Flanders no Inu (Movie)

Nello Daas is a poor but gifted young artist living outside Antwerp with his aging grandfather and their loyal dog Patrasche. He helps deliver milk to survive and treasures every chance to see the paintings of Rubens, dreaming of a life devoted to art even when poverty makes that dream seem impossible.

His closest friend, Alois, is kept away by a father who considers Nello beneath her social class. When an art contest offers both prize money and a path into formal study, Nello pours his hope into one painting, but illness, accusation and loss close in around him. Through every hardship, Patrasche remains beside the boy who once saved his life.