Prefontaine is a 1997 film dramatizing the life of the American long-distance runner Steve Prefontaine and his tragic death at age 24. It was written by Steve James and Eugene Corr, directed by James, and stars Jared Leto as the title character.

Most of the movie was filmed at the University of Puget Sound campus in Tacoma, Washington. Peyton Field was redecorated to resemble Hayward Field at the University of Oregon.

Steve Prefontaine comes from Coos Bay, Oregon and emerges as one of the premiere distance runners in collegiate track and field.

After enrolling at the University of Oregon in 1970, where Bill Bowerman and Bill Dellinger become his coaches, Prefontaine proceeds to win three national cross-country championships and four consecutive 5,000-meter runs, breaking the U.S. record in the latter. "Pre" gains fame as an aggressive runner who likes to be out front from the start, rather than biding his time until a strong finish.

A bitter disappointment comes in the 1972 Munich Olympics, where after leading his event with only 150 meters to go, Prefontaine is passed in the stretch by three different runners and does not win a medal. Pre devotes himself to preparing for the 1976 Montreal Olympics following his college career, but on May 30, 1975, his small car flips on a road not far from campus and Prefontaine, only 24 years old, is killed.

Préfontaine is a family surname of French-Canadian origin. All Préfontaines in North America are descended from Antoine Fournier "dit Préfontaine" (born in 1663 in Picardie, France; died in 1702 in Montréal, Canada). He was a French soldier and a barrel cooper by trade in the Compagnie de Troyes, Troupes de la Marine. At the time it was common for French soldiers to adopt a nom de guerre often in reference to a trade, a place or a military rank. Antoine's nom de guerre was "dit Préfontaine", French for "field (pré) with a spring (fontaine)". He arrived in New France in August 1685 and took part in Chevalier Pierre de Troyes successful raid on several English trading posts in the Hudson Bay and James Bay regions from March to October 1686 (Hudson Bay expedition (1686)). He married Marie Ronceray in 1688 in Longueuil, Québec. Antoine's only son, Adrien (1693–1760), was an important businessman and a major figure in the economic development of New France. Adrien in turn had a son by the same name, who was a slave owner and was killed at the Battle of the Plains of Abraham on September 13, 1759. By the early-to-mid-19th century, the various families descended from Antoine dropped the Fournier part of the surname in favour of Préfontaine. Two brothers from Longueuil, Québec, Alexis and Toussaint Fournier dit Préfontaine, participated in the initial engagement of the Lower Canada Rebellion, the Chambly Road incident of November 17, 1837. The rebels were inspired by the ideals of the American Revolution, republicanism and the desire for responsible and representative government. Alexis, an officer in the militia, resigned his commission the day before joining the Rebellion. When the Rebellion collapsed in November 1838, and after proudly admitting their active participation, even under the possible penalty of death or exile, both brothers were to spend a year in jail along with 1,100 other Patriotes. Two of Toussaint's sons, Raymond and François-Xavier, went on to have notable careers in their respective professions (see below). During the second half of the 19th century, several Préfontaine families emigrated from Québec to New England, the Midwest and the North-West of the United States. Others emigrated to Western Canada, notably to Manitoba and Saskatchewan.

A film, also called a movie or motion picture, is a series of still or moving images. It is produced by recording photographic images with cameras, or by creating images using animation techniques or visual effects. The process of filmmaking has developed into an art form and industry.

Films are cultural artifacts created by specific cultures, which reflect those cultures, and, in turn, affect them. Film is considered to be an important art form, a source of popular entertainment and a powerful method for educating – or indoctrinating – citizens. The visual elements of cinema give motion pictures a universal power of communication. Some films have become popular worldwide attractions by using dubbing or subtitles that translate the dialogue into the language of the viewer.

Films are made up of a series of individual images called frames. When these images are shown rapidly in succession, a viewer has the illusion that motion is occurring. The viewer cannot see the flickering between frames due to an effect known as persistence of vision, whereby the eye retains a visual image for a fraction of a second after the source has been removed. Viewers perceive motion due to a psychological effect called beta movement.