The main characters in Isao Takahata’s 1994 film Pom Poko are tanuki, an animal attributed with shapeshifting powers in Japanese folklore. Their powers form part of an ethos of constant metamorphosis pervading Pom Poko, enabling Takahata to address his socio-political…
The Tale of the Princess Kaguya is a film directed by Isao Takahata in 2013, and it is based on a Japanese folktale called “The Tale of the Bamboo Cutter.” Commenting on the consequences of prioritizing wealth, the film portrays…
My knowledge of the late Japanese animation director’s work dates to 1996, when his critically acclaimed animated film Grave of the Fireflies (1988) was first screened publicly in Singapore at the first Singapore Animation Fiesta, of which I was the…
