It all begins with a little girl, no bigger than a finger, found inside a glistening bamboo shoot. In the hands of an elderly bamboo cutter and his wife, she grows at a pace that rivals traditional Japanese folktales and soon transforms into a dazzling young woman. In this animated film, which carries this deep-rooted folkloric legacy, Isao Takahata invites the audience into a fairy-tale world while making them feel the weight of fate resting on the character’s shoulders. The never-ending impossible demands and trials of the palace suitors lay bare the young woman’s struggles to escape her inevitable fate. In this drama, where the animation comes to life with brushstrokes that seem almost hand-drawn, the story whispers of how a spirit, blossoming within nature, becomes trapped within the palace walls.

Nominated for 1 Oscar. 13 wins & 38 nominations total