Day 1 of Miyazaki Week
Studio Ghibli has been captivating the hearts of audiences around the world for many decades, making it by far the most popular Japanese animation and film studio in the world. Today, I will share a brief history of how Studio Ghibli came to be and what makes it so special to so many audiences around the world.
THE BEGINNING
Years later, Miyazaki and Isao came together again to work on the 1984 fantasy adventure film, Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind (風の谷のナウシカ). With it's strong leading female, a princess who must stop a jungle of mutant insects from being destroyed by an ancient weapon, the film was a great success and was a huge building block that led to the foundation and creation of Studio Ghibli in 1985. Though at the time of the film's release it was not a Ghibli film, it is now included as part of the Ghibli film collection.
CREATION OF THE STUDIO
Following the creation of Studio Ghibli, three more films were released including Castle in the Sky (天空の城ラピュタ) (1986) , Grave of the Fireflies (火垂るの墓) (1988) directed by Takahata, and My Neighbor Totoro (となりのトトロ) (1988). My Neighbor Totoro has since become a cultural icon for the studio and a trademark, becoming a part of the studio's logo as seen above. The film is a magical work of art that follows two young girl's who happen upon a forest spirit named Totoro. It isn't hard to see how the giant, cuddly Totoro creature became a fan favorite. **Check back this week on this blog for a My Neighbor Totoro film theory that will make you look at the film in a new light.
It was fours years after the studio was founded that it finally had it's biggest success with the release of the 1989 film, Kiki's Delivery Service (魔女の宅急便) . The film was based off of a children's book by Eiko Kadona titled Witch's Express Home Delivery ( 魔女の宅急便). A fun fact about this book vs. film is in the book's illustrations, Kiki is seen with long hair. During the animating of the film, Kiki's hair was cut short to make it easier on the animators. At the time of the film's release, it became the highest grossing film in Japan. The film would also come to be the first Studio Ghibli film to be released in 1997 under the distribution partnership between the studio and The Walt Disney World Company.
Though every Ghibli film released has been a success, the most accalimed Ghibli film to date is the 2001 fantasy movie, Spirited Away (千と千尋の神隠し). The film is the highest grossing movie in Japan to date, which overthrew Titanic (1997),which had previously held the title in the Japanese box office. Spirited Away was also the winner for Best Animated Feature at the 75th Academy Awards. Of Ghibli film's this is the one movie I guarantee most people recall if they are not a Ghibli fanatic. **Check back this week on this blog for a Spirited Away film theory that will make you look at the film in a new light.
MIYAZAKI'S RETIREMENT
It was a sad day in 2013 when Hayao Miyazaki held a press conference in which he stated his retirement from Studio Ghibli. He was quoted as saying, "I know I've said I would retire many times in the past. Many of you must think, 'Once again.' But this time I am quite serious." Miyazaki's last film was his 2013 release of The Wind Rises (風立ちぬ) which was a historical drama biopic of Jiro Horikoshi, who was the designer of the two fighter aircrafts that were later used by the Empire of Japan in WWII.
Though Miyazaki retired from creating any more feature films, Studio Ghibli has not closed it's doors for good. The studio released another film in 2013 directed by Isao Takahata titled, The Tale of Princess Kaguya (かぐや姫の物語). This film has some of the most beautiful animation ever created. It is almost as if you are watching traditional Japanese artwork come to life through moving pictures. In 2014, Studio Ghibli also released When Marnie was There (思い出のマーニー). At the moment there are no other films in the works, as the studio has said they are going on a "brief pause" to re-evaluate Studio Ghibli's direction in the wake of Miyazaki's retirement. We can only hope this will not be the end of such a talented film studio that has taken audiences to so many magical worlds.
GHIBLI FILMS
Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind (風の谷のナウシカ) - 1984
Grave of Fireflies (火垂るの墓) -1988
My Neighbor Totoro (となりのトトロ)- 1988
Kiki's Delivery Service (魔女の宅急便)- 1989
Only Yesterday (おもひでぽろぽろ)-1991
Porco Rosso (紅の豚)-1992
Pom Poko (平成狸合戦ぽんぽこ) -1994
Whisper of the Heart (耳をすませば)-1995
Princess Mononoke (もののけ姫) -1997
My Neighbors the Yamadas (ホーホケキョとなりの山田くん) -1999
Spirited Away (千と千尋の神隠し) -2001
The Cat Returns ( 猫の恩返し) -2002
Howl's Moving Castle (ハウルの動く城)-2004
Tales from Earthsea (ゲド戦記) -2006
Ponyo (崖の上のポニョ) -2008
Secret World of Arrietty (借りぐらしのアリエッティ) -2010
From Up on Poppy Hill (コクリコ坂から) -2011
The Wind Rises (風立ちぬ) -2013
The Tale of Princess Kaguya (かぐや姫の物語) -2013
When Marnie was There (思い出のマーニー) -2014
I wish I could have spoken about each film separately, but if I did, this post would turn into a novel! I do hope you enjoyed this brief history of Studio Ghibli though. In honor of Hayao Miyazaki's birthday (tomorrow), I am posting everyday this week about Ghibli films, so please check back tomorrow for a new post!
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| Why Yes...I did cosplay as Totoro once :D |
Thanks!
W
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