GA 1

800 years after its creation, the Scrolls of Frolicking Animals are still inspiring new content, thanks to the anime studio Hayao Miyazaki built.

For the most part, Studio Ghibli doesn’t do sequels. Yes, Baron, from 1995’s Whisper of the Heart also plays a key role in The Cat Returns, released in 2002, and the Mei and the Kittenbus short which screens at the Ghibli Museum in Tokyo is a sort of epilogue to My Neighbor Totoro. In general, though, the prestigious production house is satisfied with letting its projects stand as one-and-done affairs.

So it’s sort of a rare treat to get a second helping of the same world crafted by Ghibli’s animators, but that’s what’s happening now. In March, Studio Ghibli partnered with energy company Marubeni Shin Denryoku to create an animated version of a portion of the Choju Jinbutsu Giga, or Scrolls of Frolicking Animals. The 12th-century series of inked picture scrolls is regularly credited as being the oldest manga, and Ghibli has just released its second animated short based on the historical artifact.

Titled Tsureai (“Partners”), the second video in the series once again stars a bipedal rabbit from the Choju Jinbutsu Giga, who we see getting a ride across a river on the back of a frog.

GA 2

GA 3

Selfless to a fault, the frog ends up wading in over his head, but still manages to get his bunny friend to the other side. Once there, though, it’s time for the rabbit to return the favor by helping his waterlogged pal out.

GA 4

The artwork skillfully retains the original designs of the Choju Jinbutsu Giga, and even accounts for the notations and discolorations on the surface of the 800-year-old scroll. At the same time, there’s plenty of Studio Ghibli’s ability to show off the exaggerated exertion of animated characters for both dramatic and comedic effects.

GA 5

Best of all, there’s still plenty of the Choju Jinbutsu Giga to adapt, so hopefully we’ll be seeing more of these Ghibli-animated rabbits, frogs, and monkeys in the months to come.

Source, images: YouTube/Marubeni Brand Channel － 丸紅公式YouTubeチャンネルネル

Follow Casey on Twitter, and even if he doesn’t carry you across a river on his back, he’ll at least help you find a boat or something.