Puparia: A 3-Minute Anime That Took 3 Years to Create

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Even years after its debut in 2020, Shingo Tamagawa’s “Puparia” continues to serve as a source of inspiration for countless artists, animators, and filmmakers thanks to its stunning visuals and deeply symbolic imagery.

Discontent with his experience at Sunrise and the current state of the commercial anime industry, Japanese animator Shingo Tamagawa decided to take matters into his own hands by creating Puparia. However, the process was far from easy, and the three-minute film was born through numerous challenges.

In a documentary interview, Tamagawa mentioned that “no matter how hard your work,” and went on to say that “animation is something that is consumed.”

Puparia: A 3-Minute Anime Crafted Over 3 Years

According to Cartoon Brew, Tamagawa left his job at Sunrise to take a year-long break in order to refocus, which ultimately led to the creation of Puparia. He drew inspiration from the artistic styles of Studio Ghibli’s Hayao Miyazaki and Sony’s Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse for the aesthetic of his short film.

Despite its brief runtime, it took Tamagawa three years to complete Puparia, as every single frame was meticulously hand-drawn by him. The film’s rich details have left viewers in awe, many claiming that each frame possesses such beauty and haunting depth that it could be displayed in a museum.

The film leaves viewers puzzled, offering more questions than answers. Each person interprets it differently, especially since Puparia doesn’t follow a conventional storytelling pattern. Its surreal nature invites open-ended interpretation, making its meaning subjective.

The word “Puparia,” as defined by Webster’s Dictionary, is a noun that refers to “a rigid outer shell formed from the larval skin that covers some pupae (such as those of a dipteran fly).”