Studio Ghibli, is a Japanese animation film studio founded in June 1985. Many features animated by the studio have won the Animage Animé Grand Prix award. 'Spirited Away' won an Oscar for Best Animated Feature in 2002 and it is still the only non-English-speaking film in the world to have done so.
The three key people of the organisation are Hayao Miyazaki, Isao Takahata and Toshio Suzuki.
Co-Founder:
Hayao Miyazaki, Manga artist, film director and animator. With a career that has spans nearly five decades, the success of Miyazaki's films compare his level of influence to that of Walt Disney and Nick Park.
Co-Founder:
Isao Takahata Animé film maker, who is often regarded as one of the greatest directors of Animé, or Japanese animated films, who ever lived. war-film, romantic drama, comedy and ecological adventure. His film 'Grave of the Fireflies, in particular, is considered by film critic Roger Ebert one of the greatest war films ever made.' (rogerebert.com. Originally Retrieved 2006 -via Wikipedia)
Chief producer and President:
Toshio Suzuki is renowned as one of Japan's most successful producers after the enormous box office success (in Japan) of many Ghibli films. Hayao Miyazaki says, 'If it were not for Mr. Suzuki, there wouldn't have been Studio Ghibli.' (www.nausicaa.net/miyazaki/whoswho/#suzuki)
I feel this is a good studio to study as its one of the only Japanese studio which has made its art known through the mainstream media in both the East and the West. 'Almost all Studio Ghibli's films are available in dubbed form, partly as a result of a distribution deal the company made with Disney' (Studio Ghibli p33). A lot of this is because the themes and ideology in the Ghibli collection are similar to the ones in Walt Disney Pictures. However, their second release, 'Princess Mononoke' made 1999, is a tale centred around the environment involving some violence, a lot of action, and carries a strong message. As this movie would not fit well with the Disney style, it was released through Miramax Films.
Takahata and Miyazaki have such a distinctive style that 'many of the films the pair worked on prior to forming the studio are often claimed as part of Ghibli's' (p15). Their feature films are very popular as entertainment and art.
Environmentalism, or rather the way man interacts with the earth. This is closely linked to the Shinto ethic 'in which our environment is a living collection of interconnected beings that should be respected.' (p20). Miyazaki and Takahata explore these themes through multiple angles which create different conclusions.
Flying is a theme which runs through out Miyazaki's early work and his films with Studio Ghibli. The joy of flying and the freedom it gives to an animator to experiment with speed and movement. Its also used to show worlds or situations from a distant perspective.
Children are often used in Ghibli films because they would naturally be more open to fantasy worlds and 'willing to face up to grave danger because they have not yet developed the facilities to recognise threat, or are even excited by it.' (p23). For example: 'Princess Mononoke- a human raised in the barren woods by wolves. She is attuned to the spiritual realm of animals, and dose not even regard herself as human.' (100 Animé, p190).
Anthropomorphism, Zoo-morphism and Metamorphosis are pretty staple products, but there used much subtly. Although some characters such as 'Haku' in Spirited away, 'appear to be human, only to be revealed later as dragons' (Studio Ghibli p24).
Wind and weather play a crucial role in the works of many animators whether its there to reflect a characters emotion, interact with the character, or set the scene. Wind and 'weather helps create a more impressive experience for the audience as well as showing the true art of the animator.' (p26)
Bibliography:
Hannah Patterson, (2009) Studio Ghibli, Kamera Books, Harpenden, Herts
Philip Brophy, (2005) 100 Animé, British Film Institute, London
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