National Film Vault

FILM NOTES

Universal Pictures released E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial in June 1982, with Steven Spielberg directing at the height of his early blockbuster period. The film became the highest-grossing release of its time, displacing Star Wars, and remains a defining work of American cinema — a story of childhood, longing, and connection that resonated across generations. Shot on 35mm by cinematographer Allen Daviau, its visual warmth and practical effects gave it an intimacy rarely achieved at that scale.

This cell captures E.T. and Elliott in the outdoor sequence, the small figure bundled in white visible within the bicycle carrier amid surrounding trees, Elliott nearby in red. Three consecutive frames from the same shot, preserved on original 35mm, offer a rare still moment from one of cinema's most iconic images.