The 2025 National Film Registry is out today, showcasing a group of 25 films spanning 118 years and including fan favorites such as “The Thing,” “Clueless,” “The Big Chill” and “The Incredibles.” The Library’s annual addition to the list of films to be preserved for their cinematic and cultural heritage starts with the 1896 silent film, “The Tramp and the Dog,” and stretches to the 2014 Wes Anderson picture, “The Grand Budapest Hotel.”
Maria Sibylla Merian, a 17th-century natural scientist, artist and engraver, gained lasting fame for her pioneering scientific illustration techniques, enabling her to bring a soft, delicate touch to her brilliantly shaded work.
Linnea Vegh was working at a large, well-lit workspace in the Conservation Division on a recent day, considering an unusual problem in an 1869 Persian-Arabic dictionary published in India: Snakeskin. Five thin, scaly pieces, all likely used as bookmarks that got left behind for more than a century. Welcome to the weird world of “inclusions,” an ecosystem known to archivists the world over in which they come across all sort of things readers have purposefully or inadvertently left between a book’s pages.
During World War II, the Office of War Information recorded news and American propaganda onto 16-inch discs which were then broadcast domestically and overseas. The Library acquired tens of thousands of these discs after the war and has been working to preserve them ever since. Colin Hochstetler, a Library Junior Fellow, talks about his work with these time-capsule discs in this question-and-anwer session.
Gregory Lukow, chief of the National Audio-Visual Conservation Center, led the Library's efforts to construct the Center, teaming with the Packard Humanities Institute to make it one of the world's best film preservation facilities. He recently brought his 24-year career to a close. Here, he reflects on some major highlights.
A sizzle reel introduces the 25 influential films from the past 102 years have been selected for the 2023 Library of Congress National Film Registry, Librarian of Congress Carla Hayden announced today, inluding blockbusters such as "Fame," "Home Alone" and "Apollo 13," the popular romance "Love & Basketball," and influential feature films and documentaries such as "12 Years a Slave," "Matewan," "Alambrista!" and "Maya Lin: A Strong, Clear Vision."
We caught up with Alicia Keys recently, talking about her electrifying 2001 debut album, “Songs in A Minor,” and its induction into the 2022 class of the National Recording Registry.
George Willeman is the leader of the nitrate film vaults at the Library of Congress Packard Campus. Here, he tells about lost and nearly lost films he's discovered and helped preserve.
