Sources: Wikidata. The record of the motion picture, not an assessment of this cell.
FILM NOTES
Pikachu's Vacation premiered in 1999 as the animated short accompanying Pokémon: The First Movie in its American theatrical release, produced by OLM under the Pokémon Company banner and distributed through Warner Bros. It arrived at the height of Pokémon's initial merchandising surge in the West, giving audiences a lighter companion piece to the feature's darker Mewtwo storyline. The short follows Pikachu and a gathering of Pokémon left in a forest clearing while their trainers attend the main event, and it remains a favorite entry point for collectors tracing the franchise's earliest theatrical animation.
This cell isolates a race between Marill and Squirtle, two Water-type Pokémon whose pairing reflects the short's ensemble structure of games and small rivalries among the gathered creatures. Marill, then a recent addition to the roster, and Squirtle, one of the franchise's original starters, together represent the crossover appeal collectors seek: familiar faces alongside newer designs. As a story moment rather than a title card, it preserves a fragment of the short's easygoing, playful pacing, the kind of incidental competition that filled Pikachu's free afternoon while the trainers were away.
Authentication Findings8 checks
Consistent with a 35mm theatrical release print of Pokémon: Pikachu's Vacation (1999).
Gauge
35mm, four perforations per frame on both edges; the strip holds one frame with partial frames visible at top and bottom.
Perforations
Four per frame on each edge; spacing appears even; punched cleanly with no torn or deformed holes visible.
Soundtrack
A variable-area optical track is visible running along one edge below the picture area, appearing as two modulated lines consistent with a stereo variable-area format; Dolby Digital pixel blocks are visible in the inter-perforation gaps on the same edge.
Edge print
Not visible in this capture at sufficient resolution to read any key numbers or manufacturer text.
Base & colour
Base appears neutral to very slightly warm; dye image shows saturated blues, golds and reds with no visible fading or colour shift.
Projection history
No scratches, splice marks or cue marks are visible in this capture.
Picture
Positive colour image; the single main frame appears to be one consecutive shot; the animated character style and colour palette are consistent with the Pokémon animated film on record.
Era check
The combination of a dual variable-area optical track with Dolby Digital inter-perforation data blocks is consistent with a 1999 theatrical release print, as that hybrid soundtrack format 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, 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.
Original Film CaptureAs received
Photographed on the light panel at intake, before encapsulation — tap to open full size
Tap to enlarge
