
Kappa
水の精 河童百図
Kappa, water imps, have long been a part of Japanese folklore, believed to inhabit rivers and lakes. They appear in paintings, sculptures, and stories, and some people claimed to have seen them.
By the 20th century, Japan's rapid industrialization transformed the natural landscape. Reclaimed lakes, concrete riverbanks, and chemical runoff destroyed the habitats of fish, insects, birds, and animals—including the kappa. This film vividly depicts the waterside scenes of Japan when kappa still lived there, suggesting that if environmental pollution is prevented, there might still be a chance to see them.