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 1 peer-reviewed work
Examples
Sources: Wikidata · OpenAlex · Library of Congress. The record of the motion picture, not an assessment of this cell.
FILM NOTES
Released in 1989 by Universal Pictures as the immediate sequel to the 1985 blockbuster, Back to the Future Part II pushed Robert Zemeckis's time travel saga into darker, more ambitious territory. Bringing back Michael J. Fox, Christopher Lloyd, and the core creative team, the film ventured into a speculative 2015 and a corrupted alternate 1985, expanding the mythology while deepening the stakes of the original story. It remains a touchstone of late eighties studio filmmaking, prized for its dense plotting and its standing as the middle chapter of one of cinema's most beloved trilogies.
This 35mm cell preserves Marty McFly, the character whose choices drive the entire trilogy and whose likeness anchors the film's identity for collectors. A frame simply marked with his name, without further qualifier, points to a straightforward appearance rather than a singular set piece, making it a foundational piece for anyone building around the character across the series. Such cells typically originate from release prints or promotional material, offering a tangible fragment of the physical film stock that once ran through theater projectors during the picture's original circulation.
Authentication Findings8 checks
Consistent with a 35mm colour release print of Back to the Future Part II (1989).
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, appearing as a dual-bilateral (two-track) pattern.
Edge print
Upper edge reads 'SAFETY FILM' (mirrored in capture); lower edge reads 'M3 28 67 99' (mirrored in capture).
Base & colour
Base shows a slight cyan-blue tint consistent with a colour print stock; dye image appears warm with no obvious fading or red shift.
Projection history
Light vertical scratching is visible across 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 continuous shot, consistent with a release print of Back to the Future Part II.
Era check
The dual-bilateral variable-area optical track, colour print stock with cyan base tint, and 'SAFETY FILM' edge coding are all consistent with a 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 000064277
Original Film CaptureAs received
Photographed on the light panel at intake, before encapsulation — tap to open full size
Tap to enlarge
