Sources: Wikidata · OpenAlex. The record of the motion picture, not an assessment of this cell.
FILM NOTES
Pokémon: The First Movie arrived in 1999 as Warner Bros. and Nintendo's bid to translate a television and trading card phenomenon into a theatrical event, pairing the story of Mewtwo's origin with the short Pikachu's Vacation. It became a box office success far beyond expectations, cementing Pokémon as a cross-media juggernaut in the West and introducing a generation of young audiences to their first cinema outing built entirely around Nintendo's creatures. For collectors of 35mm film artifacts, this release stands as one of the more culturally significant properties of the late nineties animation boom.
This cell preserves a strip from that release centered on Psyduck, the perpetually confused water-type Pokémon known for headaches that trigger psychic outbursts, a fan favorite for its odd design and comic relief role throughout the franchise. As a piece of the physical release print rather than a promotional trailer or title card, it represents an actual frame of exhibited film history, tying the character directly to the movie's theatrical run rather than to marketing materials produced around it.
Authentication Findings8 checks
Consistent with a 35mm theatrical release print of Pokémon: The First Movie (1999).
Gauge
35mm, confirmed by four perforations per frame on both edges; the strip holds two frames.
Perforations
Four per frame on each edge, evenly spaced; punched edges appear clean with no visible tearing.
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.
Base & colour
Base appears neutral to slightly warm; dye image shows saturated yellows and reds with no visible fading.
Projection history
No scratches, splice marks, or cue marks are visible in this capture.
Picture
Positive colour image; the two frames appear to be consecutive frames from a single shot, consistent with an animated feature matching the film on record.
Era check
The variable-area optical soundtrack, saturated colour dye image, and four-perforation 35mm format are all consistent with a theatrical release print from the late 1990s.
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
