Kazuhiko Watanabe
Directing
Known For

A stop-motion puppet animation adaptation of Hans Christian Anderson's tale The Ugly Duckling.
The Ugly Duckling

A little girl tries to sell matches on a cold December night with no luck. To keep from freezing she lights one match and sees a wondrous vision...
The Little Match Girl

In this tale an ant and a pigeon help each other. Third remake of the Ari to Hato.
The Ant and the Pigeon

One day, an old man rescued a crane that had been caught in a trap. Then, one night, a young woman named 'Tsuu' visited the old man's house, and they began living together. Tsuu wove very beautiful and magnificent cloth. However, she would never let anyone see her while she was weaving...
The Grateful Crane

A stop-motion puppet animation adaptation of the fairy tale Beauty and the Beast.
Beauty and the Beast

A short puppet animation movie by Kazuhiko Watanabe.
The Moonbeam Princess
A short animated film based on the Aesop's Fable "The North Wind and the Sun".
The North Wind and the Sun

Gerda and Kai were close friends. But one day, a shard from a mirror that distorts everything it reflects entered Kai's eye. Drawn in by the Snow Queen, he disappeared beyond the icy plains. Gerda set out on a journey to find him, and eventually reunited with Kai in the Snow Queen's castle.
The Snow Queen

Yamahiko, the younger brother, hunts in the mountains, and Umihiko, the older brother, fishes in the sea. One day, Yamahiko loses Umihiko's precious fish hook. Yamahiko goes to a country at the bottom of the sea and somehow finds the hook. But when he returns, he finds his village in ruins.
The Sea Boy and the Mountain Boy
A short animated film from 1962.
The Jakata Tale of the Golden Deer

A stop-motion adaptation of Hans Christian Anderson's The Nightingale.
The Nightingale

Stop motion animation of an old Japanese fairy tale. A poor man trades a piece of straw for a more expensive item. In the course of his journey, he manages to finally exchange the last item for a villa.
The Straw Millionaire

An old man accidentally drops his rice ball for lunch into a rat hole. The happy sound of singing lures him into the hole, where he is welcomed with open arms by the rats. Seeing this, the old man next to him also tries to fall into the hole, but...
Omusubi Kororin

A stop-motion puppet animation adaptation of Hans Christian Anderson's Thumbelina.
Thumbelina

In order to buy rice cakes for New Year's, Grandpa went out in the snowy weather to sell the umbrellas. On his way home without selling any, he found a Jizo and covered him with a umbrella. That night, while Grandpa and Grandma were sleeping, they heard something singing.
Kasa Jizou

Hikokazu is walking around selling watermelons when he meets Chuemon, a family retainer, in front of a castle. He was looking for someone with wisdom, as he was troubled by an envoy from a neighboring country who was making unreasonable demands. Hikokazu decides to cooperate with Chuemon on the promise that he will buy all the watermelons.
Hikoichi's Wits

Hans was making bread and North Wind was blowing all the flour out of his bowl. He decides to visit the North Wind in his castle to ask him to stop and for compensation. Based on a Norwegian fable...
The Boy and the North Wind

A short animated film by from 1959.