How the Tama Hills Became a New Town?: The Meaning of Tanuki in “Heisei Tanukigassenn Ponnpoko”?

Abstract

“Heisei Tanukigassenn Ponnpoko” is an animated film produced by Studio Ghibli and released in July 1994. Isao Takahata is the author, director and scriptwriter.

In this paper, how the new town development in Japan is described in the work, and for that, the staff including Takahata described the history of Tama hills centering on Tama New Town. From the perspective of the process of the establishment of Tama New Town and how it is reflected in this work, this paper analyze Takahata’s works.