directed by Dice Tsutsumi/
A young pig with an important job, and a new friend who changes everything. In a desolate future, one small town has survived because of a large windmill dam that acts as a fan to keep out pollution. The dam’s operator, Pig, works tirelessly to keep the sails spinning and protect the town, despite abuse from classmates and an indifferent public. When a new student joins Pig’s class, nothing will be the same again.
“When we made the film there was so much learning to be done – it was something we’d never been exposed to before and this was a huge challenge. It convinced us that we had to leave the comfortable nest of working for a big studio, and see if we could start something new, which actually turned out to be Tonka House. So The Dam Keeper came first, then the studio.”
– Dice Tsutsumi, director of The Dam Keeper
Issue 19: Short Films at the Oscars 2015