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
FILM NOTES
Shrek arrived from DreamWorks Animation in 2001 and reshaped what an animated feature could be, trading fairy tale sweetness for a wry, self aware take on the genre. Built on a script full of pop culture asides and voiced by a cast including Mike Myers, Eddie Murphy, and Cameron Diaz, it became the first winner of the Academy Award for Best Animated Feature. Its success proved that animated films could carry adult humor alongside family appeal, and it launched one of the studio's defining franchises, cementing DreamWorks as a serious rival to Pixar and Disney in the years that followed.
This cell centers on Dragon and Donkey, pairing two of the film's supporting players in a single frame of the reel. Donkey, voiced by Eddie Murphy, became the breakout comic engine of the franchise, and Dragon, voiced by Frank Welker, gave the story its most memorable creature presence. Collectors prize pieces that bring these two together, since their scenes anchor much of the film's tonal shift from menace to comedy. A 35mm cell like this preserves a physical fragment of that theatrical release, a tangible artifact from the animation's original print run.
Authentication Findings8 checks
Consistent with a 35mm Dolby Digital theatrical release print of Shrek (2001).
Gauge
35mm, four perforations per frame visible 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 deformed holes 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 on the same edge, consistent with a dual-format optical release print.
Edge print
Edge print reads, mirrored: '2001 U 28 28 K 00:4K 37 1 69 0 405' and '2383' visible on the opposing edge strip.
Base & colour
Base shows a light cyan-blue tint typical of modern safety stock; the dye image appears warm and fully saturated with no visible fading or colour shift.
Projection history
Light vertical scratches are visible running through the frame area, consistent with a print that has passed through a projector gate.
Picture
Positive colour image; all three frames appear to be consecutive frames from a single shot, and the content is consistent with an animated feature matching the film on record.
Era check
The combination of cyan-tinted safety base, Dolby Digital inter-perforation data blocks alongside a variable-area optical track, and the key-number format are all consistent with a theatrical release print from the early 2000s.
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 000063238
Original Film CaptureAs received
Photographed on the light panel at intake, before encapsulation — tap to open full size
Tap to enlarge
