Studio Ponoc Has Something Truly Special with 'Modest Heroes'

Studio Ponoc kicked off its campaign to be the next Studio Ghibli with Mary and the Witch’s Flower last year (or two years ago in Japan).  It wasn’t a masterpiece, but it captured a lot of the flavors of a Ghibli movie that it could pass as one.  This year (or last year in Japan), Ponoc follows it up with Modest Heroes, a three-part anime anthology film.

The first segment is titled “Kanini & Kanino.”  It follows a family of Lilliputian humanoids who live on the bed of a stream in the middle of a forest.  Equipped with crab claws, they hunt small fish for food, but stay away of the vision of big fish, to which they are the food.  While the mother is away to give birth, the father is left to take care of their two children named Kanini and Kanino.  When the father is taken off by a heavy current, the two siblings have no choice but to embark on a dangerous journey to rescue him.

“Life Ain’t Gonna Lose” comes second.  It centers on a boy named Shun who is allergic to eggs.  It details the efforts of his mom to help him on his condition, along with the various instances where he nearly dies because of accidentally coming into contact with eggs.

Last but not the least is “Invisible.”  It’s about a salaryman who happens to be invisible.  Not only that, but he also has to constantly hold on a heavy weight – like a fire extinguisher or a pickaxe – or else he’ll float away to the sky.  Ignored by everyone around him, he becomes depressed.  However, an emergency that forces him to jump into action helps to get him out of his funk.

Modest Heroes is barely a film.  It clocks less than hour – including credits.  Thus, you can just imagine how short the runtime of each segment is.  However, despite the briefness, all three shorts are packed with meaning.  Each one demands to be analyzed and pondered upon (especially the third one, which is heavily metaphorical).  Moreover, there’s efficiency in the storytelling.  Masterful direction ensures there’s no wasted second.  Their narratives pass so quickly, and there’s the risk that they can feel fleeting as a result.  But once you grasp what they are going for, they will resonate.

Lastly, the exquisiteness of the animation... come on, it goes without saying.

My only nit to pick about Modest Heroes is that it should have had at least two more segments.  This is, after all, just the first volume of Ponoc Short Films Theatre, the studio’s attempt to help anime shorts have wider exposure by packaging them together as a feature-length film that can be released into theaters.  Well, 53 minutes aren’t really “feature-length.”  Why didn’t Ponoc wait until they have five shorts ready before releasing this volume?  I did read that the plan was four segments, but the fourth one was supposed to be directed by legendary Ghibli director Isao Takahata, who passed away last year.  The question remains valid regardless: why didn’t Ponoc wait until they have enough for a legit feature-length film?

Anyway, if Modest Heroes is any indication, Studio Ponoc has something truly special going on with Ponoc Short Films Theatre, and subsequent volumes are definitely worth watching out for.

Hopefully, the next ones will have more than three segments.