The American Film Institute (AFI) in Los Angeles, California conducted its ninth polling, 100 Years...100 Cheers. It was to be a definitive selection of the 100 most 'inspiring' American films of all time, as determined by more than 1,500 film artists (directors, screenwriters, actors, editors, cinematographers), critics and historians. AFI’s 100 Years…100 Cheers revealed America’s 100 greatest inspirational films, as chosen by leaders of the entertainment community, in a three-hour television event, that aired on the CBS Television Network in June 2006.

A ballot was distributed with 300 nominated films to a jury of 1,500 leaders from the creative community, including film artists (directors, screenwriters, actors, editors, cinematographers) critics and historians.

1. It's a Wonderful Life, 1946
2. To Kill a Mockingbird, 1962
   
3. Schindler's List, 1993
   
4. Rocky, 1976
   
5. Mr. Smith Goes to Washington, 1939
   
6. E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial, 1982
   
7. The Grapes of Wrath, 1940
   
8. Breaking Away, 1979
   
9. Miracle on 34th Street, 1947
   
10. Saving Private Ryan, 1998
    
11. The Best Years of Our Lives, 1946
    
12. Apollo 13, 1995
    
13. Hoosiers, 1986
    
14. The Bridge on the River Kwai, 1957
    
15. The Miracle Worker, 1962
    
16. Norma Rae, 1979
    
17. One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, 1975
    
18. The Diary of Anne Frank, 1959
    
19. The Right Stuff, 1983
    
20. Philadelphia, 1993
    
21. In the Heat of the Night, 1967
    
22. The Pride of the Yankees, 1942
    
23. The Shawshank Redemption, 1994
    
24. National Velvet, 1944
    
25. Sullivan's Travels, 1941
    
26. The Wizard of Oz, 1939
    
27. High Noon, 1952
    
28. Field of Dreams, 1989
    
29. Gandhi, 1982
    
30. Lawrence of Arabia, 1962
    
31. Glory, 1989
    
32. Casablanca, 1942
    
33. City Lights, 1931
    
34. All the President's Men, 1976
    
35. Guess Who's Coming to Dinner, 1967
    
36. On the Waterfront, 1954
    
37. Forrest Gump, 1994
    
38. Pinocchio, 1940
    
39. Star Wars, 1977
    
40. Mrs. Miniver, 1942
    
41. The Sound of Music, 1965
    
42. 12 Angry Men, 1957
    
43. Gone With the Wind, 1939
    
44. Spartacus, 1960
    
45. On Golden Pond, 1981
    
46. Lilies of the Field, 1963
    
47. 2001: a Space Odyssey, 1968
    
48. The African Queen, 1951
    
49. Meet John Doe, 1941
    
50. Seabiscuit, 2003
    

51. The Color Purple, 1985
    
52. Dead Poet's Society, 1989
    
53. Shane, 1953
    
54. Rudy, 1993
    
55. The Defiant Ones, 1958
56. Ben-Hur, 1959
    
57. Sergeant York, 1941
    
58. Close Encounters of the Third Kind, 1977
    
59. Dances With Wolves, 1990
    
60. The Killing Fields, 1984
    
61. Sounder, 1972
    
62. Braveheart, 1995
    
63. Rain Man, 1988
    
64. The Black Stallion, 1979
    
65. A Raisin in the Sun, 1961
    
66. Silkwood, 1983
    
67. The Day the Earth Stood Still, 1951
    
68. An Officer and a Gentleman, 1982
    
69. The Spirit of St. Louis, 1957
    
70. Coal Miner's Daughter, 1980
    
71. Cool Hand Luke, 1967
    
72. Dark Victory, 1939
    
73. Erin Brockovich, 2000
    
74. Gunga Din, 1939
    
75. The Verdict, 1982
    
76. Birdman of Alcatraz, 1962
    
77. Driving Miss Daisy, 1989
    
78. Thelma & Louise, 1991
    
79. The Ten Commandments, 1956
    
80. Babe, 1995
    
81. Boys Town, 1938
    
82. Fiddler on the Roof, 1971
    
83. Mr. Deeds Goes to Town, 1936
    
84. Serpico, 1973
    
85. What's Love Got to Do With It, 1993
    
86. Stand and Deliver, 1988
    
87. Working Girl, 1988
    
88. Yankee Doodle Dandy, 1942
    
89. Harold and Maude, 1972
    
90. Hotel Rwanda, 2004
    
91. The Paper Chase, 1973
    
92. Fame, 1980
    
93. A Beautiful Mind, 2001
    
94. Captains Courageous, 1937
    
95. Places in the Heart, 1984
    
96. Searching for Bobby Fischer, 1993
    
97. Madame Curie, 1943
    
98. The Karate Kid, 1984
    
99. Ray, 2004
    
100. Chariots of Fire, 1981