Directed by Ali Tanhaee, The Secret of Butterflies is an animated adventure from Iran that follows a young insect’s quest to become a butterfly, leading him on a journey filled with friendship, danger, and hope. In a lush jungle by a river, a butterfly father plays with his young son, Ryan. At the same time, his wife worries about the village and the boy’s safety. Head of security Julian is secretly in league with a powerful white spider who claims to know the secret of making beautiful butterflies. When the spider sends his army to attack, Julian lets them in, and the invaders set fire to the village. Ryan narrowly escapes, but his father is killed in the blaze.
Years later, Ryan is trapped inside a human house. Knowing it’s no longer safe to stay there, he escapes into the wilderness. Basking in his newfound freedom, Ryan makes friends with another butterfly named Keenan, who introduces him to Dylan, the strongman of the group, and beautiful Megan, whom Ryan quickly takes a liking to. When Ryan runs into Julian again, they begin to spar, with Ryan emerging victorious, earning the admiration of the other insects. Keenan shares Ryan’s dream of becoming a butterfly, and with help from their friends and Keenan’s tools, they try to make it happen.
That night, Ryan discovers the Golden Butterfly Show, a competition of sorts where winners are chosen to travel to the City of Butterflies. But when Julian attacks Ryan by surprise, interrupting the ceremony, the Golden Butterfly leaves in anger, taking no one. When the other butterflies shun Ryan, he is reminded of how he left his village in disgrace and exiles himself away from his new friends. Ryan’s last chance is to travel across the jungle, in search of a great witch named Liam, who can help Ryan become the butterfly he was meant to be.
A scene featuring a group of insect characters in the animated film The Secret of Butterflies.
“A young insect’s quest to become a butterfly…filled with friendship, danger, and hope.”
The Secret of Butterflies is an Iranian animated feature from 2019 directed by Ali Tanhaee and co‑written with Mehdi Salehi Aghdam. Originally produced in Persian with local voice talent, the film was independently funded and completed after several years of work and went on to win several international awards for children’s entertainment. For its North American release, distributor Vision Films created a full English‑language dub featuring Innes Maas, Tara MacPherson, Jaryd Pilay, David Wilke, Jake Maisel, and Janeke Huisamen.
While The Secret of Butterflies pales in comparison to Disney/Pixar and Dreamworks productions, considerably so, the animation is not that far off from the quality of independent animation houses. In fact, having raised a child on the direct-to-DVD Barbie films, the quality falls in line with those kinds of productions.
All in all, The Secret of Butterflies is perfect for the younger single-digit-aged set. It’s a bit violent with several fist-fight scenes, but I’m of the mind that kids can handle this kind of cartoon violence as a way to show that bullies exist and defending yourself is perfectly fine.
It’s the theme of the story that provides a solid foundation for this film. It tells kids that there is a person in you who is special and will emerge through overcoming adversity and with the help of your family, friends, and community. It won’t happen overnight, and it won’t be easy.
While The Secret of Butterflies doesn’t boast a star‑studded cast or Disney‑level animation, it delivers a heartfelt, uplifting story about friendship, perseverance, and believing in yourself. It’s a sincere message that even the smallest can make the biggest difference.
"…delivers a heartfelt, uplifting story..."
