A Sumo Wrestler's Tail

Miyazaki's 2010 Ghibli Museum short about rats at a sumo bout, Akihiko Yamashita's directing debut.

A Sumo Wrestler's Tail is a 2010 fantasy animated short film of 13 minutes, written by Hayao Miyazaki and directed by Akihiko Yamashita. Based on the Japanese folk tale Nezumi no Sumō, it was produced by Studio Ghibli for the Ghibli Museum in Mitaka.

Quick Facts

Director: Akihiko Yamashita
Writer: Hayao Miyazaki
Starring: Sawako Agawa
Music: Manto Watanobe
Studio: Studio Ghibli
Distributor: Ghibli Museum
Released: 3 January 2010
Runtime: 13 minutes

Facts from the source article.

Background

An old farmer discovers a group of rats heading to a sumo wrestling bout; after they lose miserably, he decides to feed the rats to boost their chances of winning. Known in Japan as Chūzumō, the film was written and planned by Miyazaki, with storyboards by Yamashita that took three months to complete, and it depicts scenery and locations based on actual places in Nagano Prefecture.

It premiered at the Ghibli Museum on January 3, 2010, Yamashita's directorial debut and, at the time, the first Studio Ghibli film to premiere at the museum in four years. To promote it, wrestlers from the Arashio stable, including Ōyutaka Masachika, were invited to the museum, where they held a sumo tournament in front of a group of children. The music is by Manto Watanobe and the narrator is Sawako Agawa.