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 December 1997 from Paramount and Twentieth Century Fox, directed by James Cameron at a then-unprecedented budget that nearly sank the production before it ever left dry dock. It became a cultural phenomenon, holding the worldwide box office record for over a decade and sweeping the Academy Awards with eleven wins including Best Picture. Its blend of period spectacle and intimate romance set a new benchmark for studio filmmaking, and it remains one of the most widely recognized pieces of American cinema ever produced.
This cell preserves a frame of Jack Dawson and Fabrizio De Rossi, the steerage passengers whose friendship anchors the film's early third-class scenes before the central romance takes over. Leonardo DiCaprio's Jack became an era-defining leading role, while Danny Nucci's Fabrizio offers collectors a rarer pairing outside the more commonly circulated stills. A 35mm cell like this comes from the physical release print itself, a tangible slice of the theatrical run rather than a promotional reproduction, valued for placing two supporting-era characters together in a single surviving frame.
Authentication Findings8 checks
Consistent with a 35mm theatrical release print of Titanic (1997).
Gauge
35mm, confirmed by four perforations per frame visible on both edges; the strip holds three complete frames.
Perforations
Four per frame on both edges; spacing appears even and the punched edges appear clean with no torn or deformed holes visible.
Soundtrack
A variable-area optical track is visible running along one edge beside the picture area, with what appears to be a Dolby Digital data block strip also present in the inter-perforation zone on the same edge.
Edge print
Not visible in this capture at sufficient resolution to read any key numbers or manufacturer text.
Base & colour
The base shows a slight blue-cyan tint consistent with a colour print stock; the dye image appears neutral with no obvious red shift or fading.
Projection history
Light vertical scratching is visible across the frame area, consistent with a print that has passed through a projector gate.
Picture
Positive colour image; all three frames appear to be from the same continuous shot and the content is consistent with the film on record.
Era check
The combination of a variable-area optical track, apparent Dolby Digital data blocks, blue-tinted base stock, and colour positive image is consistent with a theatrical release print from the mid-to-late 1990s, matching the 1997 release 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 000062596
Original Film CaptureAs received
Photographed on the light panel at intake, before encapsulation — tap to open full size
Tap to enlarge
