Released in 1999 as Warner Bros. brought Pokémon to American theaters, this trailer arrived at the height of the franchise's first great wave, when the card game, the television series, and the promise of a feature film were converging into one of the decade's defining media events for young audiences. The movie it previewed, Pokémon: The First Movie, became a cultural touchstone, and the trailer reel itself stands as an artifact of that build-up, a 35mm strip made to stir anticipation in multiplexes before home video and streaming made such previews disposable.
This cell centers on Charizard, the series' most recognizable and sought-after creature among collectors, paired here with Ash Ketchum, the franchise's enduring young protagonist. As a trailer cell, its purpose was promotional rather than narrative, a single frame chosen to represent the scale and appeal of what audiences could expect from the film. A close-up designation points to a moment meant to emphasize Charizard's presence directly, aligning with the character's long-standing role as a flagship figure in Pokémon's visual identity and marketing history.
Authentication Findings8 checks
Consistent with a 35mm release trailer print of Pokémon: The Movie (1999).
Gauge
35mm: four perforations per frame along both edges, and the strip holds three frames, the third cut off at the right end.
Perforations
Four per frame on both edges, rounded-rectangle holes, evenly spaced and cleanly punched, with no torn or damaged perforations seen.
Soundtrack
A twin variable-area optical track runs beside the picture, and the gaps between the lower-edge perforations hold grey speckled blocks consistent with Dolby Digital data.
Edge print
Not visible in this capture
Base & colour
Pale blue-tinted base with neutral dye; the picture shows saturated oranges and pinks with no obvious fading or red shift.
Projection history
None seen at this size; no scratches, cue marks or splices are visible on the three frames shown.
Picture
Positive image; the three frames run consecutively as one continuous shot, and the drawn animation style fits an animated film such as the one on record.
Era check
Consistent with a late-1990s 35mm release print, since an analogue optical track combined with Dolby Digital data blocks matches the stock and sound formats of 1999 trailers.
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 in partnership with National Film Vault, 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.
CROWN SERIAL 000069910
Original Film CaptureAs received
Photographed on the light panel at intake, before encapsulation — tap to open full size
Tap to enlarge
