Pokemon: The First Movie arrived in 1999 through Warner Bros., riding the peak of Pokemon's explosive American debut. The trailer that preceded it was a cultural event in its own right, teasing the franchise's leap from television and trading cards to the big screen. It promised audiences their first look at Mewtwo, the cloned Pokemon at the center of the film's mythology, alongside a roster of familiar creatures rendered for cinema. For a generation of young fans, this trailer was often the first indication that Pokemon had become something larger than a game.
This cell centers on Venusaur, one of the original starter evolutions and a cornerstone of the franchise's earliest identity. Its presence here ties directly to the film's premise of cloned Pokemon, suggesting this is not the standard Venusaur but a genetically replicated counterpart, part of Mewtwo's engineered army. Trailer cells like this one carry particular appeal for collectors, capturing a moment when the film's darker, more ambitious tone was still being introduced to the public. Owning a fragment of that promotional reel connects directly to the marketing history surrounding the franchise's theatrical arrival.
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 holes appear cleanly cut with no torn or deformed edges visible.
Soundtrack
A variable-area optical track is visible below the picture area, appearing as two bilateral variable-area lines; a thin blue DTS timecode line is also visible immediately above the optical track.
Edge print
Not visible in this capture.
Base & colour
Base appears with a slight blue-teal tint consistent with modern safety stock; dye image appears saturated with no visible fading or red shift.
Projection history
No visible scratches, splice marks, or cue marks are apparent on the frames shown.
Picture
Positive colour image; the two frames appear to be consecutive frames from a single shot and the animated character visible is consistent with the Pokemon franchise film on record.
Era check
The combination of a dual bilateral variable-area optical track and a DTS timecode line is consistent with a 1999 theatrical release print, as DTS was in wide use for major studio releases by that date.
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
