The Criterion Collection

Overview

The Criterion Collection is a home video label and streaming service dedicated to publishing important classic and contemporary films in definitive editions. Founded in 1984, Criterion operates at the intersection of cinema preservation, film scholarship, and high-end publishing. Each release includes extensive supplemental materials: essays, interviews, academic commentary, and archival documents that contextualize the film within cinema history. The label has released over 1,300 spine-numbered titles.

Criterion operates from New York and releases approximately 50 to 70 titles per year across physical media (Blu-ray, 4K UHD) and digital distribution through the Criterion Channel streaming service. The Criterion Channel costs $10.99 per month or $99.99 per year (effective $8.33 per month), with a 7-day free trial. The price has not increased since the service launched in April 2019, making it one of the most price-stable streaming services available. Seasonal promo codes (such as NEWYEAR26 at $79.99/year) can reduce the annual cost further.

The label's distinctive black-and-white spine numbering system has become one of the most recognizable cataloging conventions in film culture. Criterion also operates a Premieres line for contemporary films, releasing recent festival titles alongside canonical classics.

History

The Criterion Collection was founded in 1984 by Bob Stein, Jonathan Turell, and Roger Smith as Criterion, Inc., initially producing LaserDisc editions of classic films with supplemental content. The LaserDisc format allowed Criterion to include director commentaries, deleted scenes, and supplementary materials on the same disc as the film, establishing the model for bonus-content home video releases that every subsequent format has followed.

Janus Films, one of the most significant US distributors of classic international cinema, partnered with Criterion in 1984. This relationship gave Criterion access to an extraordinary catalog of world cinema including the films of Ingmar Bergman, Akira Kurosawa, Federico Fellini, Jean Renoir, and hundreds of other directors. The Janus Films catalog forms the core of Criterion's release program.

Criterion transitioned from LaserDisc to DVD in the late 1990s and to Blu-ray in 2008. The label launched the Criterion Channel streaming service in April 2019 following the closure of FilmStruck (a joint venture with Turner Classic Movies that shut down in November 2018). The Channel provided subscribers access to the Criterion catalog and hundreds of additional curated titles, organized into thematic collections and director retrospectives.

The label has released films spanning the entirety of cinema history, from Lumiere Brothers actualities to contemporary releases. Each release is treated as a publishing project, with new liner notes essays, new transfers supervised by directors or cinematographers where possible, and carefully curated supplemental materials.

Recent and Upcoming Releases (2026)

Criterion's 2026 release slate demonstrates the label's range across eras, formats, and origins:

July 2026:

• The Elephant Man (David Lynch, 1980): New 4K restoration with cast/crew interviews, documentary footage, and readings from Lynch's memoir Room to Dream
• Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore (Martin Scorsese, 1974): 4K edition with filmmaker-approved restoration, ensemble audio commentary, and new interviews. Ellen Burstyn's Oscar-winning performance.
• The Crying Game (Neil Jordan, 1992): Director-approved 4K restoration with commentary, new interviews with Jordan and Stephen Rea, and archival making-of material
• Hud (Martin Ritt, 1963): 4K release highlighting James Wong Howe's black-and-white cinematography, with Paul Newman, Patricia Neal, and Melvyn Douglas
• Cruel Story of Youth (Nagisa Oshima, 1960): Part of the Criterion Premieres line
• I'll Remind You of Everything: The Films of Mike Mills: Box set gathering Beginners, 20th Century Women, and C'mon C'mon with commentaries, documentaries, and short-form work

September 2026:

• 12 Angry Men (Sidney Lumet, 1957): 4K UHD + Blu-ray with the 1954 television version directed by Franklin J. Schaffner, archival interviews with Lumet, and production history
• Shoah (Claude Lanzmann, 1985): Director-approved four-disc Blu-ray with 2K restoration, three additional Lanzmann films, and All I Had Was Nothingness (2025) by Guillaume Ribot
• The Secret Agent (Kleber Mendonca Filho, 2025): Spine #1325, director-approved 4K UHD + Blu-ray with making-of documentary, deleted scenes, and companion film Pictures of Ghosts (2023)
• Nouvelle Vague (Richard Linklater, 2025): Black-and-white feature about the making of Godard's Breathless, with director-approved 4K master and audio commentary by Linklater
• Two Prosecutors (Sergei Loznitsa, 2025): Criterion Premieres line, Kafkaesque thriller set during Stalin's Great Purge
• Three Films by Leos Carax: Box set

June 2026 Channel premieres:

