Studio Ghibli’s finest
Studio Ghibli is a film studio based in Japan that has produced some of the most known films within the anime space. These films include Oscar nominees such as “Howls Moving Castle,” “The Tale of Princess Kaguya“ and “The Wind Rises.” It also includes Oscar winner “Spirited Away,” which brought Japanese films into the spotlight for Western audiences. The man behind its creation is known as Hayao Miyazaki.
Miyazaki had moderate success in the ’80s and ’90s with the releases of “My Neighbor Totoro” and “Princess Mononoke.” In 2003, “Spirited Away” won the studio its first Oscar at the Academy Awards. This put him and the studio on the map. His stories captured coming-of-age and romantic narratives that intertwined with fantasy inspired by Japanese folklore. Miyazaki came to be well respected in the film space. His influence stretched for decades and fans looked forward to any film with his name attached. In the early 2010s however, this came to a temporary end.
Hayao Miyazaki ‘retires’
In the year of 2013, Miyazaki announced his retirement. From his first creation “Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind” to his last “The Wind Rises,” he was leaving behind an over 40-year career. Miyazaki’s international recognition built over the years, but it reached its height with the Oscar-winning film “Spirited Away.” This is where he became a household name. Miyazaki’s style was unique and created many iconic characters such as No-face, Totoro, Kiki, Ponyo, Princess Mononoke and many more.
His retirement even caused an exodus of employees to leave and form a new studio. Charles Bramesco writes for The Verge about the directors who left:
“Outside the auspices of the Ghibli banner, the artists he trained and influenced have carried on his legacy; former Ghibliites Hiromasa Yonebayashi and Yoshiaki Nishimura established a sort of spinoff in Studio Panoc, currently readying the visually and conceptually familiar “Mary and the Witch’s Flower” for release this summer,” said Bramesco
At this point, the original studio continued without his input. However, fans worried that the studio would decline. Despite many talented animators at the studio, Miyazaki’s name is the most recognized. But just because someone is born to a famous figure, it is not a guarantee they live up to the expectations it entails. Nepotism would soon come into play.
Life after Miyazaki
Despite a few successful releases after his departure (“When Marnie Was There” and “The Red Turtle”), the studio encountered some trouble. 2017 saw the release of “Earwig and The Witch.” Directed by Goro Miyazaki (Miyazaki’s son), the film holds a 28% rating on Rotten Tomatoes. This gave long-time fans fear that the studio was leaning into the world of 3D animation. For a studio with a 2D catalog, there were concerns that the reputation Miyazaki built for the studio would diminish. Journalist Shanti Escalante-De Mattei writes about these worries in ARTnews.
“The comparisons between Goro and his father would be unfair if not for the fact that Goro was working off of the prestige of his father’s work, pulling in nostalgic loyalty while muddying Studio Ghibli’s legacy,” said Escalante-De Mattei.
The return
This film’s box office failure prompted Miyazaki to return from his retirement to create one last film. “How Do You Live” (“The Boy and The Heron”) began its production in 2017 with a target for the 2020 Japan Olympics. This would not happen due to the worldwide COVID-19 pandemic. Despite its minimal promotion overseas, the hype for the film is felt amongst long-time fans. Movie theaters even held screenings of older Studio Ghibli films in recent months as part of an event called the 2023 Studio Ghibli Fest. This allowed the fans to relive the magic of Miyazaki in preparation for his upcoming release.
The film has already reached critical acclaim after its screenings at multiple film festivals, including the Chicago International Film Festival. Recently it has won an award. Evan Valentine writes positively about the film for ComicBook.
“The New York Film Critics Circle ranked “The Boy And The Heron” as the best-animated film of this year, which is impressive considering some of the major competition that arrived this year,” said Valentine.
With early screenings winning awards, high praise and being labeled his ‘magnum opus,’ it has left fans excited for Miyazaki to complete his legacy with one more for the history books. It also gives hope that Miyazaki may soon be putting another Oscar nomination and even win under his belt.
“The Boy and The Heron” is releasing in theaters December 8. Watch the English dubbed trailer here.
