About the Collections
Motion Pictures in the Library of Congress
Television in the Library of Congress
National Film Preservation Board
The Mary Pickford Theater
Packard Campus of the National Audio-Visual Conservation Center

Research, Reference & Policies
General Information
Researching LC Moving Image Holdings
Collection Guides and Finding Aids
Guidelines for Viewing Films, Videos, and Digital Files at the Library of Congress
Archival/Stock Footage Research
Obtaining Copies of Moving Image Materials
Public Domain Films

Digital Collections & Online Resources
American Memory Online Films
Jazz on the Screen Database
American Silent Feature Film Database
Preserving Your Moving Image Materials Copyright Issues Related to Film
Online Resources for Moving Image Material

Hours:
Weekdays, 8:30am to 5:00pm
Closed Weekends &
Federal Holidays

Ask a Librarian
Want to ask the reference staff a question about motion picture and television collections?

The Library of Congress began collecting motion pictures in 1893 when Thomas Edison and his brilliant assistant W.K.L. Dickson deposited the Edison Kinetoscopic Records for copyright. However, because of the difficulty of safely storing the flammable nitrate film used at the time, the Library retained only the descriptive material relating to motion pictures. In 1942, recognizing the importance of motion pictures and the need to preserve them as a historical record, the Library began the collection of the films themselves; from 1949 on these included films made for television. Today the Motion Picture, Broadcasting and Recorded Sound Division (MBRS) is responsibile for the acquisition, cataloging and preservation of the Library's motion picture and television collections. The Moving Image Research Center to provides access and information services to an international community of film and television professionals, archivists, scholars and researchers. Our holdings complement the audio recordings served in the Recorded Sound Research Center.