National Film RegistryLibrary of Congress · Inducted 2017
“James Cameron's epic retold the story of the great maritime disaster and made mega-stars of both its leads, Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Winslet. Their upstairs-downstairs romance transported the audience to another world and time via spectacular sweeping scenes in the bow of the ship and beyond.”
Selected for preservation as culturally, historically or aesthetically significant.
Directed by
James Cameron
Studio
Paramount Pictures · British Film Institute · 20th Century Studios · 195 min
Sources: Wikidata · Library of Congress · OpenAlex. The record of the motion picture, not an assessment of this cell.
FILM NOTES
Titanic (1997), directed by James Cameron, arrived as one of the most ambitious productions in Hollywood history, a joint effort between Paramount and 20th Century Fox that redefined what studios were willing to risk on a single film. Its blend of historical spectacle and romance captured audiences worldwide, sweeping the Academy Awards and becoming a defining cinematic event of the decade. The film's success cemented Cameron's reputation as a director unafraid of scale, and its legacy endures through home video, reissues, and the continued fascination with the ship's story itself.
This cell preserves the title card, the frame that announces the film's name before the story begins. For collectors, title cards hold a particular appeal: they mark the threshold moment of a picture, the formal introduction that signals scale and intent before a single character appears. A 35mm title card from Titanic represents the identity of the production itself, tying directly to how audiences first encountered the film in theaters, a piece of the presentation rather than a performance.
Authentication Findings8 checks
Consistent with a 35mm colour release print of Titanic (1997).
Gauge
35mm, confirmed by four perforations per frame on both edges; the strip holds three frames.
Perforations
Four per frame on both edges; spacing appears even and the punched edges appear clean with no torn or missing perforations visible.
Soundtrack
A variable-area optical track is visible running along one edge beside the picture area; Dolby Digital data blocks between perforations are not clearly distinguishable at this size, and no DTS timecode line or SDDS outer-edge tracks are visible in this capture.
Edge print
Not visible in this capture; the edge margins do not show legible key numbers, manufacturer text, or SAFETY FILM printing at the resolution of this photograph.
Base & colour
The base shows a blue-tinted cast consistent with a colour dye image; the image appears saturated with no obvious red shift or fading visible.
Projection history
No visible scratches, splice marks, or cue marks are seen in this capture.
Picture
Positive colour image; the three frames appear to be consecutive frames from a single title-card shot, and the 'TITANIC' title graphic is consistent with the film on record.
Era check
A 35mm colour positive print with a variable-area optical soundtrack is consistent with a theatrical release print from the late 1990s, matching the 1997 release period of the film on record.
Read from the original intake capture shown below. Observations only — film is authenticated, not graded.
This original motion picture film element has been examined and authenticated by Crown Grading in partnership with National Film Vault, and encapsulated for archival preservation.
Why so little survivesRelease prints were leased to theaters, not sold. When the run ended they went back to the distributor to be destroyed, and most were. What collectors hold today came from the prints that escaped that order, and no new 35mm prints of these films are being struck.
CROWN SERIAL 000062579
Original Film CaptureAs received
Photographed on the light panel at intake, before encapsulation — tap to open full size
Tap to enlarge
