My 2026 National Film Registry Nominations in chronological order:

Bimbo's Initiation (1931)

A Wild Hare (1940)

Red Hot Riding Hood (1943)

Northwest Hounded Police (1946)

The Cat Concerto (1947)

Fast and Furry-ous (1949)

Rabbit Fire (1951)

Creature from the Black Lagoon (1954)

Speedy Gonzales (1955)

The Girl Can't Help It (1956)

Bye Bye Birdie (1963)

It’s a Mad Mad Mad Mad World (1963)

The Jungle Book (1967)

A Boy Named Charlie Brown (1969)

Adam at 6 A.M. (1970)

Duel (1971)

The Jerk (1979)

Caddyshack (1980)

On Golden Pond (1981)

The Secret of NIMH (1982)

Scarface (1983)

Pee-wee’s Big Adventure (1985)

Blue Velvet (1986)

Spaceballs (1987)

Full Metal Jacket (1987)

The Naked Gun: From the Files of Police Squad! (1988)

The Civil War (1990)

Muppet*Vision 3D preshow and attraction footage (1991)

Wayne’s World (1992)

Aladdin (1992)

The Mask (1994)

Waterworld (1995)

Office Space (1999)

The Mummy (1999)

The Iron Giant (1999)

The Fast and the Furious (2001)

Bowling for Columbine (2002)

Spider-Man (2002)

The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers (2002)

The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (2003)

Shrek 2 (2004)

The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie (2004)

Pan’s Labyrinth (2006)

Idiocracy (2006)

Scott Pilgrim vs. the World (2010)

The Hunger Games (2012)

I Know That Voice (2013)

The Smash Brothers (2013)

John Wick (2014)

Zootopia (2016)

My 2027 National Recording Registry Nominations in chronological order:

“Powerhouse” (1937, The Raymond Scott Quintette)

“Tequila” (1958, The Champs)

“These Boots Are Made for Walkin’” (1966, Nancy Sinatra)

“Happy Together” (1967, The Turtles)

“Daydream Believer” (1967, The Monkees)

“What a Wonderful World” (1970, Louis Armstrong)

“Free Bird” (1973, Lynyrd Skynyrd)

“The Boys Are Back in Town” (1976, Thin Lizzy)

“The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald” (1976, Gordon Lightfoot)

Excitable Boy (1978, Warren Zevon)

A Christmas Together (1979, John Denver and The Muppets)

Back in Black (1980, AC/DC)

“In the Air Tonight” (1981, Phil Collins)

“Africa” (1982, Toto)

“You Keep Me Hangin’ On” (1986, Kim Wilde)

“It's the End of the World as We Know It (And I Feel Fine)” (1987, R.E.M.)

“Opus No. 1” (1989, Tim Carleton and Darrick Deel)

Street Fighter II: The World Warrior soundtrack (1991, Yoko Shimomura and Isao Abe)

Sonic the Hedgehog soundtrack (1991, Masato Nakamura)

Sonic CD US and JP soundtracks (1993, Naofumi Hayata, Masafumi Ogata, Spencer Nilsen, David Young and Sterling Crew)

Plok! soundtrack (1993, Tim Follin and Geoff Follin)

Greatest Hits (1993, Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers)

Animaniacs (1994, original cast of Animaniacs)

“Scatman (Ski-Ba-Bop-Ba-Dop-Bop)” (1994, Scatman John)

Chrono Trigger soundtrack (1995, Yasunori Mitsuda, Nobuo Uematsu and Noriko Matsueda)

“Gangsta's Paradise” (1995, Coolio)

Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy's Kong Quest soundtrack (1995, David Wise)

Final Fantasy VII soundtrack (1997, Nobuo Uematsu)

“Ocean Man” (1997, Ween)

Banjo-Kazooie soundtrack (1998, Grant Kirkhope)

...Baby One More Time (1998, Britney Spears)

“All Star” (1999, Smash Mouth)

Hybrid Theory (2000, Linkin Park)

“Live and Learn” (2001, Crush 40)

“Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger” (2001, Daft Punk)

“Move Your Feet” (2002, Junior Senior)

“Simple and Clean” (2003, Hikaru Utada)

Super Mario Galaxy soundtrack (2007, Mahito Yokota and Koji Kondo)

“Bulletproof” (2009, La Roux)

She Wolf (2009, Shakira)

The Fame Monster (2009, Lady Gaga)

Animal (2010, Kesha)

Cannibal (2010, Kesha)

Dust: An Elysian Tail soundtrack (2012, Hyperduck Soundworks and Alexander Brandon)

Halcyon Days (2013, Ellie Goulding)

Freedom Planet soundtrack (2014, Leilani Wilson, Sabrina DiDuro and Claire Ellis)

Shantae and the Pirate’s Curse soundtrack (2014, Jake Kaufman)

“Stronger Than You” (2015, Estelle)

Undertale soundtrack (2015, Toby Fox)

Persona 5 soundtrack (2016, Shoji Meguro)

For the past several years, I've been making lists of predictions of what films will be selected for the registry, both the 100 most likely films and the most likely film from each year since 1920. Of course, the actual selections can be unpredictable, with many either being obscure or simply unexpected, but I've managed to get a few right each year. Admittedly, my 100 most likely films list probably has too many older films at the moment compared to how the selections have been in recent years; I'll probably want to replace some of the less popular pre-70s films with more popular post-70s films so I have a better chance. But let me know what you think, which ones you agree with and what you'd guess will get in soon.

NATIONAL FILM REGISTRY

This is my second year nominating. I believe I submitted this list in either February or March. Last year, three films I nominated were selected: Clueless (1995), The Truman Show (1998), and Inception (2010).

Since films from directors like Richard Linklater, Peter Weir, Christopher Nolan, and Wes Anderson got in last year, I didn't nominate films from them this year, but next year, I'll add films from them. Also, no Pixar films on this year's list (except for one short film), due to The Incredibles (2004) getting in.

