National Film Vault

FILM NOTES

Released in 1999, Pokemon: The First Movie arrived at the peak of a cultural phenomenon that had swept across playgrounds, television, and trading card tables worldwide. For a generation of young fans, it marked the moment their favorite animated series made the leap to the big screen. The trailer that accompanied its rollout served as an early invitation, offering a first glimpse of familiar creatures rendered for theaters and building anticipation for a franchise that would only grow in the years that followed.

This particular cell features Bulbasaur, one of the original starter Pokemon and a beloved figure from the earliest days of the series. Holding a physical frame from the trailer means owning a tangible piece of film history, a small window into how these characters were introduced to a theatrical audience for the very first time.