Pom Poko
As the human city development encroaches on the raccoon dog population's forest and meadow habitat, the raccoon dogs find themselves faced with the very real possibility of extinction. In response, the raccoon dogs engage in a desperate struggle to stop the construction and preserve their home.
3 wins & 1 nomination
Plot Structure
Story beats plotted across runtime
Narrative Arc
Emotional journey through the story's key moments
Story Circle
Blueprint 15-beat structure
Arcplot Score Breakdown
Weighted: Precision (70%) + Arc (15%) + Theme (15%)
Pom Poko (1994) showcases strategically placed plot construction, characteristic of Isao Takahata's storytelling approach. This structural analysis examines how the film's 15-point plot structure maps to proven narrative frameworks across 1 hour and 59 minutes. With an Arcplot score of 7.1, the film balances conventional beats with creative variation.
Characters
Cast & narrative archetypes
Shoukichi
Okiyo
Gonta
Tamasaburo
Oroku
Seizaemon
Fireball Oroku
Kincho VI
Inugami Gyobu
Main Cast & Characters
Shoukichi
Played by Makoto Nonomura
A young tanuki who serves as the film's primary narrator and protagonist, representing the moderate faction seeking peaceful coexistence with humans.
Okiyo
Played by Yuriko Ishida
Shoukichi's love interest and partner, a gentle female tanuki who supports the community's efforts to survive.
Gonta
Played by Shigeru Izumiya
A fierce and hot-headed young tanuki who leads the radical faction advocating violent resistance against the humans.
Tamasaburo
Played by Norihei Miki
One of the elder tanuki leaders who supports diplomatic approaches and serves on the council of elders.
Oroku
Played by Nijiko Kiyokawa
A wise elderly female tanuki and one of the community's respected elders who advocates for caution and tradition.
Seizaemon
Played by Gannosuke Ashiya
A dignified elder tanuki who serves as one of the main leaders of the Tama Hills tanuki community.
Fireball Oroku
Played by Takehiro Murata
A powerful transformation master from Shikoku Island, summoned to teach advanced shapeshifting techniques to the Tama tanuki.
Kincho VI
Played by Beichou Katsura
Another master transformer from Shikoku who arrives to assist with the tanuki's supernatural operations against the developers.
Inugami Gyobu
Played by Yumi Kuroda
The legendary 999-year-old transformation master from Shikoku, revered as the greatest shape-shifter among tanuki.
Structural Analysis
The Status Quo at 1 minutes (1% through the runtime) establishes The tanuki live freely in the Tama Hills, playing and brawling over territory in their traditional way, oblivious to the approaching human development.. Structural examination shows that this early placement immediately immerses viewers in the story world.
The inciting incident occurs at 15 minutes when The tanuki discover the full scale of human construction destroying their forest. They witness bulldozers, clear-cutting, and realize their traditional way of life is genuinely threatened.. At 13% through the film, this Disruption is delayed, allowing extended setup of the story world. This beat shifts the emotional landscape, launching the protagonist into the central conflict.
The First Threshold at 30 minutes marks the transition into Act II, occurring at 25% of the runtime. This shows the protagonist's commitment to The tanuki actively choose to begin their campaign of sabotage against the construction projects, moving from preparation to direct action. They commit to fighting back., moving from reaction to action.
At 60 minutes, the Midpoint arrives at 50% of the runtime—precisely centered, creating perfect narrative symmetry. Notably, this crucial beat The tanuki stage their spectacular "Ghost Parade" - a massive supernatural display to terrify humans. It appears to be a triumph, a false victory that seems to prove their magic can stop progress., fundamentally raising what's at risk. The emotional intensity shifts, dividing the narrative into clear before-and-after phases.
The Collapse moment at 90 minutes (76% through) represents the emotional nadir. Here, Several tanuki die in desperate final attacks. The transformation masters admit defeat and leave. The tanuki's resistance has utterly failed, and their forest home is almost completely destroyed., demonstrates the protagonist at their lowest point. This beat's placement in the final quarter sets up the climactic reversal.