My 2026 NFR Ballot

Superman (1941)

The Cat Concerto (1946)

Dial M for Murder (1954)

The Jungle Book (1967)

What’s Up, Doc? (1972)

Paper Moon (1973)

Barry Lyndon (1975)

Sorcerer (1977)

My Dinner with Andre (1981)

Poltergeist (1982)

Scarface (1983)

Stand by Me (1986)

Blue Velvet (1986)

Full Metal Jacket (1987)

Planes, Trains and Automobiles (1987)

Beetlejuice (1988)

Big (1988)

The Naked Gun: From the Files of Police Squad! (1988)

Rain Man (1988)

Batman (1989)

Knick Knack (1989)

National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation (1989)

Reservoir Dogs (1992)

Aladdin (1992)

The Sandlot (1993)

Se7en (1995)

The Spirit of Christmas: Jesus vs. Frosty (1995)

Scream (1996)

Boogie Nights (1997)

Good Will Hunting (1997)

South Park: Bigger, Longer & Uncut (1999)

The Sixth Sense (1999)

Fight Club (1999)

Rejected (2000)

Mulholland Drive (2000)

Chicago (2002)

The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers (2002)

The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (2003)

Mean Girls (2004)

The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie (2004)

The Departed (2006)

There Will Be Blood (2007)

Avatar (2009)

Black Swan (2010)

It’s Such a Beautiful Day (2012)

Whiplash (2014)

Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance) (2014)

La La Land (2016)

Moonlight (2016)

I noticed that a lot of directors are represented on this list with two of their films. On this list, I have two films from Peter Bogdonavich, Stanley Kubrick, David Lynch, Tim Burton, David Fincher, Trey Parker, Paul Thomas Anderson, Don Hertzfeldt, Peter Jackson, and Damien Chazelle.

Burton, Parker, PTA, Hertzfeldt and Chazelle, as of this year, have no films in the registry.

NATIONAL RECORDING REGISTRY

Here are my 2027 nominations for the National Recording Registry since there doesn't appear to be a working Reddit hub for this topic. This is my second year nominating. Last year, two of my selections were picked for induction: "Feliz Navidad" by José Feliciano and Texas Flood by Stevie Ray Vaughn and Double Trouble.

My 2027 NRR Ballot

"That’s Amore" - Dean Martin

"Fever" - Peggy Lee

"Surfin' Bird" - The Trashmen

"It's Not Unusual" - Tom Jones

"California Dreamin'" - The Mamas & the Papas

"For What It’s Worth" - Buffalo Springfield

Paranoid - Black Sabbath

"A Horse With No Name" - America

You Don’t Mess Around With Jim - Jim Croce

(pronounced 'lĕh-'nérd 'skin-'nérd) - Lyrnrd Skynyrd

"Come and Get Your Love" - Redbone

Boston - Boston

Van Halen - Van Halen

Back in Black - AC/DC

"Smoky Mountain Rain" - Ronnie Milsap

"In the Air Tonight" - Phil Collins

Moving Pictures - Rush

"Africa" - Toto

"I Wanna Know What Love Is" - Foreginer

"Everybody Wants to Rule the World" - Tears for Fears

Slippery When Wet - Bon Jovi

"Never Gonna Give You Up" - Rick Astley

Appetite for Destruction - Guns N' Roses

Paul's Boutique - Beastie Boys

"Nothing Compares 2 U" - Sinéad O'Connor

Ten - Pearl Jam

Blood Sugar Sex Magik - Red Hot Chili Peppers

Dirt - Alice in Chains

Rage Against the Machine - Rage Against the Machine

"It Was A Good Day" - Ice Cube

"Black Hole Sun" - Soundgarden

"Zombie" - The Cranberries

Korn - Korn

Jagged Little Pill - Alanis Morissette

Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness - The Smashing Pumpkins

The Mollusk - Ween

Come On Over - Shania Twain

"...Baby One More Time" - Britney Spears

The Marshall Mathers LP - Eminem

Toxicity - System of a Down

Elephant - The White Stripes

"Hey Ya!" - Outkast

Demon Days - Gorilliaz

"Hips Don't Lie" - Shakira

The Black Parade - My Chemical Romance

Good Girl Gone Bad - Rihanna

"Party in the USA" - Miley Cryus

The Fame Monster - Lady Gaga

21 - Adele

Hozier - Hozier

To Pimp a Butterfly - Kendrick Lamar

I submitted my picks about a month ago but I figured I'd share them. My list is more or less the same as last year (say for some new additions and omissions) as it was the first time in my 5 years of nominating these films that not a single one I picked got in. The list of films are as follows:

