Asahiyama Zoo Story: Penguins in the Sky

Asahiyama Zoo Story: Penguins in the Sky

2009 · 112 min · ★ 8.8 · Drama

Asahiyama Zoo in Hokkaido, is the northernmost zoo in Japan. The unpopular zoo welcomes a new zoo keeper, young Yoshida (Yasuhi Nakamura), who has more affection for insects than people after years of being bullied at school when he was young. Yoshida soon realizes that Asahiyama Zoo is facing a financial crisis and the zoo director Takizawa (Toshiyuki Nishida) has been doing everything in his power to save the zoo from closing down. Moved by Takizawa's passion, Yoshida and other zoo keepers came to share the zoo director's belief that one's dreams can come true, and together they tackle this seemingly impossible task of revitalizing Asahiyama. A breakthrough arrives in the form of â€œBehavioral Exhibition,â€ a method that is pioneered by Ashiyama's zoo keepers and which eventually makes the zoo renowned throughout the world.

Directed by Masahiko Tsugawa

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Cast

Toshiyuki Nishida Kanji Takizawa
Yasuhi Nakamura Tsuyoshi Yoshida
Ai Maeda Makoto Ogawa
Keiko Horiuchi Sanae Ikeuchi
Naomasa Musaka Teruo Mitani
Sansei Shiomi Genta Tobe
Ittoku Kishibe Seinosuke Yanagihara
Akira Emoto Itsuro Usui
Hiroyuki Nagato Keisuke Nirasaki
Akaji Maro

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