National Film Vault

OFFICIAL FILM AUTHENTICATION BY CROWN GRADING

AUTHENTIC

CROWN CERTIFIED

Tap to enlarge

MOVIEPokémon 3: The Movie Trailer/Pikachu & Pichu Short Trailer

SCENEPichu Brothers

FILM FORMAT35mm

YEAR2001

CERTIFICATE IDNFV-000003372

FILM NOTES

Pokémon 3: The Movie arrived in 2001 from Warner Bros. and 4Kids, the third theatrical outing built on the franchise's early momentum, paired here with its companion short "Pikachu & Pichu." This era marked the height of Pokémon's crossover from television to cinema, with theatrical trailers serving as a crucial bridge for fans awaiting each new release. The short itself was notable for shifting focus away from the main cast toward side characters, giving audiences a quieter companion piece alongside the feature's larger story.

This cell preserves the Pichu Brothers, the paired Little Pichu who anchor the companion short that played alongside the main feature. As a trailer or short-promotion cell, it belongs to the materials used to build anticipation around the pairing's screen time, a role distinct from the feature film itself. Collectors value these pieces because the Pichu Brothers rarely received dedicated attention outside this short, making surviving 35mm material tied specifically to them scarce. The brother dynamic named here, Big Pichu and Little Pichu, is itself the subject of the piece, a sibling pairing that gave the companion short its identity apart from the main cast.

Authentication Findings 8 checks

Consistent with a 35mm release-print trailer strip for Pokémon 3: The Movie / Pikachu & Pichu short.

Gauge: Four perforations per frame along both edges, which reads as 35mm; the strip holds three frames, all visible in full.
Perforations: Four per frame on both edges, evenly spaced, rounded-rectangle shape, cleanly punched with no torn or stretched holes seen in this capture.
Soundtrack: A two-track variable-area optical track runs beside the picture, with a dashed line above it and Dolby Digital data blocks in the gaps between the lower-edge perforations.
Edge print: Not visible in this capture
Base & colour: Light blue-tinted base on both edges; the dye image looks neutral and saturated, with no visible fading or colour shift.
Projection history: No scratches, cue marks or splices seen at this size; the strip is clean and flat apart from the camera glare on the right-hand frame.
Picture: Positive colour image; the three frames repeat one continuous shot with near-identical content, and the cartoon Pichu artwork fits a Pokémon short trailer.
Era check: The analog optical track combined with Dolby Digital data blocks matches a 2001 theatrical release print, and the animation style fits the Pokémon film 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 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 000071147

Original Film Capture As received

The film strip as photographed on the light panel at intake, before encapsulation

Photographed on the light panel at intake, before encapsulation — tap to open full size