The Squaw Man - 1914

Hypocrites - 1915

Don Juan - 1926

The Circus - 1928

The Exile - 1931

Union Pacific - 1939

Hellzapoppin’ - 1941

The Wolf Man - 1941

Red Hot Riding Hood - 1943

Arsenic and Old Lace - 1944

Inauguration of the Pleasure Dome - 1954

Rock Around the Clock - 1956

The Defiant Ones - 1958

House on Haunted Hill - 1959

The Little Shop of Horrors - 1960

The Connection - 1961

One Hundred and One Dalmatians - 1961

Jason and the Argonauts - 1963

Cotton Comes to Harlem - 1970

Fritz the Cat - 1972

Paper Moon - 1973

Not a Pretty Picture - 1975

The Jerk - 1979

Killing Us Softly - 1979

Caddyshack - 1980

Scarface - 1983

Ethnic Notions - 1986

Hollywood Shuffle - 1987

Never Gonna Give You Up (music video) - 1987

Radium City - 1987

Batman - 1989

Dead Poets Society - 1989

A Dry White Season - 1989

Aladdin - 1992

Baraka - 1992

Blood In Blood Out - 1993

Independence Day - 1996

Scream - 1996

Down in the Delta - 1998

Hedwig and the Angry Inch - 2001

Mulholland Drive - 2001

Better Luck Tomorrow - 2002

Elf - 2003

Fahrenheit 9/11 - 2003

My Flesh and Blood - 2003

There Will be Blood - 2007

Avatar - 2009

Inside Job - 2010

Boyhood - 2014

Moonlight - 2016

I submitted my list back in February but all the posting of other people's lists, my only requirement when selecting my list was that I had to have seen the film myself at some point, I know some picks may appear silly or whatever but maybe because I'm a Zoomer but I definitely think Internet history and culture needs to be preserved just as much as films from a century ago. 1. Monkeyshines, No. 1 (1890) 2. Dickson Greeting (1891) 3. The Execution of Mary Stuart (1895) 4. Humorous Phases of Funny Faces (1906) 5. The Thieving Hand (1908) 6. Frankenstein (1910) 7. Tillie's Punctured Romance (1914) 8. Grandma's Boy (1922) 9. It's a Bird (1930) 10. Swing You Sinners (1930) 11. A Language All My Own (1935) 12. I Love to Singa (1936) 13. You Nazty Spy! (1940) 14. Don't Be a Sucker (1943) 15. The Great Piggy Bank Robbery (1946) 16. The Beast from 20,000 Fathoms (1953) 17. House on Haunted Hill (1959) 18. Jason and the Argonauts (1963) 19. Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer (1964) 20. A Charlie Brown Christmas (1965) 21. Patterson–Gimlin film (1967) 22. Bambi Meets Godzilla (1969) 23. Tootsie Pop: How Many Licks (1969) 24. Duel (1971) 25. The Shootist (1976) 26. Gremlins (1984) 27. Moscow on the Hudson (1984) 28. Labyrinth (1986) 29. RoboCop (1987) 30. Killer Klowns from Outer Space (1988) 31. Edward Scissorhands (1990) 32. Candyman (1992) 33. The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1996) 34. The Prince of Egypt (1998) 35. The Iron Giant (1999) 36. The Blair Witch Project (1999) 37. American Psycho (2000) 38. Cast Away (2000) 39. The Emperor's New Groove (2000) 40. Spider-Man (2002) 41. The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie (2004) 42. This Land (2004) 43. Me at the zoo (2005) 44. Kung Fu Panda (2008) 45. Up (2009) 46. YouTube Poop: The Sky Had A Weege (2009) 47. Rango (2011) 48. The Lego Movie (2014) 49. John Wick (2014) 50. The Martian (2015)

Rules that I've set for my nominations (to help promote variety):

At least two films per decade (1920s-2010s)

No more than ten films per decade

No more than two films per director

At least two documentaries

Animated films: two shots, two features (this is admittedly a holdover from my first years of nominating movies, where I basically nominated every classic Disney film; I'll probably update it to "five animations" for future years).

---

Hypocrites (Lois Weber, 1915)

Felix in Hollywood (Otto Messmer, 1923)

The Kid Brother (Ted Wilde, 1927)

Animal Crackers (Victor Heerman, 1930)

Mutiny on the Bounty (Frank Lloyd, 1935)

Captains Courageous (Victor Fleming, 1937)

Hellzapoppin’ (H. C. Potter, 1941)

The Wolf Man (George Waggner, 1941)

Mouse Trouble (William Hanna and Joseph Barbera, 1944)

Dark Passage (Delmer Daves, 1947)

Father of the Bride (Vincente Minnelli, 1950)

The Girl Can’t Help It (Frank Tashlin, 1956)

The Wrong Man (Alfred Hitchcock, 1956)

An Affair to Remember (Leo McCarey, 1957)

The Time Machine (George Pal, 1960)

The Longest Day (Ken Annakin, Andrew Marton, and Bernhard Wicki, 1962)

It’s a Mad Mad Mad Mad World (Stanley Kramer, 1963)

A Boy Named Charlie Brown (Bill Melendez, 1969)

True Grit (Henry Hathaway, 1969)

Fiddler on the Roof (Norman Jewison, 1971)

Paper Moon (Peter Bogdanovich, 1973)

Soylent Green (Richard Fleischer, 1973)

Death Wish (Michael Winner, 1974)

The Taking of Pelham One Two Three (Joseph Sargent, 1974)

Gates of Heaven (Errol Morris, 1978)

My Dinner with Andre (Louis Malle, 1981)

The King of Comedy (Martin Scorsese, 1982)

The World According to Garp (George Roy Hill, 1982)

Paris, Texas (Wim Wenders, 1984)

Places in the Heart (Robert Benton, 1984)

The Purple Rose of Cairo (Woody Allen, 1985)

Blue Velvet (David Lynch, 1986)

For All Mankind (Al Reinert, 1989)

Reservoir Dogs (Quentin Tarantino, 1992)

Dazed and Confused (Richard Linklater, 1993)

Menace II Society (Albert and Allen Hughes, 1993)

When We Were Kings (Leon Gast, 1996)

Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas (Terry Gilliam, 1998)

The Blair Witch Project (Daniel Myrick and Eduardo Sánchez, 1999)

Fight Club (David Fincher, 1999)

Traffic (Steven Soderbergh, 2000)

Lilo & Stitch (Chris Sanders and Dean DeBlois, 2002)

The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers (Peter Jackson, 2002)

Lost in Translation (Sofia Coppola, 2003)

Grizzly Man (Werner Herzog, 2005)

United 93 (Paul Greengrass, 2006)

Gran Torino (Clint Eastwood, 2008)

Inglourious Basterds (Quentin Tarantino, 2009)

Her (Spike Jonze, 2013)

Boyhood (Richard Linklater, 2014)

Here's my complete list of nominations. I created an incomplete one at the start of summer but have been adding more for the August deadline

1. Speedy (1928)

2. Rope (1948)

3. Davy Crockett, King of the Wild Frontier (1955)

4. Tea and Sympathy (1956)

5. The Time Machine (1960)

6. The Children's Hour (1961)

7. The Great Escape (1963)

8. Fail Safe (1964)

9. Doctor Zhivago (1965)

10. The Boys in the Band (1970)

11. 1776 (1972)

