Sources: Wikidata · OpenAlex. The record of the motion picture, not an assessment of this cell.
FILM NOTES
Cars 2 arrived in 2011 as Pixar's sequel to its 2006 hit, expanding the franchise into international espionage territory alongside its racing roots. Directed by John Lasseter, the film pushed the studio's technical capabilities further while introducing a broader world of spies and villains to the Cars universe. It marked a shift in tone for the series, layering genre pastiche atop the original's Americana, and remains a notable entry for how Pixar experimented with format within an established property. Its release expanded merchandising and film strip ephemera considerably, giving collectors more variety across the franchise's visual history.
This cell preserves a strip naming Professor Z, the film's chief antagonist and mastermind behind the Lemons conspiracy. As the villain driving the picture's spy plot, he represents the darker undercurrent introduced into the Cars world, standing apart from the series' usual cast of racers and small town vehicles. A cell bearing a character's name typically comes from a scene or sequence built around their presence, whether dialogue, scheming, or a key plot beat. For collectors, Professor Z pieces hold interest as artifacts of Pixar's rare foray into a genuine villain-centered narrative.
Authentication Findings8 checks
Consistent with a 35mm colour release print of Cars 2 (2011).
Gauge
35mm, confirmed by four perforations per frame on both edges; the strip holds three frames.
Perforations
Four per frame on both edges, evenly spaced and cleanly punched with no visible torn or deformed holes.
Soundtrack
A variable-area optical track is visible along one edge, with what appears to be a Dolby Digital data block pattern visible in the inter-perforation gaps on the same edge, consistent with a dual-format optical track.
Edge print
Not visible in this capture at sufficient resolution to read any key numbers or manufacturer text.
Base & colour
The base shows a light cyan-blue tint consistent with a dye-based colour print stock; the dye image appears neutral with no visible red shift or fading.
Projection history
No visible scratches, splice marks, or cue marks seen in this capture.
Picture
Positive colour image; all three frames appear to be consecutive frames from a single shot, and the subject matter is consistent with an animated feature matching the film on record.
Era check
The combination of a cyan-tinted base, variable-area optical track with apparent Dolby Digital inter-perforation data blocks, and colour positive print format is consistent with a 2011 theatrical release print.
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 000063492
Original Film CaptureAs received
Photographed on the light panel at intake, before encapsulation — tap to open full size
Tap to enlarge
