Sources: Wikidata. The record of the motion picture, not an assessment of this cell.
FILM NOTES
Pikachu's Vacation premiered in 1999 as the short accompanying Pokemon: The First Movie, produced by OLM under Nintendo and The Pokemon Company's early franchise push, distributed stateside by Warner Bros. It gave Pikachu a rare solo showcase away from Ash and the main cast, letting Pichu, Dragonite, and other pocket monsters carry a gentle, dialogue-light story built for the era's merchandising boom. For collectors, this short remains a foundational artifact of the franchise's theatrical crossover into American culture.
This cell, titled Psyduck And Charizard Blastoff!, centers on Psyduck, the perpetually confused water type whose blank stare and constant headaches made it a fan favorite comic figure. The name suggests a moment of sudden, propulsive chaos, the kind of sight gag the short relied on for its slapstick charm. A 35mm cell from this scene captures a small piece of that comedic beat, valuable to collectors precisely because Psyduck's screen time in this short was limited, making any authentic frame of the character a scarce and desirable memento from this specific production.
Authentication Findings8 checks
Consistent with a 35mm theatrical release print of Pikachu's Vacation (1999).
Gauge
35mm, four perforations per frame on both edges; the strip holds one full frame with partial frames above and below.
Perforations
Four per frame on each edge, evenly spaced; punched cleanly with no torn or deformed holes visible.
Soundtrack
A variable-area optical track is visible running along one edge beside the picture area, appearing as a single-track analog optical stripe; a dense digital data region consistent with Dolby Digital encoding is also visible in the inter-perforation gaps on the same edge.
Edge print
Not fully legible in this capture; partial characters and numbers are visible along the edge but cannot be quoted with certainty.
Base & colour
Base appears neutral to very slightly warm; dye image shows saturated color with no visible fading or red shift.
Projection history
No splices, cue marks, or prominent scratches are visible in this capture.
Picture
Positive color image; the single visible frame shows animation consistent with the Pokémon franchise and matches the film on record.
Era check
The combination of analog variable-area optical track, Dolby Digital inter-perforation data blocks, saturated color positive print, and safety base is consistent with a theatrical release print from the late 1990s, matching the 1999 release date on record.
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
