Ubasuteyama

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Original Title	教育線画姨捨山
Japanese kana Rendering	Kyoikusenga Ubasuteyama
English Title	Ubasuteyama
Production Date	1925
Author	Sanae Yamamoto
Duration (minutes)	18
Sound	silent
Color	b/w
Plot	Once upon a time, there was a lord in Shinano Province who hated old men. In accordance with the rules of the province, a person was exiled to an island when they turned 60 years old. On the night of August 15th, there was one such farmer woman, but her son loved her, and took her to a mountain to leave her there instead of turning her over to the cruel officers. However, he felt sorry about what he was doing and hid her under the earthen floor of a barn. One day, a messenger of the lord of the neighboring province was sent to the lord of Shinano Province making an unreasonable demand that a silk thread be threaded through a winding hole in a crystal ball and threatened that force would be used unless the task was done. The devoted son consulted with his mother, and she taught him a method in which you put honey around the end of one hole and let an ant tied with a thread go through it from the other end. The lord rewarded the son. However, a messenger was sent from the neighboring province again demanding that they identify which of two identical mares is the parent and which is the child. The son asked his mother again and then told the solution to the lord. When told by the lord that he would grant the son’s wish, he pleaded for his mother’s life. Since then, old men and women have been treated with respect and are no longer exiled.
Description	According to Sanae Yamamoto's biography, My Life with Animated Films (漫画映画と共に, 1982) written by Kazuko Miyamoto, this work, which took a year and a half to produce, was very well received by the public. Nearly 100 prints of the film were sold, and the film was rated highly by Shunzo Nakata of the Ministry of Education, Social Education Division, and was purchased by the Ministry. Taking advantage of this opportunity, Yamamoto became a temporary employee of the Ministry of Education and was subsequently commissioned to produce films for them. The beginning credits, where the picture of a Noh mask of an old man is replaced by a portrait of a dutiful son, remind us of Yamamoto's passion for art. The clothes of the dutiful son in this portrait are likely to have been in color in the original print.
Production Company	Tokyo Manga Club
Distribution
Release Date
Credits: Director	Animation: Sanae Toda
Credits: Staff, Cast, etc.	Subtitles:Eiji Kabayama(樺山榮司), Photography:Masashi Kondo
Intertitles	T1「教育線画　姨捨山　全二巻　東京漫画倶樂部」、T2「作画戸田早苗」、T3「字幕樺山榮司」、T4「撮影近藤正志」、T5「昔信濃の國に老人を嫌ひな一人の殿様がありました。」、T6「ある百姓のお母さんは今年六十歳で國の掟の島流しになる歳でした」、T7「母を心配」、T8「八月十五夜の晩」、T9「“お母さん……今夜は大變によい月ですからお山へ行つてお月見をしませう”」、T10「“お母さんを無慈悲な役人の手にかけるよりは……どうぞお許し下さい”」、T11「“いいえ私はあきらめてゐますからお前は早くうちへ帰つて体を大事にして働いて下さい”」、T12「あの山の上で今頃お母さんはどうしていらっしゃるだろう……?」、T13「……もしや狼などに……」、T14「“お母さん私が惡うございました此度は何んなにしてもお側についてお卋話を致しますから”」、T15「いろいろ考へたあげく納屋の土間へ」、T16「“お母さんお窮屈でも我慢をして下さい”」、T17「隣國の殿様から信濃の國の殿様の處へ御使者が來ました」、T18「此の水晶の玉に絹糸を通してもらひたい」、T19「もしそれが出來なければ…」、T20「いくら考へても」、T21「一、曲りくねった水晶の玉の穴に絹糸を通すものあらば早速申出でよ但し通したるものには黄金十枚を興ふべし城主」、T22「“誰れか水晶の玉へ絹糸を通すものはないか”」、T23「ことによつたらうちのお母さんが知つてゐるかもしれない……」、T24「殿様の御殿へ」、T25「“私が通してお目に掛けます”」、T26「片方の穴の圍りへ蜂密[蜂蜜]を」、T27「“感心な奴だ……褒美をとらす”」、T28「又隣國より使者」、T29「大きさから毛色まで瓜二つの親子の牝馬」、T30「此の二疋の牝馬の親子を見分けて下さい」、T31「百姓のうちへ殿様からお使者」、T32「母に相談」、T33「“それはむづかしいことはないよ亡くなつたお父さんに聞いたことがある”」、T34「“二疋の馬の間へ馬草を置けば子馬は先に食べたべ餘しを食べるのは親馬だといふことだ”」、T35「お召しによつて……」、T36「“では私に見分けさせて戴きます”」、T37「“さあ！これで間違ひはないでせう”」、T38「“お前は國中一番の智慧者ださあ何でも望みのものをやるぞ”」、T39「“私はお金も品物もいりませんその代りどうか母の命をお助け下さい”」、T40「“お前の母親の命は許してやる”」、T41「此度の難題を逃れたのは年寄のお陰であつたそれからは老人を島流しにすることをやめました」、T42「終東京漫画倶樂部」。
Censorship - Date and Number
References
Frames per Second	18fps
Source of Digital Copy	The 35mm nitrate positive owned by Ministry of Education -> The 35mm internegative owned by NFC -> The 35mm positive
Completeness	complete
Additional Notes
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