The Perfect World of Kai

The Perfect World of Kai, subtitled Piano's Forest, is a 2007 Japanese animated film produced by NHK, directed by Masayuki Kojima and written by Ryuta Hourai. The original title is Piano no Mori. (ピアノの森 – The perfect world of KAI).

It was released on July 21, 2007 in Japan theaters.

Plot
Shūhei Amamiya moves from Tokyo to the country side due to his grandmother's bad health. His father is a famous pianist and Shuuhei has taken strict piano lessons since he was very young, aspiring to follow in his footsteps. In school, he is teased by his classmates and is dared to play the piano in the forest. This piano is said to be cursed: if you play it, no sound will come. After school, Kai Ichinose, a boy in the same class, takes Shuuhei to the forest. When Shuuhei tries to play he fails, but Kai plays a wonderful song. This is the beginning of a strong friendship, and a story of two very different boys developing their skills as musicians.

Cast

 * Aya Ueto as Kai Ichinose
 * Ryunosuke Kamiki as Shūhei Amamiya
 * Hiroyuki Miyasako as Sōsuke Ajino
 * Chizuru Ikewaki as Reiko Ichinose, Kai's mother

Trivia

 * Makoto Isshiki was inspired to write Piano no Mori when she watched a documentary showing Stanislav Bunin winning the International Frédéric Chopin Piano Competition in 1985.