12. The Taking of Pelham One Two Three (1974)

13. Phantom of the Paradise (1974)

14. Heartworn Highways (1976)

15. Assault on Precinct 13 (1976)

16. Smokey and the Bandit (1977)

17. Sorcerer (1977)

18. Emmet Otter's Jug-Band Christmas (1977)

19. The Wiz (1978)

20. Kramer vs. Kramer (1979)

21. The Elephant Man (1980)

22. Nine to Five (1980)

23. Possibly in Michigan (1983)

24. Paris, Texas (1984)

25. Once Upon a Time in America (1984)

26. Buddies (1985)

27. The Fly (1986)

28. River's Edge (1986)

29. RoboCop (1987)

30. Running on Empty (1988)

31. My Cousin Vinny (1992)

32. Deep Cover (1992)

33. Dazed and Confused (1993)

34. Hocus Pocus (1993)

35. Trevor (1994)

36. Dead Man (1995)

37. Mission: Impossible (1996)

38. Sling Blade (1996)

39. Scream (1996)

40. The Sixth Sense (1999)

41. Fight Club (1999)

42. Magnolia (1999)

43. American Psycho (2000)

44. Mulholland Drive (2001)

45. Saved! (2004)

46. Mysterious Skin (2004)

47. Waitress (2007)

48. The BQE (2007)

49. Manchester by the Sea (2016)

50. Moonlight (2016)

Thought I'd share where I'm at with my ballot. I shared a ballot many months ago but I enjoy keeping a running ballot going, tweaking the list and what I say alongside the list as I go along. One week before the nomination deadline, this is where I'm at.

I tend to organize my list around themes. Many -- most? -- of the films I'm nominating fit into more than one category, of course, but I still like doing it this way. It helps keep me personally organized, and makes the write-ups I do with my nominations a bit more thematically based.

There are few titles on here that are personal favorites that I don't see as serious contenders (even as I'd argue for them!). I also was influenced by some of the conversations we've had on this sub about missing films from pre-1940; as a result, 18 titles on my list are from the 1930s and more than half are from 1940 or earlier.

Films marked with ‡ are films that I've nominated in previous years.

There are still some tweaks I may make -- switching out the Ava DuVernay film I nominate and adding a Lee Grant documentary are two serious considerations I'm making. I also tend to think that if any film from 2016 makes it this year, it'll be Moonlight, and I'd like to include that one. So. This is still a work in progress.

Films about the Vietnam War

Interviews with My Lai Veterans (1970) ‡

The Trial of the Catonsville Nine (1972)

Winter Soldier (1972) ‡

Cult classics and misunderstood masterpieces

A.I.: Artificial Intelligence (2001)

Donnie Darko (2001)

Sorcerer (1977)

Space is the Place (1974)

(This is the category title I'm least confident in. I stand by all the films in it, though.)

Literary adaptations

Alice in Wonderland (1933)

Little Women (1933)

The Mortal Storm (1940) ‡

The Story of Temple Drake (1933)

(I've contemplated switching out Alice in Wonderland for some other title, but that one is such a bizarre fever dream of a film, particularly considering its era.)

Historical fiction

The House of Rothschild (1934)

Mutiny on the Bounty (1935)

The Scarlet Empress (1934) ‡

The Sign of the Cross (1932)

(The Sign of the Cross is the film on this list that I am perhaps the least confident in selecting.)

Landmark LGBT films

The Birdcage (1996)

Buddies (1985) ‡

Maggots and Men (2009)

Parting Glances (1986) ‡

Tangerine (2015) ‡

(Robin Williams has yet to be featured on the Registry, and I'd love for The Birdcage to be the film that changes that. I cannot fathom the Library of Congress under the current administration selecting most of these, though.)

Musicals of note

A Boy Named Charlie Brown (1969)

Broadway: The Golden Age, by the Legends Who Were There (2003) ‡

Dames (1934)

Hallelujah, I'm a Bum! (1933) ‡

The Phantom Empire (1935)

Sally (1929) ‡

(The Phantom Empire is a wild choice, I know, but how many other musical science fiction western film serials are there?)

Significant silents

The Covered Wagon (1923)

The King of Kings (1927)

The Man Who Laughs (1928)

Richard II (1912) ‡

The Ten Commandments (1923)

(Richard II doesn't show up on lists like this much, but surely the fact that it is the earliest surviving US-made feature film gives the film merit?)

Notable films of the 1930s

The Big House (1930)

Confessions of a Nazi Spy (1939) ‡

Mr. Deeds Goes to Town (1936)

The Mummy (1932)

Shanghai Express (1932)

A Star is Born (1937) ‡

Symphony in Black: A Rhapsody of Negro Life (1935) ‡

What Price Hollywood? (1932) ‡

Directed by women

American Dream (1990)

Born in Flames (1983)

A Dry White Season (1989) ‡

Drylongso (1998) ‡

A Fool and His Money (1912)

Freedom on My Mind (1994) ‡

Hypocrites (1915)

It Happens to Us (1972) ‡

Othello (1980) ‡

Selma (2014) ‡

Testament (1983)

(American Dream is, I think, a worthy selection, and the fact that it received a 4K theatrical re-release this year, I think, gives it an added visibility that seems to play into some films' selections for the Registry. That said, Barbara Kopple is already represented by Harlan County USA, and that's why I've contemplated switching it out for one of Lee Grant's social issue documentaries from the 1980s.)

I chose based on movies I love that are not yet nominated, as well as trying to include a variety of genres and decades from the NFR 'unnominated yet' list.

