Totsukuni no Shoujo tells the tale of a young girl and her otherworldly guardian living amidst of a forlorn forest. At first glance, their life together is harmonious and their relationship heartwarming; on further inspection however, something seems off…

It is hard to shake the sense of eeriness arising from the black-and-white juxtaposition of the young girl and her guardian whose behaviour strikes one as rather odd: during the early sequences of their everyday life he seems to frantically avoid any form of physical contact with the girl, instead opting for workarounds that do not require touching her.

The origin of his peculiar behaviour is slowly unravelled over the course of the following few scenes: the guardian suffers from a curse that turns every living being he touches into a dark and wretched monster. The mostly muted color palette dominated by dark shades of grey suggests that the origin of this infliction may be the outside world, though nothing is explicitly stated.

The effect this curse has on the protagonists is explored through experimental means: the girls tries to flee from her fear by escaping into her dreams; a wonderful dreamland accentuated by a serene assortment of strings brings her piece of mind, but it quickly turns into a nightmarish dark desert as the curse coursing through her guardian turns her into a monster as well.

Though that isn’t to say that their relationship receives a sinister undertone—in fact it is quite the opposite: knowledge of the curse’s nature recontextualizes the odd behaviour of the guardian and reveals the depth of love and care going into his everyday interactions with the girl, as well as his personal tragedy of being unable to hold those he holds dear. While he may have seemed like an enigma at first, it becomes clear that he is compassionate and does his best to fulfill his duties as the girl’s guardian—however inadequate he may be.

The depth of his attachment to the girl is displayed beautifully when the girl vanishes from the living room: in a state of panic and great emotional distress, he runs around frantically as his vision grows distorted and colorless.

From the jittering shading and outlines to the high-impact black-and-white slow motions and experimental sequences—Director Kubo’s fingerprints are all over the work. The restrictions of the source material’s narrative keep him from becoming self-indulgent however, and the integration of his style is purposeful and seamless. The framework of the narrative allows him to bridge the gap between his usual experimentation and genuine emotion, making this his first opus.

At the same time, Kubo displays directorial prowess at handling narrative works: the storyboards are consistent, showcasing his proficiency at capturing a wide range of emotion as well as proving his eye for impactful and engaging shot composition. Though it is the first of his projects to have characters with a personality, he makes great use of animation as a tool for characterization. This work puts him on the map as one of the names to look out for in the coming decade.

This short is a clear contender for anime of the year—a feat rarely achieved by works of similar length. It is experimental and poignant, with great production values throughout. This one is for everyone.