A still from the movie The Garden of Words [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]

8. The Garden of Words: 8.2

The Garden of Words is a 2013 Japanese anime focusing on Takao Akizuki, a 15-year-old aspiring shoemaker, and Yukari Yukino, a mysterious 27-year-old woman he keeps meeting at Shinjuku Gyoen National Garden on rainy mornings. While Takao is skipping his morning class to design shoes, Yukino is avoiding work due to personal problems in her professional life. Yukino tells Takao nothing about herself, including her name, while Takao opens up to her, sharing his passion for shoes by offering to make a pair for her.

Shinkai wrote the story as a tale of "lonely sadness", based on the meaning of the traditional Japanese word for "love", and uses shoes as a metaphor for life. The movie was selected as the Year's Best Animation in iTunes' Best of 2013 and won the 2013 Kobe Theatrical Film Award.