• Eno (Gary Hustwit, 2024): AI-generated documentary that reedits and resequences hundreds of hours of footage into quintillion possible permutations
• The Love That Remains (Hlynur Palmason): With introduction by the director as part of Criterion's Meet the Filmmakers series
• Fresh Kill (Shu Lea Cheang, 1994): Spine #1310
• The Game (David Fincher, 1997)
• After Hours (Martin Scorsese, 1985)
• The Darjeeling Limited (Wes Anderson, 2007)
• Repo Man (Alex Cox, 1984)
• Sullivan's Travels (Preston Sturges, 1941)

Editorial Philosophy and Selection Criteria

Criterion's selection prioritizes films of artistic significance that deserve careful preservation and scholarly attention. The label releases both canonical masterworks and overlooked films it believes deserve wider recognition. This dual mandate means the catalog includes both Citizen Kane and obscure genre films that Criterion's editors regard as worthy of serious consideration.

The supplemental materials policy is equally distinctive. Criterion invests substantially in commissioning original essays, conducting new interviews with filmmakers and scholars, and tracking down archival documents and photographs. Each release is edited as carefully as a book.

For contemporary filmmakers, a Criterion release represents one of the highest forms of institutional recognition available for a film. The label regularly releases recent films alongside classics. Contemporary directors including Wes Anderson, Paul Thomas Anderson, Alfonso Cuaron, Kelly Reichardt, Celine Sciamma, Kleber Mendonca Filho, Richard Linklater, and Neo Sora have had recent work released in the collection.

Criterion Channel Programming

The Criterion Channel provides programming that pairs films with curated context, including series built around directors, movements, and themes. Monthly lineups include:

• Thematic collections (e.g., Southern Gothic, Desert Trips, Rock Biopics, Odysseys, Wedding Movies)
• Director retrospectives and spotlights
• Adventures in Moviegoing series with guest curators (e.g., Carrie Brownstein and Fred Armisen of Portlandia)
• Exclusive premieres of contemporary indie and international films
• LGBTQ+ collections and emerging trans auteurs
• Restored classics and archival rediscoveries

The Channel is available on web, iOS, Android, Apple TV, Roku, Fire TV, and other platforms. Subscribers can stream on up to 3 concurrent devices. There is no ad-supported tier.

How They Typically Find Talent / Take Submissions

Criterion operates on two levels: acquisition and licensing, and the Criterion Channel as a distribution platform. The company does not accept unsolicited submissions. Films enter the collection through:

1. Rights holder licensing: Criterion licenses films from studios, estates, and independent producers rather than producing films in-house
2. Janus Films pipeline: Theatrical acquisitions by sister company Janus Films typically receive Criterion home video releases
3. Festival scouting: Criterion's editorial team monitors Cannes, Venice, Berlin, and Toronto for contemporary titles worthy of collection inclusion
4. Filmmaker relationships: Directors including Wes Anderson, Paul Thomas Anderson, and Kelly Reichardt have ongoing relationships with the label

Filmmakers whose work is selected receive Criterion's restoration expertise, editorial packaging, and marketing to a dedicated cinephile audience. A Criterion release does not generate major streaming platform revenue but provides long-tail visibility and physical media distribution.

What Filmmakers Should Know

For filmmakers, Criterion operates on two levels:

1. Acquisition and licensing: Criterion acquires rights to films for physical and digital release. The label typically licenses films from their rights holders (studios, estates, independent producers) rather than producing films in-house. Filmmakers whose work is selected receive the benefit of Criterion's restoration expertise, editorial packaging, and marketing to a dedicated cinephile audience.

1. The Criterion Channel as a distribution platform: The Channel offers a curated streaming home for arthouse and independent films, reaching a subscriber base of committed film enthusiasts. Channel premieres provide exposure to an audience that actively seeks out international, classic, and experimental cinema.

A Criterion release does not generate the same revenue as a major streaming platform deal, but it provides long-tail visibility, critical legitimacy, and physical media distribution that digital-only platforms cannot match. The spine number system creates a permanent catalog position that collectors and libraries reference indefinitely.

For filmmakers interested in cinema history, the Channel is one of the most valuable educational resources available, with curated programming that contextualizes films within movements, themes, and directorial careers.

For the Criterion Collection's current releases and Channel programming, visit criterion.com and CriterionChannel.com.

Watch: Trailers & Behind the Scenes

See Also

To model revenue across home video, streaming, and theatrical windows, use the Revenue Forecast Calculator. For understanding how home video and streaming rights work within distribution deals, read Film Distribution Deals Explained. To compare streaming platform economics, see Streaming vs Theatrical Revenue. For budgeting productions in the arthouse range, use the Budget Breakdown.