Equal parts propaganda and children's cartoon, Squirrel and Hedgehog is a North Korean animated series about the animal inhabitants of a place called Flower Hill. The squirrels, hedgehogs, and the ducks there represent North Korea. Other factions include a friendly but unreliable bear (Soviet Russia), while the antagonists are made up of weasels (Japan), mice (South Korea) and wolves (United States of America). The series reinforces the North Korean philosophy of "juche" (self-reliance) in the face of overwhelming odds. Spanning four decades of irregular production, the quality greatly improves over time as North Korea's SEK studio applies techniques learned as an under-the-table subcontractor for many Western animation studios.