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
Forrest Gump arrived from Paramount Pictures in the summer of 1994, directed by Robert Zemeckis and adapted from Winston Groom's novel. It became a defining film of its decade, sweeping the Academy Awards including Best Picture and Best Actor for Tom Hanks, and folding three decades of American history into the story of one unassuming man. Its blend of technical innovation, sentiment, and cultural nostalgia made it both a box office phenomenon and a lasting touchstone in film history, frequently cited whenever audiences discuss the era's most quoted and beloved motion pictures.
This cell preserves a moment of Forrest Gump himself, portrayed by Tom Hanks in the role that came to define his career. Collectors seek out pieces like this precisely because the character has become inseparable from the actor's identity within American cinema. As a plain frame from the print, it stands as a physical fragment of the reel itself, a small piece of celluloid history connecting the viewer directly to the original theatrical release rather than any later reproduction or digital copy.
Authentication Findings8 checks
Consistent with a 35mm colour optical 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 is visible running along the bottom edge beside the perforations, appearing as a dual bilateral variable-area pattern.
Edge print
Text reads 'SAFETY FIL' (truncated) along the bottom edge, mirrored as the strip is emulsion-up.
Base & colour
Base shows a warm cream-yellow tint typical of acetate safety stock; dye image appears warm with no obvious fading or red shift.
Projection history
No visible scratches, splice marks, or cue marks seen on this strip.
Picture
Positive colour image; all three frames appear to be consecutive frames from a single continuous shot, consistent with a release print of Forrest Gump (1994).
Era check
The dual bilateral variable-area optical soundtrack, acetate safety base, and warm dye set are 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 000064007
Original Film CaptureAs received
Photographed on the light panel at intake, before encapsulation — tap to open full size
Tap to enlarge