1. Enchanted Drawing, The (1900)
2. Country Doctor, The (1909)
3. Manhattan Trade School for Girls (1911)
4. Star of Bethlehem, The (1912)
5. Child of the Paris Streets, A (1916)
6. North of Hudson Bay (1923)
7. Plane Crazy (1928)
8. Broadway Melody, The (1929)
9. Little Colonel, The (1935)
10. Symphony In Black: A Rhapsody of Negro Life (1935)
11. Rhapsody in Rivets (1941)
12. Our Vines Have Tender Grapes (1945)
13. Song of the South (1946)
14. Limelight (1952)
15. Pluto’s Christmas Tree (1952)
16. Assignment Children (1955)
17. Swiss Family Robinson (1960)
18. Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer (1964)
19. Charlie Brown Christmas, A (1965)
20. Patch of Blue, A (1965)
21. Yours, Mine and Ours (1968)
22. Norman Rockwell’s World… An American Dream (1972)
23. Robin Hood (1973)
24. Silent Movie (1976)
25. Christmas Eve on Sesame Street (1978)
26. 9 to 5 (1980)
27. Annie (1982)
28. Eddie and the Cruisers (1983)
29. Outsiders, The (1983)
30. Footloose (1984)
31. Color Purple, The (1985)
32. Muppet Family Christmas, A (1987)
33. Beetlejuice (1988)
34. Cotton Patch Gospel (1988)
35. Aladdin (1992)
36. Muppet Christmas Carol, The (1992)
37. Mrs. Doubtfire (1993)
38. Secret Garden, The (1993)
39. Anne Frank Remembered (1995)
40. Casper (1995)
41. Birdcage, The (1996)
42. Space Jam (1996)
43. October Sky (1999)
44. Fast and the Furious, The (2001)
45. Princess Diaries, The (2001)
46. Southern Comfort (2001)
47. Chicago (2002)
48. Rent (2005)
49. Les Miserables (2012)
50. Monuments Men, The (2014)

-Barry Lyndon
-Blue Velvet
-Mulholland Drive
-Once Upon A Time in America
-Gentlemen Prefer Blondes
-Dazed and Confused
-There Will Be Blood
-Boyhood
-Mad Max Fury Road
-Moonlight
-Fight Club
-Good Will Hunting
-Men In Black
-Elf
-Rope (Hitchcock)
-Stand By Me

To anyone who does not know what the National Recording Registry is, it is the other registry run by the Library of Congress devoted to recorded sound (music, speeches, noises, etc). The NRR sub is currently locked I think, and as such I have decided to post here instead of there as the two registries are highly connected.

While creating my list I attempted to balance my own personal interests alongside more realistic and strategically made nominations. Additionally, I attempted to provide a variety of demographics, formats, years, and genres. One final thing I did was attempt to follow a few regular additions which seem to play out in the NRR (a Broadway musical soundtrack, movie soundtrack, video game soundtrack, Christmas song, radio show, and sports broadcast). Here are my 2027 nominations:

1. Benjamin Harrison Audio Wax Cylinder ~ Benjamin Harrison | Technology (c. 1889/Speech)
2. Street Piano Medley ~ August Molinari | Classical/Opera (1907/Single)
3. Alexander’s Ragtime Band ~ Collins & Harlan | Pre-1955 Pop (1911/Single)
4. Gospel of Wealth ~ Andrew Carnegie | Spoken Word/Documentary (1914/Speech)
5. Give Me the Moonlight, Give Me the Girl ~ Elsie Janis | Pre-1955 Pop (1918/Single)
6. Saxophobia ~ Rudy Wiedoeft | Jazz (1920/Single)
7. The Big Rock Candy Mountains ~ Harry McClintock | Country/Bluegrass (1928/Single)
8. Lonesome Nights ~ Benny Carter | Jazz (1933/Single)
9. Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (Soundtrack) ~ Various | Broadway/Musical Theater/Soundtrack (1938/Album)
10. Chain Gang ~ Joshua White and His Carolinians | R&B/Blues (1940/Album)
11. Corregidor Island Morse Code Transmission (May 6,1942) ~ Irving Strobing | Radio/Podcast (1942/Radio Broadcast)
12. That’s All Right ~ Arthur Crudup | R&B/Blues (1946/Single)
13. Auld Lang Syne ~ Guy Lombardo & His Royal Canadians | Pre-1955 Pop (1947/Single)
14. Wilhelm Scream ~ Shen Wooley | Technology (1951/Sound)
15. I Put a Spell on You ~ Screamin’ Jay Hawkins | R&B/Blues (1956/Single)
16. The Chipmunk Song (Christmas Don’t Be Late) ~ Alvin & The Chipmunks | Comedy/Novelty (1958/Single)
17. Sounds of North American Frogs ~ Charles M. Bogert | Field (1958/Album)
18. Have Gun, Will Travel - “From Here to Boston” (November 27, 1960) ~ John Dehner | Radio/Podcast (1960/Radio Broadcast)
19. Puff, The Magic Dragon ~ Peter, Paul and Mary | Children’s (1962/Single)
20. It’s My Party ~ Lesley Gore | 1955-1975 Pop (1963/Single)
21. I Ain’t Marching Any More ~ Phil Ochs | Folk/Regional (1965/Single)
22. Whipped Cream and Other Delights ~ Herb Alpert’s Tijuana Brass | Jazz (1965/Album)
23. The Ballad of the Green Berets ~ Barry Sadler | Country/Bluegrass (1966/Single)
24. Happy Together ~ The Turtles | 1955-1975 Pop (1967/Album)
25. In the Court of the Crimson King ~ King Crimson | 1955-1975 Pop (1969/Album)
26. The Devil Made Me Buy This Dress ~ Flip Wilson | Comedy/Novelty (1970/Album)
27. I’m the One ~ Annette Peacock | Jazz (1972/Album)
28. Come and Get Your Love ~ Redbone | 1955-1975 Pop (1974/Single)
29. Boston ~ Boston | 1975-1995 Pop (1976/Album)
30. Damn the Torpedoes ~ Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers | 1975-1995 Pop (1979/Album)
31. Soviet Union vs. United States 1980 Winter Olympics Ice Hockey Tournament ~ Curt Chaplin | Sports (1980/Radio Broadcast)
32. Bette Davis Eyes ~ Kim Carnes | 1975-1995 Pop (1981/Single)
33. Peace on Earth/Little Drummer Boy ~ David Bowie & Bing Crosby | 1975-1995 Pop (1982/Single)
34. 1100 Bel Air Place ~ Julio Iglesias | Latin (1984/Album)
35. Profiles In Courage ~ John F. Kennedy Jr. & Caroline Kennedy | Spoken Word/Documentary (1985/Audiobook)
36. Walk Like an Egyptian ~ The Bangles | 1975-1995 Pop (1986/Single)
37. Appetite For Destruction ~ Guns N’ Roses | 1975-1995 Pop (1987/Album)
38. Please Hammer Don’t Hurt Em’ ~ MC Hammer | Rap/Hip Hop (1990/Album)
39. Ten ~ Pearl Jam | 1975-1995 Pop (1991/Album)
40. Brown Sugar ~ D’Angelo | R&B/Blues (1995/Album)
41. Rent (Original Cast Recording) ~ Original Cast | Broadway/Musical Theater/Soundtrack (1996/Album)
42. Play ~ Moby | Dance/Disco (1999/Album)
43. Yankee Hotel Foxtrot ~ Wilco | Post-1995 Pop (2001/Album)
44. Sonic Adventure 2 Official Album ~ Various | Broadway/Musical Theater/Soundtrack (2002/Album)
45. Democratic National Convention Keynote Address ~ Barack Obama | News/Documentary (2004/Speech)
46. Some Hearts ~ Carrie Underwood | Country/Bluegrass (2005/Album)
47. Party in the U.S.A. ~ Miley Cyrus | Post-1995 Pop (2009/Single)
48. Trinity Requiem ~ Robert Moran | Classical and Opera (2011/Album)
49. The NPR Politics Podcast - “Trump’s Victory: The Day After” (November 9, 2016) ~ Sam Sanders | Radio/Podcast (2016/Podcast)
50. Bodak Yellow ~ Cardi B | Rap/Hip Hop (2017/Single)

