Synopsis
A short film that was exclusively shown at the Ghibli Museum in Mitaka. This animated short is adapted from a story that appears in the beloved, award-winning children's book "Iya Iya En" by Rieko Nakagawa. Shigeru is a little boy attending the Tulip Nursery School. One morning, he notices the older boys—a year ahead of him—are building a ship out of blocks. He wants to join them. Once finished, they name their ship the Elephant and Lion. Suddenly, the children realize their surroundings have turned into an ocean, complete with swimming fish. The boys load fishing rods and rope onto the Elephant and Lion, then set off to hunt a whale.
Background
Winner of the 2001 Oofuji Noburou Award at the Mainichi Film Awards.