A zookeeper's panda dream takes her to China—then her rescue cub vanishes into the wild.
Kayo, a zookeeper, dreams of raising a panda one day. However, she soon decided to study abroad in China, and her dream came true. As soon as Kayo arrived in Sichuan Province, she met a boy named Ryuryu, and together they helped save an injured panda cub. The panda cub regained his strength and was named Hua Hua, but one day he went missing…
Practical Effects
Real panda cubs filmed on location in Sichuan reserves.
Production
Rare 1980s China-Japan co-production with authentic locations.
Director
Taku Shinjo
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
This film emerged during a brief thaw in Sino-Japanese relations, using panda diplomacy as narrative glue. Actual Sichuan panda reserves granted unprecedented access.
Lead actress Yuriko Hoshi reportedly spent weeks learning basic Mandarin and panda handling; several cubs 'retired' from acting to actual conservation programs after filming.
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