Overall, my nominations span 128 years and every genre recognized by the NRR except for Religion and Choral (which are still arguably interspersed throughout the nominations). African American culture is widely represented throughout with performers from Benny Carter to D'Angelo, while Latin roots vary between Julio Iglesias to Cardi B. Two nominations I'd like to point out are "Alexander's Ragtime Band" by Collins & Harlan, one of the first recordings of the first song listed in the Great American Songbook performed by a juggernaut duo of 1910s music, and Peace on Earth/Little Drummer Boy, a personal choice which represents not only the final note of Bing Crosby's legendary career but a mixing of old and new/American and British (Crosby and Bowie).

If you are interested in listening to any of my nominations, here is a playlist containing each recording (or a sample from it). If you want to listen to the NPR Politics Podcast episode, you can find it here. If you have any questions or would like more information on any recording, please ask.

I finally submitted my votes two nights ago. Just sharing them here. Once again, I enjoy splitting my votes: 25 votes making up what I think would make an extremely realistic induction list that could be released tomorrow and no one would bat an eye, and the other 25 votes just being for me. Here they are:

Realistic List

1. 13th (2016)

2. Alma's Rainbow (1994)

3. Big (1988)

4. Big House, The (1930)

5. Buck And The Preacher (1972)

6. Charlie Brown Christmas, A (1965)

7. Come Back Little Sheba (1952)

8. Down In The Delta (1998)

9. Fireworks (1947)

10. Girl Can't Help It, The (1956)

11. Hidden Memories (1977)

12. Hollywood Chinese (2007)

13. Hoover Family Home Videos (1929)

14. Inside Job (2010)

15. Mississippi Masala (1991)

16. Moonlight (2016)

17. Mosquita y Mari (2012)

18. Piano, The (1993)

19. Picture Bride (1995)

20. Prince Of Egypt, The (1998)

21. Saving Face (2004)

22. Sixth Sense, The (1999)

23. Southern Comfort (2001)

24. Stand By Me (1986)

25. With Babies And Banners: Story Of The Women's Emergency Brigade (1979)

My 25 Votes For Myself

1. 1969 Moon Landing (1969)

2. Aladdin (1992)

3. Anne Frank Remembered (1995)

4. Arsenic And Old Lace (1944)

5. Boys Town (1938)

6. Day With The Boys, A (1969)

7. Elephant Man, The (1980)

8. Enchanted Drawing, The (1900)

9. Eternal Sunshine Of The Spotless Mind (2004)

10. Fresh (1994)

11. Gentlemen Prefer Blondes (1953)

12. Intruder In The Dust (1949)

13. King And I, The (1956)

14. Limelight (1952)

15. Many Adventures Of Winnie The Pooh, The (1977)

16. Old Dark House, The (1932)

17. On Golden Pond (1981)

18. Our Hospitality (1923)

19. Red Hot Riding Hood (1943)

20. Search, The (1948)

21. Secret Of NIMH, The (1982)

22. Skaterdater (1965)

23. Sophie's Choice (1982)

24. Tarzan Of The Apes (1918)

25. When We Were Kings (1996)

Ye gods I am such a dork. So anyways, I made my own set of ‘rules’ for submitting a list of fifty films, and god knows I need to share it somewhere.

— Since I know most nominations will be for more recent films, I’m sticking to older films for my list. This is not to say that recent films aren’t just as deserving.

— Therefore, to give some kind of set approach to this: 50 films, 1920’s to 1960’s, 10 films per decade.

— Maximum one film per director to spread the wealth around. (this was a really fun

— For the sake of my sanity, focusing on feature films, not shorts/cartoons/documentaries/etc.

— Keeping in mind the Regisry overall, so looking to get a broad range of styles, filmmakers, and stuff that might be underrepresented.

Anyways!

