Set in Japan during World War II, the film focuses on Seita and his little sister Setsuko. After their mother is killed in an air raid, and with their father serving in the navy, they are forced to fight for survival in the devastated Japanese country side. Food and shelter are scarce, and even their own relatives are too concerned with their own survival. All they have is each other and their belief that life must carry on, Takahata and his team, including character animator Yoshifumo Kondo (who has subsequently worked n other acclaimed Ghibli films from director Hayao Miyazaki) have created a visually stunning and emotionally powerful film that mediated on the devastating consequences of war.