Grave of the Fireflies

Grave of the Fireflies

June 3, 2026
Why do fireflies have to die so soon?

Details About the Film

This film is part of the series Bleak Week: Cinema of Despair

In the waning months of World War II, Seita (Tsutomu Tatsumi) and his younger sister Setsuko (Ayano Shiraishi) are orphaned after their mother is killed from an American air raid in Kobe, Japan. The siblings move in with their aunt, but when the added stress from additional mouths to feed causes an argument, Seita takes his sister to move into a bomb shelter, where the pair struggle to survive on their own. A delicate work of animation from Studio Ghibli director Isao Takahata, Grave of the Fireflies is a searing examination of war from a child’s perspective.

Grave of the Fireflies will screen in its original Japanese language with English subtitles.

Presented By

Presented in partnership with

American Cinematheque

Director(s): Isao Takahata
Starring: Tsutomu Tatsumi, Ayano Shiraishi, Yoshiko Shinohara, Akemi Yamaguchi
Year Released: 1988
Runtime: 89 minutes
Country: Japan
Language(s): Japanese with English subtitles
Content Warning(s): Combat Situations
Accessibility Options: ListenTech (Hearing Impaired / Personal Amplified Audio Receiver w/optional T-Coil loop)
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