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 in the decades since through repeat television airings and a devoted cult following. Directed by Kenny Ortega, the film paired Halloween mischief with musical numbers and a knowing sense of humor, and it has since become a seasonal touchstone for a generation of viewers who return to it every October.
This cell centers on Winifred "Winnie" Sanderson, the eldest of the three resurrected Sanderson sisters and the film's driving force, played by Bette Midler in a performance that anchors the whole production. Winnie is the character collectors chase first, given her sharp tongue, oversized presence, and status as the trio's unquestioned leader. A 35mm frame preserving her likeness captures the figure most closely tied to the film's identity, a single strip pulled from the physical print that once ran through theater projectors, offering a tangible link to the movie as it was originally shown.
Authentication Findings8 checks
Consistent with a 35mm theatrical release print of Hocus Pocus (1993).
Gauge
35mm, confirmed by four perforations per frame on both edges; the strip holds three frames.
Perforations
Four per frame on both edges; spacing appears even and the punched edges look clean throughout the strip.
Soundtrack
A variable-area optical track is visible running along the bottom edge beside the perforations, appearing as a dual-band waveform consistent with a stereo variable-area print; a narrow Dolby Digital data-block strip also appears to be present between the optical track and the picture area.
Edge print
Not fully legible in this capture; partial characters are visible along the bottom edge but cannot be quoted with confidence.
Base & colour
The base shows a warm amber-yellow tint along the bottom edge strip; the dye image in the picture area reads as neutral to slightly warm with no obvious red shift or fading.
Projection history
Light vertical lines consistent with projection wear are visible across the frames; no splices or cue marks are seen.
Picture
Positive colour image; all three frames appear to be consecutive frames from a single shot and the content is consistent with the theatrical release of Hocus Pocus (1993).
Era check
The combination of a dual variable-area optical track, apparent Dolby Digital data blocks, and the warm-amber safety base stock is consistent with a mid-1990s theatrical release print of the period when Hocus Pocus was distributed.
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 000063379
Original Film CaptureAs received
Photographed on the light panel at intake, before encapsulation — tap to open full size
Tap to enlarge
