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PomPoko Sheet

Pom Poko is a 1994 Japanese animated film directed by Isao Takahata about a group of tanuki (raccoon dogs) whose homes in the forest are being destroyed by the expanding development of a nearby city. The tanuki use their shapeshifting abilities from Japanese folklore to try to scare humans away from further building. However, their efforts may come too late as their homes are increasingly intruded upon. The film uses the tanuki figures to comment on how rapid geographic expansion of human society can impact the natural world.

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183 views1 page

PomPoko Sheet

Pom Poko is a 1994 Japanese animated film directed by Isao Takahata about a group of tanuki (raccoon dogs) whose homes in the forest are being destroyed by the expanding development of a nearby city. The tanuki use their shapeshifting abilities from Japanese folklore to try to scare humans away from further building. However, their efforts may come too late as their homes are increasingly intruded upon. The film uses the tanuki figures to comment on how rapid geographic expansion of human society can impact the natural world.

Uploaded by

Ayoub youb
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Pom Poko

Heisei tanuki gassen pom poko, 1994, Japan

Film Overview
Director Isao Takahata and the acclaimed Japanese animation studio Ghibli are the creative
forces behind this environmental fable. In the woods near a rapidly growing city, a group of
tanuki (Japanese raccoon-dogs) live in relative peace, until the development of the town
begins to intrude on their land. The tanuki are faced with a dilemma regarding the human
beings, for their homes are being destroyed, but the tanuki also rely on the human
community for scavenged food and goods. They decide to try using their powers of illusion
and shapeshifting to scare the humans back to the central city and sabotage further building,
but will their efforts come too little, too late? Pom Poko uses the figure of the tanuki, an
important animal in Japanese folklore and often attributed with the powers seen in the film,
to comment on the nature of their society's geographic expansion and the subsequent impact
on the natural world. –Adapted from a review on Yesasia.com

Cultural Notes
 Tanuki Though both the dub track and the subtitles refer to the animals as raccoons,
they are actually raccoon dogs (Japanese: tanuki), a completely separate species of
animal which is more closely related to dogs or wolves. They are common in
Japanese folklore, often characterized as mischievous and jolly masters of disguise
and shapeshifting, but somewhat gullible and absent-minded. The placing of leaves
on their heads to allow them to transform is also a reference to folklore. Prominent
testicles are an integral part of tanuki folklore, and they are shown and referred to
throughout the film, and also used frequently in their shapeshifting. This remains
unchanged in the DVD release, though the English dub (but not the subtitles) refers
to them as "pouches.” Teachers may want to exercise caution in showing the film for
this reason. –Adapted from Wikipedia
 Tanuki and teakettles In the film, the tanuki hone their skills by transforming into teakettles. This is a
reference to a Japanese folktale in which a monk frees a tanuki from a trap. In gratitude, the tanuki
transforms into a teakettle that the man can sell to earn some money. However, when the monk who
bought the teakettle tried to heat some water in it over the fire, the tanuki can’t stand the heat and sprouts
legs to run away. Then, depending on the telling, he either returns to the man who saved him and makes
him money as a “tightrope-walking teakettle” or he stays with the monk, who donates him to a temple out
of alarm, and the temple becomes famous for its “dancing teakettle.”
 Foxes Foxes in Japanese folklore are also well-known for their ability to transform and play tricks on
humans. Unlike the tanuki, however, foxes are generally sly and occasionally malicious.
 Demon Parade The parade that the tanuki put on as part of Project Poltergeist contains many different
traditional Japanese demons. Among them are oni (ogres), tengu (long-nosed demons), dragons, and the
seven lucky gods, popular Japanese gods of fortune. –imdb.com
 The Tale of the Heike The scene in which an old Tanuki transforms into a samurai on horseback is a
reference to a scene from The Tale of the Heike, a classic Japanese epic detailing the struggle between the
Heike and Genji clans. At the battle of Yashima, Heike lost the battle and fled the island by ships. One of the
women of Heike then attached her fan to a pole and raised it, challenging the Genji Samurais to shoot it. But
since it was too far from the shore and the target was constantly moving, the Genji Samurais hesitated.
Then, to protect the honor and the pride of Genji, a young Samurai, Nasu no Yoichi, stepped forward. He
successfully shot the hinge of the fan, separating it from the pole. Everyone, both Genji and Heike, cheered
for this master archer. The old tanuki (999 years old!) is from Yashima, and he saw this battle with his own
eyes. That's why the other Tanukis asked him to recreate this scene.
http://www.nausicaa.net/miyazaki/pompoko/faq.html

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