Principal cast
Tsutomu Tatsumi as Seita (voice), Ayano Shiraishi as Setsuko (voice), Yoshiko Shinohara as Mother (voice), Akemi Yamaguchi as Auntie (voice), and Masayo Sakai as Woman who takes care of Setsuko (voice)
Film 237 of 244 on the Screen Path
Grave of the Fireflies
Why do fireflies have to die so soon?
About the film
Grave of the Fireflies at a glance.
Screen Path places this 1988 film at stop 237 in one curated journey through cinema. The learning experience adds context before you watch and deeper analysis after.
In the final months of World War II, 14-year-old Seita and his sister Setsuko are orphaned when their mother is killed during an air raid in Kobe, Japan. After a falling out with their aunt, they move into an abandoned bomb shelter. With no surviving relatives and their emergency rations depleted, Seita and Setsuko struggle to survive.
Key craft credits
Nobuo Koyama (director of photography), Takeshi Seyama (editor), Michio Mamiya (original music composer), Isao Takahata (screenplay), and Nizou Yamamoto (art direction)
- Director
- Isao Takahata
- Release
- 1988-04-16
- Runtime
- 89 minutes
- Genres
- Animation, Drama, and War
- Country
- Japan
- Quiz
- 50 questions
The Screen Path journey
Before. After. Remember.
The featured film is watched outside Screen Path. The app provides the learning experience around it: a guide, an analysis, and a quiz with explanations.
01
Before you watch
Start with a spoiler-free video guide to the context and filmmaking choices worth noticing.
Spoiler-free02
After the film
Return after watching for a deeper video analysis of craft, meaning, and legacy.
Contains spoilers03
Quiz yourself
Answer 50 questions with clear rationales designed to make the ideas stick.
50 questions in this journeyWant to try a complete journey on the web? The Citizen Kane page includes the spoiler-free guide, after-film analysis, and a sample quiz.
Try Citizen Kane →Film data and images provided by TMDB. This product uses the TMDB API but is not endorsed or certified by TMDB.