[1][2] Throughout the 1980s, several prominent filmmakers and industry personalities in the United States, such as Frank Capra and Martin Scorsese, advocated for Congress to enact a film preservation bill in order to avoid commercial modifications (such as pan and scan and editing for TV) of classic films, which they saw as negative.

[8] The 1996 law also created the non-profit National Film Preservation Foundation which, although affiliated with the NFPB, raises money from the private sector.

The ballots were tabulated into a list of 25 films that was then modified by Librarian of Congress James H. Billington and his staff at the Library for the final selection.

Released in 1895, and selected in December 2024, Annabelle Serpentine Dance experienced the longest wait, at 129 years (considering the fact that the film was already almost a century old before the Registry was even established, the "wait" was technically only 35 years), while Raging Bull, released theatrically in the United States on December 19, 1980, and inducted in October 1990, holds the record for the shortest delay, having been inducted slightly shy of the 10-year minimum.

[29] Only nine films have been inducted at the 10-year mark: Raging Bull, Do the Right Thing,[53] Goodfellas,[54] Toy Story,[55] Fargo,[56] 13 Lakes,[57] Freedom Riders,[58] 12 Years a Slave and 20 Feet from Stardom.