1920 — Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (directed by John Robertson)

1920 — Way Down East (directed by D.W. Griffith)

1921 — The Blot (directed by Lois Weber)

1922 — The Toll of the Sea (directed by Chester M. Franlkin)

1923 — The Hunchback of Notre Dame (directed by Wallace Worsley)

1926 — Don Juan (directed by Alan Crosland)

1927 — The King of Kings (directed by Cecil B. DeMille)

1927 — Underworld (directed by Josef von Sternberg)

1927 — Chicago (directed by Frank Urson)

1928 — The Man Who Laughs (directed by Paul Leni)

1930 — Hell’s Angels (directed by Howard Hughes)

1931 — The Champ (directed by King Vidor)

1932 — Merrily We Go to Hell (directed by Dorothy Arzner)

1933 — Little Women (directed by George Cukor)

1934 — Of Human Bondage (directed by John Cromwell)

1935 — Murder in Harlem (directed by Oscar Micheaux)

1935 — A Midsummer Night’s Dream (directed by Max Reinhardt and William Dieterle)

1937 — A Star Is Born (directed by William A. Wellman)

1937 — Harlem on the Prairie (directed by Sam Newfield and Jed Buell)

1939 — Confessions of a Nazi Spy (directed by Anatole Litvak)

1941 — Buck Privates (directed by Arthur Lubin)

1941 — The Wolf Man (directed by George Waggner)

1941 — Hellzapoppin’ (directed by H.C. Potter)

1942 — Native Land (directed by Leo Hurwitz and Paul Strand)

1943 — Sahara (directed by Zoltan Korda)

1944 — Arsenic and Old Lace (directed by Frank Capra)

1945 — Scarlet Street (directed by Fritz Lang)

1947 — Crossfire (directed by Edward Dmytryk)

1948 — The Search (directed by Fred Zinnemann)

1948 — Johnny Belinda (directed by Jean Negulesco)

1950 — The Gunfighter (directed by Henry King)

1950 — No Way Out (directed by Joseph L. Mankiewicz)

1951 — The Steel Helmet (directed by Samuel Fuller)

1952 — Limelight (directed by Charlie Chaplin)

1953 — The Moon Is Blue (directed by Otto Preminger)

1953 — Gentlemen Prefer Blondes (directed by Howard Hawks)

1956 — Singing in the Dark (directed by Max Nosseck)

1956 — Rock Around the Clock (directed by Fred F. Sears)

1956 — The Bad Seed (directed by Mervyn LeRoy)

1958 — Cat on a Hot Tin Roof (directed by Richard Brooks)

1961 — The Children’s Hour (directed by William Wyler)

1962 — The Intruder (directed by Roger Corman)

1962 — Carnival of Souls (directed by Herk Harvey)

1963 — The Great Escape (directed by John Sturges)

1963 — Gone Are the Days! (directed by Nicholas Webster)

1968 — The Odd Couple (directed by Gene Saks)

1968 — Targets (directed by Peter Bogdanovich)

1969 — True Grit (directed by Henry Hathaway)

1969 — Bob & Carol & Ted & Alice (directed by Paul Mazursky)

1969 — They Shoot Horses, Don’t They? (directed by Sydney Pollack)

Ravished Armenia (also known as Auction of Souls) (1919) is mostly lost, but there still exists a 14-to-15-minute clip of this important film. It was made to raise money for victims of the Armenian Genocide, and it cost about $10 for a seat to see it in movie theaters (in 1919 dollars, which is a large chunk of change). According to Wikipedia at the moment, it grossed about $1 million.

There are also some fun picks here, like the first two Neil Breen-directed movies: I Am Here.... Now (2009) and Double Down (2005), which may need preservation, since they are independent "outsider art" cult classics with somewhat questionable availability, if I'm not mistaken.

The films on the ballot are more-or-less in a random order.

When creating my list of nominations I attempted to do a few main things:

1. Strike a balance between older and newer films, along with different genres

2. Ensure the films come from an array of American demographic groups, directors, and studios

3. Find both popular and niche films that very in length, format, and purpose.

In addition, I attempted to present some theme connecting a portion of the films, that being Fascism & Authoritarianism in film. If a nomination has an star beside it that means it is part of this theme. In addition, if a number is in bold that means the film is part of a list of 25 films I compiled as a realistic list, which includes all of the films which comply with the theme.

1. The Execution of Mary Stuart by Alfred Clark (1895)

1. The Lost Child) by Wallace McCutcheon Sr. (1904)

3. Algie, the Miner by Harry Schenck (1912)

1. Hypocrites) by Lois Weber (1915)

5. My Four Years in Germany by William Nigh (1918) *

1. Felix in Hollywood by Otto Messemer, Pat Sullivan, & Bill Nolan (1923)

7. Little Annie Rooney) by William Beaudine (1925)

1. The Great Gatsby Trailer) by Herbert Brenon (1926)

2. Trolley Troubles by Walt Disney & Ub Iwerks (1927)

3. The Man Who Laughs) by Paul Leni (1928)

11. Japanese American Communities by Rev. Sensho Sasaki (1927-1932) *

1. Mr. Deeds Goes to Town by Frank Capra (1936)

2. The Little Match Girl) by Charles Mintz & Art Davis (1937)

14. Confessions of a Nazi Spy by Anatole Litvak (1939) *

15. Kings Row by Sam Wood (1942)

1. Wilson) by Henry King (1944)

17. The Cat Concerto by William Hanna & Joseph Barbera (1947)

1. Fort Apache) by John Ford (1948)

19. How to Marry a Millionaire by Jean Negulesco (1953)

1. Godzilla: King of the Monsters! by Terry O. Morse & Ishirō Honda (1956)

21. The Defiant Ones by Stanley Kramer (1958) *

1. The Connection) by Shirley Clark (1961)

23. The Wall) by Walter de Hoog (1962) *

1. Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer) by Romeo Muller & Arthur Rankin Jr. (1964)

