The main character, Dilili, rides a leopard in the animated film, Dilili in Paris, created by French director Michel Ocelet. [Photo provided to China Daily]

The latest movie by a famous French animator is a dark children's tale set against the backdrop of Paris during the Belle Epoque, Xu Fan reports.

A legend in the world of French cinematic animation, 76-year-old auteur Michel Ocelot recently visited China with his latest directorial outing, Dilili in Paris, winner of the best animated film at the 2019 Cesar Awards-the French equivalent of the Oscars.

The movie, which opened the Annecy Film Festival in 2018, was released in Chinese mainland theaters on Saturday.

Told from the perspective of a child, a method Ocelot often adopts, the story sees Dilili, a 6-year-old Kanak girl from New Caledonia-a French territory in the South Pacific-team up with a delivery boy to probe a string of mysterious child kidnappings in the French capital.

While the plot may sound a little flat to fans of the genre, the film should attract arthouse enthusiasts as it's something of a love letter to Paris during the Belle Epoque period-a famous artistic heyday for France between the late 19th and early 20th centuries.