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 Halloween comedy that underperformed at release before finding its true audience through decades of television replay. Directed by Kenny Ortega and led by Bette Midler, Sarah Jessica Parker, and Kathy Najimy as the Sanderson sisters, it became one of Disney's quiet sleeper hits, now treated as an essential piece of seasonal viewing. Its cult standing has only grown, turning what was once a modest box office entry into an annual tradition and a recognizable piece of nineties studio output.
This cell preserves the opening card that announces the picture before a single scene unfolds, the strip of film where the production identifies itself to the audience. Title cards are prized by collectors because they represent the film's first handshake with the viewer, untouched by later edits or dialogue, a single fixed statement of name and studio. For a movie that lives and dies on its reputation as a Halloween mainstay, holding this introductory frame connects directly to that ritual, the moment before the Sanderson sisters and their story properly begin.
Authentication Findings8 checks
Consistent with a 35mm theatrical release print of Hocus Pocus (1993).
Gauge
35mm, four perforations per frame visible on both edges; the strip holds three frames.
Perforations
Four per frame on both edges, 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, appearing as a dual bilateral waveform stripe.
Edge print
Not visible in this capture; edge lettering is not legible at this size.
Base & colour
Base appears neutral to very slightly warm; the dye image reads as a deep black with purple-toned title graphics, showing no obvious fading or red shift.
Projection history
Light horizontal scratching is visible across the picture area, consistent with a print that has passed through a projector gate.
Picture
Positive image; all three frames carry the same title card graphic, and the title 'HOCUS POCUS' is legible, matching the film on record.
Era check
A dual bilateral variable-area optical track is consistent with a 1993 theatrical release print, as Dolby SR optical was standard for that period.
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 000063368
Original Film CaptureAs received
Photographed on the light panel at intake, before encapsulation — tap to open full size
Tap to enlarge
