AFiTV / HISTORY / AMERICAN FILM INSTITUTE

American Film Institute
Origins · Education · Preservation · Awards1965 → Today

A fast, visual history of AFI and the work that shaped American film culture.

AFI grew from a White House-era mandate into a major institution for film education, film heritage work and annual honors. Below are the key dates and programs that define AFI’s footprint.

See timeline Explore programs

Scroll for a timeline, then a program map and image gallery with credits.

// Visual anchors

Two locations closely tied to AFI’s history (images from Wikimedia Commons):

Greystone Mansion — early Conservatory home (1969)

Greystone Mansion.JPG · Wikimedia Commons

AFI Silver — restored theater complex (reopened 2003)

Silver Spring AFI Theater.jpg · Wikimedia Commons

1965

Rose Garden mandate

LBJ calls for a national film arts effort.

1967

AFI established

Institute begins with leaders from film & arts.

1968

AFI Catalog starts

Scholarly index of American film begins.

1969

Conservatory opens

Center for Advanced Film Studies opens at Greystone.

2003

AFI Silver opens

Historic Silver Theatre reopens as AFI Silver.

Timeline

Key milestones

Dates compiled from AFI + references Designed for quick reading

1965–1967

Mandate → Institution

AFI traces its origin to a White House Rose Garden mandate; the Institute is established in 1967 to advance film as an art form and build national infrastructure for film culture.

1968–1969

Catalog + Conservatory

AFI begins the AFI Catalog of Feature Films and opens the Center for Advanced Film Studies (now the AFI Conservatory) at Greystone Mansion.

1987–1998

Festival + Canon lists

AFI FEST begins (1987). Starting in 1998, the ‘AFI 100 Years…’ lists bring curated film history to broad audiences.

2000–2003

Awards + AFI Silver

AFI launches its year-end honors (AFI Awards) and helps restore the historic Silver Theatre, reopening it as AFI Silver Theatre and Cultural Center (2003).

What AFI does

Programs & platforms

Education · Catalog · Festivals Awards · Exhibition

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Education

AFI Conservatory

A graduate-level training program that began at Greystone Mansion (1969) and developed into a flagship conservatory model focused on craft and collaboration.

MFAFellowsGreystoneCraft

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Research

AFI Catalog

A long-running scholarly project to document American films with vetted production data and historical notes—started when comprehensive film indexes were rare.

DatabaseScholarshipCreditsHistory

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Honors

AFI Awards + Lists

Annual year-end honors (launched with AFI AWARDS 2000) plus curated lists such as ‘AFI 100 Years…100 Movies’ to highlight cultural impact and significance.

AFI AwardsTop 10100 YearsCanon

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Exhibition

AFI FEST + AFI Silver

Public programming connecting audiences with cinema: a major Los Angeles festival (AFI FEST) and a restored art-deco theater complex in Silver Spring (AFI Silver).

FestivalScreeningsSilver SpringCommunity

Photo gallery