HISTORIC FILM PRESERVATION LEGISLATION APPROVED BY PRESIDENT BUSH
Contact: Annette Melville (415-392-7291, melville@filmpreservation.org)
San Francisco, CA (October 17, 2008)—On October 2, President Bush signed into law landmark legislation reaffirming the national commitment to save America's film and sound recording heritage. The Library of Congress Sound Recording and Film Preservation Programs Reauthorization Act of 2008 (P.L. 110-336) continues through 2016 the work of the Library of Congress's two audio-visual advisory groups, the National Film Preservation Board and the National Recording Preservation Board, and increases the authorization for the National Film Preservation Foundation's programs to advance film preservation in archives, libraries, and museums across the country. The NFPF's federal matching funds will grow from $530,000 per year, to $750,000 in 2010, and to $1 million in 2012.
"Motion pictures provide an extraordinary record of our history, our dreams, and our aspiration," said Senator Patrick Leahy, who has championed film preservation in Congress for more than two decades. "We owe it to the Americans who made these films, Americans today and Americans of the future to make sure that this record is preserved."
The measure passed with the unanimous support of both houses of Congress. Among its major supporters were Representative Robert Brady, Chairman of the Committee House Administration, who introduced the bill, Representatives Howard Berman, John Conyers, Vernon Ehlers, and Lamar Smith, and Senators Dianne Feinstein and Patrick Leahy.
"Film lovers everywhere should celebrate this historic legislation," said Leonard Maltin, who serves on the boards of both the Library of Congress film advisory group and the NFPF. "Not only does the National Film Preservation Foundation help archives and libraries preserve films that would otherwise be lost but it gets them out to the public through its wonderful Treasures DVD series."
Created by Congress in 1996, the National Film Preservation Foundation awards preservation grants and produces publications that improve public access to American film. During its eleven years of operation, the nonprofit organization has supported film preservation in 187 institutions in 46 states, Puerto Rico, and the District of Columbia, and saved 1,400 historically and culturally significant motion pictures that would have been unlikely to survive without public support. In addition, the Foundation produces the critically acclaimed Treasures DVD series illustrating the range of American films made outside of Hollywood. The box sets are used widely in libraries and universities and have received awards from the National Society of Film Critics. The latest addition to the series, Treasures IV: American Avant-Garde Film, 1947-86, will be released in March 2009. The NFPF distributes federal money received through its authorization for preservation work and raises all operational support from other sources.
The NFPF, an independent 501(c)(3) organization, is the charitable affiliate of the National Film Preservation Board, which advises the Librarian of Congress on the selection of films for the National Film Registry, the celebrated roster of American films that have had a significant artistic, historical, or cultural impact on our country. Registry titles document the breadth of American filmmaking, from Hollywood classics such as Gone with the Wind and Blade Runner to Stan Brakhage's Dog Star Man. Each year 25 new titles are added. Film Board members represent organizations from across the motion picture community and serve upon the appointment of the Librarian of Congress. The National Film Preservation Foundation, is the Film Board's charitable affiliate.
For more information on the National Film Preservation Board of the Library of Congress, visit www.loc.gov/film/. For more on the National Film Preservation Foundation, visit www.filmpreservation.org.
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