Belle and Sebastian (1000) Characters, Setting & Themes Explained

Release, runtime and language

1000 · 1,560 mins · Japanese

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Directed by

Keiji Hayakawa

Starring

Toru Furuya, Ichiro Nagai, Hiroko Suzuki, Kaneta Kimotsuki, Noriko Ohara, Kaneto Shiozawa

An anime adaptation of Cécile Aubry’s French novels Belle et Sébastien, it aired on NHK from April 7 1981 to June 22 1982 for 52 episodes. Co‑produced by MK Company, Visual 80 and Toho, it was written by Toshiyuki Kashiwakura with character designs by Shuichi Seki. The series premiered in France and Japan in 1981, reached U.S. Nickelodeon in 1984 and Britain’s CBBC in 1989‑90. Staff from Nippon Animation’s World Masterpiece Theater contributed, giving it a similar look, and it has since been dubbed and subtitled in many languages.