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 arrived in 1997 as a Paramount and 20th Century Fox co-production, directed by James Cameron on a budget that made headlines before a single ticket sold. It went on to dominate the box office worldwide and swept the Academy Awards, becoming a defining cinematic event of the decade. Its blend of romance, disaster spectacle, and meticulous period recreation set a new benchmark for what a studio tentpole could achieve, and it remains one of the most widely seen films ever made, a touchstone for an entire generation of moviegoers.
This 35mm cell carries the identity of Jack Dawson, the penniless artist played by Leonardo DiCaprio whose presence anchors the film's emotional core. Collectors seek this character above nearly all others in the Titanic canon, since Jack represents the romantic ideal and tragic center of the story. A cell bearing his name alone signals a piece drawn directly from his screen presence, a physical fragment of the character who became inseparable from DiCaprio's early stardom and from the film's enduring cultural footprint.
Authentication Findings8 checks
Consistent with a 35mm theatrical 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, evenly spaced; punched edges appear clean with no visible tearing or distortion.
Soundtrack
A variable-area optical track is visible along one edge, with what appears to be a Dolby Digital data-block strip running in the inter-perforation zone beside it, consistent with a dual-format optical release print.
Edge print
Not visible in this capture at sufficient resolution to read manufacturer codes or key numbers.
Base & colour
Base carries a blue tint on both outer margins; the image area is very dense and dark with warm amber tones in the exposed picture areas, consistent with a colour release print.
Projection history
No splices or cue marks are visible; the dense image area shows no obvious scratch lines in this capture.
Picture
Positive colour image; the three frames appear to be consecutive frames from a single shot, consistent with a theatrical release print of the film on record.
Era check
The combination of a blue-tinted base stock, Dolby Digital inter-perforation data blocks alongside a variable-area optical track, and dense colour dye image is consistent with a mid-to-late 1990s theatrical release print, matching the 1997 production date 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 000062582
Original Film CaptureAs received
Photographed on the light panel at intake, before encapsulation — tap to open full size
Tap to enlarge
