This paper tries to analyse the case study offered by Belle, an animated film by Mamoru Hosoda from 2021. It focuses on the layering and thematisation of filtering instances inherent to film vision and narration within the text. The film emphasises a certain use of social networks as a filter, which is an intradiegetic theme that the narrative repeatedly recalls. Conversely, the essay will examine a further level of filtering that occurs in the pre-production phase of the animated film. This differs from live action cinema and affects the form and appearance of the film in a manner that is not present in live action cinema. Despite the promises of freedom that the animated medium makes to the spectator, the author’s precise choices filters the spectator’s experience.