Image: LOC National Film Registry. Image credit: LOC
Washington: The annual selection of 25 influential motion pictures to be inducted into the National Film Registry of the Library of Congress was announced last week by Carla Hayden, Librarian of Congress, Library of Congress reported.
The 2022 selections were based on their cultural, historic, or aesthetic importance to preserve the nation’s film heritage and include a vibrant diversity of American filmmakers, as well as landmark works in key genres and numerous documentaries that date back 124 years in filmmaking to an 1898 film of the “Mardi Gras Carnival” parade in New Orleans.
The film was long thought to be lost but was recently discovered in a museum in the Netherlands. The most recent film now added to the registry is 2011’s “Pariah,” directed by Dee Rees.
This year’s selections include at least 15 films directed or co-directed by filmmakers of color, women, or LGBTQ+ filmmakers. The selections bring the number of films in the registry to 850, many of which are among the 1.7 million films in the Library’s collections.
Hollywood releases selected this year include Marvel Studios’ “Iron Man,” Disney’s beloved “The Little Mermaid,” John Waters’ “Hairspray,” the unforgettable romantic comedy “When Harry Met Sally,” Brian De Palma’s adaptation of “Carrie,” and the 1950 film version of “Cyrano de Bergerac,” which made José Ferrer the first Hispanic actor to win an Oscar for Best Actor. The full listing of selected films is included below.
“Films have become absolutely central to American culture by helping tell our national story for more than 125 years. We are proud to add 25 more films by a group of vibrant and diverse filmmakers to the National Film Registry as we preserve our cinematic heritage,” Librarian of Congress Carla Hayden was reported saying. “We’re grateful to the entire film community for collaborating with the Library of Congress to ensure these films are preserved for the future.”
A special television show would be featured by Turner Classic Movies (TCM) onTuesday, Dec. 27, starting at 8 p.m. ET to screen a selection of motion pictures named to the registry this year.
Hayden will join TCM host, film historian, and Academy Museum of Motion Pictures Director and President Jacqueline Stewart, who is chair of the National Film Preservation Board, to discuss the films.
“I am especially proud of the way the Registry has amplified its recognition of diverse filmmakers, experiences, and a wide range of filmmaking traditions in recent years,” Stewart reported saying. “I am grateful to the entire National Film Preservation Board, the members of the public who nominated films, and of course to Dr. Hayden for advocating so strongly for the preservation of our many film histories.”
Select titles from 30 years of the National Film Registry are also freely available online in the National Screening Room. Follow the conversation about the 2022 National Film Registry on Twitter and Instagram at @librarycongress and #NatFilmRegistry.
Public Nominations for the National Film Registry
6,865 titles for consideration were submitted this year by the public, several of which drew significant public support through online nominations. They include “Betty Tells Her Story, “Carrie,” “Iron Man,” “The Little Mermaid” and “When Harry Met Sally.”
Films Selected for the 2022 National Film Registry
(chronological order)
- Mardi Gras Carnival (1898)
- Cab Calloway Home Movies (1948-1951)
- Cyrano de Bergerac (1950)
- Charade (1963)
- Scorpio Rising (1963)
- Behind Every Good Man (1967)
- Titicut Follies (1967)
- Mingus (1968)
- Manzanar (1971)
- Betty Tells Her Story (1972)
- Super Fly (1972)
- Attica (1974)
- Carrie (1976)
- Union Maids (1976)
- Word is Out: Stories of Our Lives (1977)
- Bush Mama (1979)
- The Ballad of Gregorio Cortez (1982)
- Itam Hakim, Hopiit (1984)
- Hairspray (1988)
- The Little Mermaid (1989)
- Tongues Untied (1989)
- When Harry Met Sally (1989)
- House Party (1990)
- Iron Man (2008)
- Pariah (2011)
Nominations by the public can be submitted on the Library’s website throughout the year. Nominations for next year will be accepted until Aug. 15, 2023. Cast your vote at loc.gov/film.
#LibraryofCongress; #NationalFilmRegistry
