Kemurigusa monogatari (1926)

Kemurigusa monogatari / 煙り草物語 (A Story of Tobacco in English) is a Japanese movie released in 1926 with some early cut-out animations. This silent movie was directed by the  renowned Japanese film director and animator, Noburō Ōfuji. Ōfuji was among the pioneering Japanese animators to achieve worldwide fame for his work.

The story in brief:

This short anime film starts with a young girl laughing at a tiny man sitting on her desk who says, "Women originate from tobacco." She traps him under a glass. Enraged, the man lights a cigarette in a pipe and blows smoke towards her. She hides his cigarette under her book. When he threatens her with a gun, she tosses the cigarette away. His gun misfires, and he eventually calms down and explains the history of tobacco to her. The current version of the aailble film is missing its second half so the story abruptly ends here.

More info on Kemurigusa monogatari and Noburō Ōfuji:

• Reviews and ratings of Kemurigusa monogatari - IMDb
• More info on Noburō Ōfuji - Wikipedia
• Detailed info of the restoration process - Japanese Animated Film Classics

Animation Movies by Noburō Ōfuji