National Film RegistryLibrary of Congress · Inducted 2020
“Even by DreamWorks standards, the charm and magic of "Shrek" seemed extraordinary upon its initial release almost 20 years ago — and its power has yet to diminish in the intervening years.”
Selected for preservation as culturally, historically or aesthetically significant.
Directed by
Andrew Adamson, Vicky Jenson
Studio
DreamWorks · DreamWorks Animation · Pacific Data Images · 90 min
Box office
$488.4M worldwide on a $60M budget
Honors
Academy Awards — 1 win, 2 nominationsAnnie Awards — 1 winBritish Academy Film Awards — 1 winCritics' Choice Movie Award — 1 winAll 4 wins · 3 nominations on record
Academy Awards: Best Animated Feature
Annie Awards: Best Animated Feature
British Academy Film Awards: BAFTA's Children & Young People Award - Feature Film
Critics' Choice Movie Award: Best Animated Feature
Scholarship
Named in the title of 17 peer-reviewed works
Examples
Sources: Wikidata · Library of Congress · OpenAlex. The record of the motion picture, not an assessment of this cell.
FILM NOTES
Shrek arrived from DreamWorks Animation in 2001, a fractured fairy tale that reset expectations for animated features at the height of Pixar's rise. Built on a swamp ogre's reluctant journey and a script that winked at Disney convention, it won the first Academy Award for Best Animated Feature and became a cultural touchstone, spawning a franchise that redefined family entertainment for a generation raised on irony and pop soundtracks.
This cell centers on Shrek and Princess Fiona, the film's central pairing, whose dynamic drives the story from mismatched antagonism to genuine partnership. Fiona in particular draws collector interest as a princess archetype subverted, her arc central to the film's reworking of fairy tale expectation. A cell naming both characters together marks a moment of shared screen presence, the kind of pairing prized by collectors for capturing the relationship at the heart of the narrative rather than isolated character studies.
Authentication Findings8 checks
Consistent with a 35mm theatrical release print of Shrek (2001).
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 along one edge, with what appears to be a Dolby Digital data-block strip 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 any key numbers or manufacturer text.
Base & colour
The base shows a light cyan-blue tint typical of modern safety stock; the dye image appears warm and well-saturated with no visible fading or red shift.
Projection history
Light horizontal abrasion lines are visible across the soundtrack area, consistent with a projected print; no splices or cue marks are seen.
Picture
Positive colour image; all three frames appear to be consecutive frames from a single shot, and the content is consistent with the animated feature on record.
Era check
The cyan-tinted polyester base, Dolby Digital data blocks alongside a variable-area optical track, and saturated dye image are all consistent with a theatrical release print from the early 2000s, matching the 2001 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 000063175
Original Film CaptureAs received
Photographed on the light panel at intake, before encapsulation — tap to open full size
Tap to enlarge
