National Film Vault

FILM NOTES

Tim Burton's The Nightmare Before Christmas was released by Touchstone Pictures in October 1993, produced through Burton's collaboration with director Henry Selick and Skellington Productions. The film marked a landmark achievement in stop-motion animation, bringing a singular gothic vision to mainstream audiences and establishing an enduring cultural presence that has only deepened in the decades since its release.

This cell, titled Lock, Shock and Barrel, captures the mischievous trio mid-scene across three nearly consecutive frames. Lock, Shock, and Barrel appear together in their signature trick-or-treater costumes within a darkly lit, chaotic environment consistent with their memorable sequences in the film. The tight, repeated framing across all three frames offers an unusually intimate look at a single sustained moment involving these three characters.