 From the start of production, director Isao Takahata wanted to cast  appropriately aged children in the roles of Seita and Setsuko.  Because the film takes place in Kobe, the search was limited to the  Kansai region of Japan in order to find children that spoke the  proper dialect. He was introduced to Ayano Shiraishi through a  regional childrens acting company, and decided to cast her as  Setsuko after only hearing two sentences: "My name is Ayano  Shriraishi. I am five years old." He was later told by one of the  companys leaders that they expected Ayano was too young for the  role, and so those were the only lines she had been instructed to  recite in the audition.