National Film RegistryLibrary of Congress · Inducted 2011
“As "Forrest Gump," Tom Hanks portrays an earnest, guileless "everyman" whose open-heartedness and sense of the unexpected unwittingly draws him into some of the most iconic events of the 1960s and 1970s.”
Selected for preservation as culturally, historically or aesthetically significant.
Directed by
Robert Zemeckis
Studio
Paramount Pictures · 142 min
Box office
$678.2M worldwide on a $55M budget
Honors
Academy Awards — 6 wins, 13 nominationsNational Board of Review — 2 winsAmanda Award — 1 winAll 9 wins · 13 nominations on record
Academy Awards: Best Director
Academy Awards: Best Picture
Academy Awards: Best Writing, Adapted Screenplay
Academy Awards: Best Film Editing
Academy Awards: Best Actor
Academy Awards: Best Visual Effects
National Board of Review: Best Film
National Board of Review: National Board of Review: Top Ten Films
Amanda Award: Best Foreign Feature Film
Scholarship
Named in the title of 31 peer-reviewed works
Examples
Forrest Gump — Iverieli (National Parliamentary Library of Georgia), 2015
Forrest Gump, 2022
Forrest Gump: — State University of New York Press eBooks, 2017
Sources: Wikidata · Library of Congress · OpenAlex. The record of the motion picture, not an assessment of this cell.
FILM NOTES
Paramount Pictures released Forrest Gump in the summer of 1994, and Robert Zemeckis's blend of technical innovation and sweeping American nostalgia made it an immediate cultural touchstone. Winning six Academy Awards including Best Picture, Best Director, and Best Actor for Tom Hanks, the film's seamless integration of its protagonist into decades of archival footage set new standards for visual effects. Its earnest, sentimental tone resonated widely, cementing lines and images from the picture into the broader vernacular of American cinema for a generation of audiences.
This cell preserves a frame of Jenny Curran, the childhood friend and enduring love of the title character, played across the film by Robin Wright. Jenny's arc traces a restless, wounded path through the same decades Forrest wanders with simpler faith, and her presence anchors much of the film's emotional weight. Collectors seek her out because her story carries the counterpoint to Forrest's steadiness, representing the turbulence of the era itself. A 35mm cell bearing her likeness offers a physical remnant of that narrative thread, a tangible piece of the release print circulating during the film's original theatrical run.
Authentication Findings8 checks
Consistent with a 35mm optical-track release print of Forrest Gump (1994).
Gauge
35mm, four perforations per frame visible on both edges; the strip holds three frames.
Perforations
Four per frame on both edges, evenly spaced, cleanly punched with no torn or deformed holes visible.
Soundtrack
A variable-area optical track runs along one edge, with what appears to be a second parallel track beside it, consistent with a dual bilateral or Dolby Stereo optical arrangement; a blue stripe is also visible adjacent to the track area.
Edge print
Edge print reads reversed as 'EASTMAN 2', consistent with emulsion-up placement on the light panel.
Base & colour
Base appears warm-neutral; dye image shows rich brown and dark tones with no obvious colour shift or fading.
Projection history
No splices, cue marks, or prominent scratches are visible in this capture.
Picture
Positive colour image; all three frames appear to be consecutive frames from a single continuous shot, and the subject matter is consistent with a release print of Forrest Gump (1994).
Era check
The Eastman stock designation, dual optical soundtrack with blue dye stripe, and positive colour print format are all consistent with a mid-1990s theatrical release print.
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 000063977
Original Film CaptureAs received
Photographed on the light panel at intake, before encapsulation — tap to open full size
Tap to enlarge
