British Academy Film Awards — 2 wins, 1 nominationAcademy Awards — 1 nominationKids' Choice Award — 1 nominationSaturn Award — 1 nominationAll 2 wins · 4 nominations on record
British Academy Film Awards: Best Special Visual Effects
Scholarship
Named in the title of 2 peer-reviewed works
Examples
Back to the Future II comment, 2019
Back to the Future II (1988–99) — Routledge eBooks, 2016
Sources: Wikidata · OpenAlex · Library of Congress. The record of the motion picture, not an assessment of this cell.
FILM NOTES
FILM NOTES
Back to the Future II arrived in 1989 as Universal Pictures' answer to a question few sequels dare ask twice: how do you top a cultural phenomenon? Directed by Robert Zemeckis and reuniting the original cast, the film pushed Marty McFly and Doc Brown forward into 2015, a future imagined with hoverboards, self-drying jackets, and flying cars that shaped a generation's idea of tomorrow. Darker and more structurally ambitious than its predecessor, it doubled back on its own timeline with Biff's dystopian alternate 1985, a narrative gamble that paid off commercially and cemented the trilogy's place in blockbuster history. It remains a touchstone of high-concept studio filmmaking from the era.
This 35mm cell preserves a piece of the partnership at the heart of the trilogy, Marty McFly and Doc Emmett Brown, the reluctant time traveler and the eccentric inventor whose bond drives every installment. Collectors prize material featuring the pair together, since it represents the franchise's core relationship rather than any single set piece or gadget. A cell like this may originate from a trailer, title sequence, or promotional strip, the kind of artifact studios struck to circulate stills and press material ahead of release, making it a tangible fragment of how audiences first encountered the film.
Authentication Findings8 checks
Consistent with a 35mm colour optical release print of Back to the Future Part II.
Gauge
35mm, four perforations per frame on both edges; the strip holds three frames.
Perforations
Four per frame on each edge, evenly spaced; punched edges appear clean with no visible tearing.
Soundtrack
A variable-area optical track is visible running along one edge beside the picture area.
Edge print
Edge print reads 'EASTMAN' along the top edge; frame-line numbering '230' is visible within the image area.
Base & colour
Base appears neutral to very slightly warm; dye image shows full colour saturation with no visible fading or red shift.
Projection history
No splices, cue marks or prominent scratches are visible on this strip.
Picture
Positive colour image; the three frames appear to be consecutive frames from a single continuous shot, consistent with a release print of Back to the Future Part II.
Era check
Eastman-branded colour stock, variable-area optical soundtrack, and neutral base tint are all consistent with a 35mm theatrical release print from the late 1980s.
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 000064178
Original Film CaptureAs received
Photographed on the light panel at intake, before encapsulation — tap to open full size
Tap to enlarge
