Voices of a Distant Star (Japan, 2003)

The story of the high school students Mikako Nagamine and Noboru Terao. When the alien Tarsians attack, Mikako volunteers to be a pilot in the space force that will protect mankind. The lovers try to remain in contact using cellular telephone text messages, but as each battle takes Mikako further from the Earth, each message takes longer to arrive. Will their love stand the tests of time and distance?

Being only 25 minutes long, Voices of a Distant Star manages to tell a story which easily could have been stretched to a feature length film. You know that story right; boy meets girl, boy falls in love, girl enlists in Space Force and pilots a 70 foot tall robot to shoot aliens on the surface of Mars. It's impressive to think that the creator, Makoto Shinkai (5 Centimeters Per Second), animated the film entirely by himself. A beautiful story of interplanetary love between a boy who gradually becomes a man, and a young girl who ages much, much slower out there in deep space but still never forgets the boy who awaits her at home.

Genre: Animation/Sci-Fi/Short

5 Centimeters Per Second (Japan, 2007)

Takaki and Akari are two classmates in elementary school. During their time together they have become close friends. Their relationship is tested when Akari moves to another city because of her parents' jobs. Both of them struggle to keep their friendship alive, as time and distance slowly pulls them apart. When Takaki finds out that he is moving further away, he decides to visit Akari one last time.

Before animation genius Makoto Shinkai created the incredible Children Who Chase Lost Voices (2011), he directed the equally beautiful 5 Centimeters Per Second and immediately made a huge name for himself. It pulls on your heartstrings, and it's hard not to get moved by this portrayal of a doomed, yet very strong relationship. The animation is flawless. I want to eat every cloud that floats across the many gorgeous, purple skies this film has to offer. 

Genre: Animation/Drama/Romance