The Second Threshold at 96 minutes initiates the final act resolution at 81% of the runtime. The tanuki realize they must adapt to survive: some will live disguised as humans in the city, others will remain in the few wild spaces left, accepting coexistence rather than victory., demonstrating the transformation achieved throughout the journey.
Emotional Journey
Pom Poko's emotional architecture traces a deliberate progression across 15 carefully calibrated beats.
Narrative Framework
This structural analysis employs a 15-point narrative structure framework that maps key story moments. By mapping Pom Poko against these established plot points, we can identify how Isao Takahata utilizes or subverts traditional narrative conventions. The plot point approach reveals not only adherence to structural principles but also creative choices that distinguish Pom Poko within the animation genre.
Isao Takahata's Structural Approach
Among the 2 Isao Takahata films analyzed on Arcplot, the average structural score is 6.8, demonstrating varied approaches to story architecture. Pom Poko represents one of the director's most structurally precise works. For comparative analysis, explore the complete Isao Takahata filmography.
Comparative Analysis
Additional animation films include The Bad Guys, Puss in Boots and Violet Evergarden: Eternity and the Auto Memory Doll. For more Isao Takahata analyses, see The Tale of The Princess Kaguya.
Plot Points by Act
Act I
SetupStatus Quo
The tanuki live freely in the Tama Hills, playing and brawling over territory in their traditional way, oblivious to the approaching human development.
Theme
An elder tanuki states that humans will destroy their home unless they fight back, establishing the central tension between tradition/nature and progress/modernization.
Worldbuilding
Introduction to tanuki society, their transformation abilities, territorial disputes, and the gradual encroachment of human development into Tama Hills. The narrator establishes the rules of their world and the various tanuki clans.
Disruption
The tanuki discover the full scale of human construction destroying their forest. They witness bulldozers, clear-cutting, and realize their traditional way of life is genuinely threatened.
Resistance
The tanuki debate how to respond, decide to revive the ancient art of transformation, and send for legendary transformation masters. They train, struggle with the discipline required, and prepare for resistance.
Act II
ConfrontationFirst Threshold
The tanuki actively choose to begin their campaign of sabotage against the construction projects, moving from preparation to direct action. They commit to fighting back.
Mirror World
The legendary transformation masters arrive, representing the old ways and wisdom. They embody the thematic question of whether traditional tanuki culture can survive in the modern world.
Premise
The tanuki execute increasingly elaborate sabotage operations and transformations to scare humans and disrupt construction. This is the "fun and games" of tanuki mischief and magical resistance that the premise promises.
Midpoint
The tanuki stage their spectacular "Ghost Parade" - a massive supernatural display to terrify humans. It appears to be a triumph, a false victory that seems to prove their magic can stop progress.
Opposition
The media dismisses the parade as a publicity stunt for a theme park. Human development accelerates. Tanuki resources dwindle, casualties mount, and internal divisions grow as their efforts prove increasingly futile.
Collapse
Several tanuki die in desperate final attacks. The transformation masters admit defeat and leave. The tanuki's resistance has utterly failed, and their forest home is almost completely destroyed.
Crisis
The surviving tanuki face their darkest moment, grieving their losses and confronting the reality that they cannot stop human progress. They must decide whether to die fighting or find another way to survive.
Act III
ResolutionSecond Threshold
The tanuki realize they must adapt to survive: some will live disguised as humans in the city, others will remain in the few wild spaces left, accepting coexistence rather than victory.
Synthesis
The tanuki execute their final plan: a bittersweet acceptance of their new reality. Some transform permanently into humans to survive in the city, while others retreat to remaining green spaces, adapting their way of life to the changed world.
Transformation
The narrator reveals tanuki still live among humans in the city, transformed and hidden. The final image shows them briefly revealing their true forms at a gathering - surviving, but fundamentally changed, their wild world lost but their species enduring.