I have only recently become serious about trying to find this animation, but it is something that has popped in and out of my head for 20+ years or so. I do not know whether it was a film or a short, but I saw it as a child in the 1980s, although the animation itself may be older than that. In any case, what I recall of this may be mixed with other memories & is fairly vague.

Here is what I think I remember: 1) a star or stars; 2) darkness or blackness; 3) a tower or ladder; 4) a character, who I felt sorry for or upset by; 5) a cut or pricked hand or finger, perhaps from broken glass, a needle or a star; 6) a flood or river of water, darkness or stars. I think the main character had to climb something to either put a star in the sky or take a star from the sky. I have a sense that something goes wrong and the character cuts his/her hand. I also feel like there was a narrator for some if not all of this.

For some reason it makes me think of “Alakazam the Great” (watched recently, this is not it) & “The Adventures of Prince Achmed” (only been able to see still images from this, but I don’t think this is it either). I’m not sure whether the animation styles, plots, characters, titles, settings or something else reminds me of either of these, but something does in both cases. The new Pixar short “La Luna” also makes me think of it.

It may not have been a feature-length film. It might have been a short from “Long Ago & Far Away”, “Pinwheel”, “CBS Storybreak”, “ABC Weekend Special” or some similar show. I would’ve seen it in Southern Illinois, probably on PBS, Fox, ABC, NBC, CBS or the independent channel, C-13. I guess there is a chance that it was a video rental, and if so, it must have been available for Betamax, because that is what we had. I remember watching a lot of FHE videos, as a kid so it may have been one of those.

I know this is pretty vague, as I am basically trying to grasp at loose straws, but it is the best that I can do.

Thanks for any help with this.

Wild guess,...
Winds of Change
a.k.a. Orpheus of the Stars
a.k.a. Metamorphosis

possibly the segment
The myth of Eurydice

The hero descends into the underworld to retrieve his beloved armed with nothing more than his lire (stringed instrument)
He plays a sad song for Hades lord of the underworld.
Hades is moved by the sad song and relents. The hero must ascend the staircase and his lover will follow behind. He must not turn to look at her. The single tear Hades shed due to the song becomes a crystal ball, and Hades give it to the musician so he can see the reflection of his beloved behind him.
He climbs the long long staircase up out of the underworld, but at the last few steps his lover stumbles, he turns to help and as his eyes fall on her the stairs disintegrate and she's gone.

-view trailer-

-view clips-

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That's not it, but it certainly looks interesting, and it did have some of the things I mentioned present in it. I appreciate the attempt.

I think I remembered something else about the film, it seems like the main character cried and his/her tears became stars or a river or something like that, but just like everything I mentioned above, this could easily be from something else.

Actually the more I think about it, I would really like to see the segment that you mentioned, because even if it isn't the right film, just thinking about it seems to be jarring some memories out.