Synopsis: Kubo and the Two Strings

Kubo is a young boy living in a small village who possesses a special gift: telling stories through music. His life changes when he accidentally awakens a spirit from the past, triggering an ancient vendetta. To protect himself, Kubo must embark on a journey where he won’t just seek to survive… but also to understand who he truly is.

Accompanied by characters as unexpected as they are essential, he will discover that his story doesn’t begin with him, but much earlier. And that, to move forward, he must first look back.

Will you join me?

There are stories that don’t begin with us

Sometimes we think our lives begin with us. That who we are depends solely on what we do, what we decide, or who we want to become. But there is something that often goes unnoticed:

We all come from a story.

A story we didn’t choose. A story that, in part, we don’t fully know. And a story that influences us more than we realize.

What isn’t understood… is dragged along

Kubo lives surrounded by fragments. Incomplete memories. Half-told stories. Silences that weigh more than words. This creates something very common:

Moving forward without fully understanding what you’re carrying behind you.

We often try to keep going without looking back. Without understanding. Without finding closure. But what isn’t understood doesn’t disappear; it is dragged along.

From self-acceptance to reconciliation

In Mary and Max, we saw the importance of accepting yourself exactly as you are. Kubo takes it a step further:

• It’s not enough to accept yourself.

• You also need to understand your history.

Because who we are isn’t just about the present. It’s also about what we’ve lived, what we’ve been told, and what we have yet to understand.

Memory as a part of identity

The film focuses on a powerful idea:

Remembering isn’t just looking back; it’s understanding who you are.

But it’s not about remembering in just any way. It’s about giving meaning, reconstructing, and integrating. Because memory isn’t just the past; it is identity.

Rewriting history is also possible

Kubo introduces a very interesting concept: not everything we inherit is set in stone.

• We can look at our history through a different lens.

• We can understand what we didn’t understand before.

• We can give a different meaning to what we’ve experienced.

Not to change the past, but to avoid being trapped by it.

What this story teaches us

This movie isn’t just about adventure. It speaks to something deeply human: the need to understand where we come from to know where we are going. Without that understanding, decisions become harder and identity becomes more fragile.

For youth, families, and educators

• For the youth: It presents a key idea—not everything starts with you, but everything can be transformed through you.

• For families: It serves as a reminder that the stories we pass down matter.

• For educators: It introduces a fundamental dimension—educating is also about helping someone understand their own history.

A parting question

If part of who you are comes from what you didn’t choose… are you giving yourself the time to understand your story, or are you simply trying to move forward without looking at it?

José María Sánchez Villa