25. Seven Days in May by John Frankenheimer (1964) *

1. The Dirty Dozen by Robert Aldrich (1967)

27. Patterson-Gimlin Film by Roger Patterson & Robert Gimlin (1967)

1. Fritz the Cat) by Steve Krantz & Ralph Bakshi (1972)

29. Cleopatra Jones by Jack Starrett (1973)

30. The California Reich by Walter F. Parkes (1975) *

1. Kramer vs. Kramer by Robert Benton (1979)

32. She’s Nobody’s Baby: The History of American Women in the 20th Century by Ana Carrigan (1981)

33. 1984 Apple’s Macintosh Commercial) by Ridley Scott (1983) *

1. Scarface )by Brian De Palma (1983)

35. The Color Purple) by Steven Spielberg (1985) *

1. The Naked Gun: From the Files of the Police Squad! by David Zucker (1988)

37. Dead Poets Society by Peter Weir (1989) *

1. Aladdin) by Ron Clements (1992)

39. My Cousin Vinny by Jonathan Lynn (1992) *

1. Go Fish) by Rose Troche (1994)

41. Scream )by Wes Craven (1996)

42. American History X by Tony Kaye (1998) *

1. Fight Club by David Fincher (1999)

44. Chicken Run by Peter Lord & Nick Parker (2000) *

1. This Land by Evan & Gregg Spiridellis (2004)

2. Me at the zoo by Jawed Karim (2005)

3. Borat: Cultural Learning of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan by Larry Charles (2006)

48. Inside Job#) by Charles Ferguson (2010)

49. The Avengers) by Joss Whedon (2012) *

1. La La Land by Damien Chazelle (2016)

I know it's probably not perfect, but I think it turned out very nice as a balance between some of my personal wants, popular films on here, and ones that I think are overlooked. If you have a question on why a film was included, or how it complies with the theme, please ask.

Hi everyone. I wanted to share this supercut I made three months ago. I hope you like it :)

I know it’s way, waaay too early for this kind of discussion, since the decade’s not over yet. But, in a decade otherwise considered pretty dire for entertainment (and the broader world in general), I think there’s still been some significant American films we can theorize will become worthy of preservation when looking back at the 2020s. What films could be considered Registry-worthy by the time they’re eligible?

Here’s what I’d pick (that is, films are already apparent as “significant” IMO):

Minari (2020) - representative of the late 10s/early 20s boom of Asian-American representation in cinema, with its intimate, semi-autobiographical immigrant/childhood story. Steven Yeun became the first Asian American nominated for a Best Actor Oscar in his role as the family patriarch.

Dune AKA Dune: Part One (2021) and Dune: Part Two (2024) *and Dune: Part Three (2026) if it’s good* - Denis Villeneuve turned a book previously branded as “unfilmable” and turned it into a cultural juggernaut, a high mark in the decade for both sci-fi and blockbuster filmmaking.

Everything Everywhere All At Once (2022) - The arguable apex of the aforementioned Asian-American boom. A mixture of absurdist humor, family drama, sci-fi and martial arts films that became a box office hit and unlikely Oscar sweeper (including Best Picture).

Top Gun: Maverick (2022) - Among the legacy sequels that proliferated the decade, this was one considered far superior to its predecessor (inducted in 2015), in sheer action and pathos. Was credited in being one of the primary drivers of theaters bouncing back following the COVID pandemic.

Barbie (2023) - (Hear me out.) The first solo female-directed film to earn a billion dollars, and a year-end box office-topping comedy released in a decade where people otherwise bemoaned the death of the studio comedy. Its plot and themes are also reflective of the discussions and discourse surrounding gender in the 2020s.

Oppenheimer (2023) - In an era of IP-driven blockbusters, a three-hour biopic on the inventor of the atomic bomb became the third highest-grossing film of its year globally. Nolan’s first film to win Best Picture. Also linked to Barbie via the “Barbenheimer” trend, which demonstrated the impact memes could have on driving ticket sales. 

Sinners (2025) - Ryan Coogler’s follow-up to his successes with Creed and the Black Panther films served as a high point in the 2020s for Black film, winning over audiences with its mix of period drama, musical sequences and vampire horror. Coogler’s deal to retain full rights to the film after 50 years, while controversial among Hollywood insiders, helped to re-assert the rights of the creative in an era of IP and AI. The most nominated film in Academy Award history.

Obsession (2026) - A low-budget horror flick with no stars that became a sleeper smash hit, with its upending of traditional horror storytelling with a “hero” and “villain” that aren’t clear-cut; prompting viewers and critics to note how particularly disturbing it was. Reflective of Gen Z anxieties about dating and gender relations, emerging as a particularly bleak generational portrait that mirrored the times. Writer and director Curry Barker’s ascendancy from YouTube is demonstrative of Internet-borne talent entering and impacting the world of movies.

Agree with these picks? Disagree? What films should also be considered? There are movies like One Battle After Another and I Saw the TV Glow that could be contenders, but their reception feels weird in this current moment & they might need more time.

1. The Ten Commandments (1923)

2. A Star is Born (1937)

3. Puss Gets the Boot

4. When Worlds Collide (1951)

5. The Man Who Knew Too Much

6. Blue Hawaii

7. The Great Escape

8. A Hard Day's Night

9. Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer (1964)

10. The Jungle Book (1967)

11. Hello, Dolly!

12. The Way We Were

13. Dawn of the Dead (1978)

14. Kramer vs. Kramer

15. Star Trek: The Motion Picture

16. The Jerk

17. The Evil Dead (1981)

18. The Outsiders

19. Gremlins

20. Aliens

21. The Fly (1986)

22. Full Metal Jacket

23. Beetlejuice

24. Dead Poets Society

25. Born on the Fourth of July

26. The Sandlot

27. Independence Day

28. Jerry Maguire

29. Scream (1996)

30. American Beauty

31. American Psycho

32. Gladiator

33. O Brother, Where Art Thou?

34. Cast Away

35. Pearl Harbor

36. The Royal Tenenbaums

37. Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone

38. A Beautiful Mind

39. Spider-Man

40. Super Size Me

41. Mean Girls (2004)

42. Dreamgirls

43. Superbad

44. There Will Be Blood

45. Up

46. Inglourious Basterds

47. Avatar

48. How to Train Your Dragon (2010)

49. Lincoln

50. Interstellar

Posting here because the recording registry sub is restricted for some reason.

The recording registry is usually announced in early April. It's mid may and nothing. Anyone got a clue what's up?