Daughter (1980), Gaslight (1944), Old Yeller (1957), Platoon (1986), Purple Rain (1984), She's Gotta Have It (1986), and Sleeping Beauty (1959). This brings the total number of films on the Registry to 775.

But what is the National Film Registry and why is it so important?

The Library of Congress' website describes the National Film Registry as 'a list of films deemed "culturally, historically or aesthetically significant" that are recommended for preservation... These films are not selected as the 'best' American films of all time, but rather as works of enduring importance to American culture. They reflect who we are as a people and as a nation.'

As for why the NFR is so important? Here's why: in 1986, media mogul Ted Turner caused uproar when he bought the film library of Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM) and began to colourise the black-and-white films, including Casablanca (1942) and King Kong (1933). When challenged about it, Turner- displaying monumental arrogance- claimed that he was working on "his films" (as he owned them) so he could do with them as he pleased.

This "material alteration" led to US Congress getting involved in the issue, with film luminaries such as Woody Allen and James Stewart appearing at hearings to discuss the practice, with pleas that films should undergo "preservation in their authentic form".

In 1988, Congress passed the original National Film Preservation Act, which directed the Librarian of Congress to establish the National Film Registry (as well as prohibiting anyone from knowingly distributing films that have been "materially altered" or colourised without being labelled as such). The first 25 films were inducted into the Registry in December 1989, and included Casablanca (1942), Gone With The Wind (1939), On The Waterfront (1952), Snow White And The Seven Dwarfs (1937), Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope (1977), Sunset Boulevard (1950), Vertigo (1958), and The Wizard Of Oz (1939).

The Registry contains a plethora of types and styles, from classic Hollywood movies (Ben-Hur [1959], Citizen Kane [1941]) to newsreels and home videos (such as the Zapruder footage of John F. Kennedy's assassination and newsreel footage of the Hindenburg disaster), documentaries, short films, animated features and shorts, and even music videos (Michael Jackson's "Thriller" was inducted in 2009).

A film becomes eligible for inclusion in the Registry after 10 years from its initial release (to give a little time and distance to properly assess its cultural, historical, or aesthetic significance). As of 2019, the oldest title in the Registry is an 1891 film fragment known as "The Newark Athlete" (which is only 12 seconds long) which was inducted in 2010, whilst the newest title  is Ang Lee's Brokeback Mountain (2005) which was inducted in 2018.

So how do they decide what goes on the Registry?

The public can nominate films for inclusion (the deadline for nominations is usually in mid-September). The public nominations are then put to the members of the National Film Preservation Board and to the Library's film curators, who discuss the films. The Librarian of Congress then makes the decision of which 25 films will be added to the Registry and the announcement is made in mid-December.

Being an American body, first consideration is given to American motion pictures (which, for the purposes of the Registry, are defined as: "films that were produced or co-produced by an American film company or individual, typically for theatrical release or recognized as a film through film festivals or film awards". Furthermore, the legislation goes on to define films as "originally created on film stock" (which is why television shows and commercials are generally not considered, although they would not be prohibited)

Other films that have been selected for preservation include The African Queen (1951), Alien (1979), Psycho (1960), All About Eve (1950), 12 Angry Men (1957), Die Hard (1988), The Rocky Horror Picture Show (1975), Fargo (1996), The Graduate (1967), The Big Lebowski (1998), Jurassic Park (1993), and Cabaret (1972).

The full list of what's on the Registry can be found here.

In 2016, Congress approved the reauthorisation of the National Film Preservation Board until the fiscal year 2026, so the Registry will continue for the next six years at least. Film is an important cultural medium, which helps to reflect and comment upon the society in which it was created (even if it doesn't directly address those issues). The Registry is an important part of preserving these cultural documents for the future.

For more information about this year's inductees, please click here.