Pokemon: The First Movie arrived in the fall of 1999, released by Warner Bros. after Nintendo's franchise had already conquered handheld screens, trading cards, and Saturday morning television. Its trailer campaign was engineered to pull that momentum into theaters, promising audiences a feature length story built around the mythos of Mewtwo and the elusive original, Mew. For a generation raised on the games and cartoon, this was the first chance to see Pokemon rendered at cinema scale, and the marketing push around it remains a touchstone of late nineties merchandising history.
This cell preserves a fragment from that promotional reel, centered on Mew itself, the rare and foundational creature whose genetic material forms the story's core conflict. Mew's presence in a trailer cell carries weight beyond a single frame; it represents the mystery the entire film was built to explore, and collectors prize any surviving piece that ties directly to the character's earliest theatrical appearance. Trailer cells like this one functioned as advertising artifacts, distinct from the finished feature, made to entice rather than narrate, and this piece stands as a physical remnant of that promotional moment.
Authentication Findings8 checks
Consistent with a 35mm theatrical release print of Pokemon: The First Movie Trailer (1999).
Gauge
35mm, confirmed by four perforations per frame visible on both edges; the strip holds two frames.
Perforations
Four per frame on both visible edges; spacing appears even and the punched corners are rounded and cleanly cut.
Soundtrack
A variable-area optical track is visible running along one edge beside the picture area, consistent with a mono or stereo optical print.
Edge print
Not visible in this capture at sufficient resolution to read manufacturer codes or key numbers.
Base & colour
Base appears with a slight cool-blue tint under the backlight; the dye image reads as a warm-toned positive with no obvious fading or red shift.
Projection history
Horizontal white streaks are visible across the lower portion of the strip, consistent with emulsion abrasion from projection; no splices or cue marks are seen.
Picture
Positive image; the two frames appear to be consecutive frames from a single shot, and the animated character and stylised graphic elements are consistent with a Pokemon theatrical trailer print.
Era check
The variable-area optical soundtrack, the 35mm perforation pitch, and the positive release-print format are all consistent with a 1999 US theatrical trailer 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, 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
