The National Film Preservation Act is the name of several
federal law
Federal law is the body of law created by the federal government of a country. A federal government is formed when a group of political units, such as states or provinces join in a federation, delegating their individual sovereignty and many po ...
s relating to the identification, acquisition, storage, and dissemination of "
film
A film also called a movie, motion picture, moving picture, picture, photoplay or (slang) flick is a work of visual art that simulates experiences and otherwise communicates ideas, stories, perceptions, feelings, beauty, or atmosphere ...
s that are culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant."
Legislative history
1988
The original National Film Preservation Act of 1988 (Public Law 100-446) was part of an appropriations bill for the United States
Department of the Interior
The United States Department of the Interior (DOI) is one of the executive departments of the U.S. federal government headquartered at the Main Interior Building, located at 1849 C Street NW in Washington, D.C. It is responsible for the mana ...
. The law specified three tasks:
# Directs the
Librarian of Congress
The Librarian of Congress is the head of the Library of Congress, appointed by the president of the United States with the advice and consent of the United States Senate, for a term of ten years. In addition to overseeing the library, the Libra ...
to establish a
National Film Registry
The National Film Registry (NFR) is the United States National Film Preservation Board's (NFPB) collection of films selected for preservation, each selected for its historical, cultural and aesthetic contributions since the NFPB’s inception i ...
to register films that are culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant.
# Prohibits any person from knowingly distributing or exhibiting to the public a film that has been materially altered, or a black and white film that has been
colorize
Film colorization (American English; or colourisation [British English], or colourization [ Canadian English and Oxford English]) is any process that adds color to black-and-white, sepia, or other monochrome moving-picture image ...
d and is included in the Registry, unless such films are labeled disclosing specified information.
# Directs the Librarian to establish in the
Library of Congress
The Library of Congress (LOC) is the research library that officially serves the United States Congress and is the ''de facto'' national library of the United States. It is the oldest federal cultural institution in the country. The library is ...
a
National Film Preservation Board
The United States National Film Preservation Board (NFPB) is the board selecting films for preservation in the Library of Congress' National Film Registry. It was established by the National Film Preservation Act of 1988. The National Film Regi ...
."
1992
The National Film Preservation Act of 1992 reauthorized the National Film Preservation Board (NFPB) for four years (Public Law 102-307) and added the requirement for the Librarian of Congress to "study and report to the Congress on the current state of
film preservation
Film preservation, or film restoration, describes a series of ongoing efforts among film historians, archivists, museums, cinematheques, and non-profit organizations to rescue decaying film stock and preserve the images they contain. In the wi ...
and
restoration
Restoration is the act of restoring something to its original state and may refer to:
* Conservation and restoration of cultural heritage
** Audio restoration
** Film restoration
** Image restoration
** Textile restoration
* Restoration ecology
...
activities, including the activities of the Library of Congress and other major film archives in the United States; and (2) establish a comprehensive national film preservation program for motion pictures, in conjunction with other film archivists and
copyright
A copyright is a type of intellectual property that gives its owner the exclusive right to copy, distribute, adapt, display, and perform a creative work, usually for a limited time. The creative work may be in a literary, artistic, education ...
owners."
1996
The National Film Preservation Act of 1996 reauthorized the NFPB for an additional seven years (Public Law 104-285), and also created the
National Film Preservation Foundation
The National Film Preservation Foundation (NFPF) is an independent, nonprofit organization created by the U.S. Congress to help save America's film heritage. Growing from a national planning effort led by the Library of Congress, the NFPF began op ...
(NFPF) as a
charitable organization
A charitable organization or charity is an organization whose primary objectives are philanthropy and social well-being (e.g. educational, Religion, religious or other activities serving the public interest or common good).
The legal definitio ...
, although the NFPF is not a government agency.
2005
The National Film Preservation Act of 2005 reauthorized both the NFPB and the NFPF (Public Law 109-009) for an additional four years.
2008
Library of Congress Sound Recording and Film Preservation Programs Reauthorization Act of 2008 reauthorized both the NFPB and the NFPF (Public Law 110-336) until fiscal year 2016.
2016
The Library of Congress Sound Recording and Film Preservation Programs Reauthorization Act of 2016 reauthorized both the NFPB and the NFPF (Public Law 114-217) until fiscal year 2026.
Notes
External links
{{Portal, Film, United States, Politics
National Film Preservation Board home pageNational Film Preservation Foundation home page
Film preservation
1988 in law
United States federal legislation
Library of Congress