Sources: Wikidata · OpenAlex. The record of the motion picture, not an assessment of this cell.
FILM NOTES
Hocus Pocus arrived from Walt Disney Pictures in the summer of 1993, a modest box office performer that found its true audience later, through cable reruns and home video, becoming an October perennial. Directed by Kenny Ortega, it belongs to that run of early 90s family horror comedies that mixed genuine spookiness with slapstick, anchored by a trio of comedic actresses who committed fully to broad, theatrical villainy. Its afterlife as a Halloween staple has made it one of Disney's most quietly enduring properties, discussed and rewatched far beyond its initial release window.
This cell centers on the Sanderson Sisters, the three witches whose resurrection drives the entire plot and whose chemistry is the reason the film endures as a seasonal favorite. Collectors seek frames tied to this trio because they are the film's identity, the image most associated with its poster art, merchandise, and cultural footprint. A cell like this may come from a scene, trailer, or credits sequence, preserving a single strip of celluloid from the reel as it actually ran through projectors in 1993, a tangible artifact of a film whose legend grew well past its original theatrical run.
Authentication Findings8 checks
Consistent with a 35mm theatrical release print of Hocus Pocus (1993)
Gauge
35mm, four perforations per frame on both edges; the strip holds three complete frames
Perforations
Four per frame on each edge, evenly spaced, cleanly punched with no torn or deformed holes visible
Soundtrack
A variable-area optical track is visible running along one edge beside the picture area, with what appears to be a Dolby Digital data-block pattern visible in the inter-perforation zone on the opposite edge
Edge print
Edge print reads reversed, consistent with emulsion-up placement; legible characters appear to read 'L P 9' or similar key-number sequence along the lower edge
Base & colour
Base shows a warm amber-yellow tint typical of a colour print stock; dye image appears rich and not visibly faded or red-shifted
Projection history
No splices or cue marks visible; faint longitudinal lines are present suggesting the print has been projected
Picture
Positive colour image; all three frames appear to be consecutive frames from a single continuous shot and the costumed figures are consistent with the fantasy-comedy production on record
Era check
The combination of variable-area optical track, Dolby Digital inter-perforation data blocks, warm-base colour print stock, and four-perforation 35mm format is consistent with a theatrical release print from the early-to-mid 1990s, matching the 1993 release date on record
Read from the original intake capture shown below. Observations only — film is authenticated, not graded.
This original motion picture film element has been examined and authenticated by Crown Grading in partnership with National Film Vault, and encapsulated for archival preservation.
Why so little survivesRelease prints were leased to theaters, not sold. When the run ended they went back to the distributor to be destroyed, and most were. What collectors hold today came from the prints that escaped that order, and no new 35mm prints of these films are being struck.
CROWN SERIAL 000063352
Original Film CaptureAs received
Photographed on the light panel at intake, before encapsulation — tap to open full size
Tap to enlarge
