The Man, the Myth, the Legend

Studio Ghibli has been a huge part of my childhood and adulthood. It has taught me countless life lessons and brought me joy in the darkest of times. As children, we just enjoy the movies, but as we grow up we get curious about how these masterpieces came to life. I wanted to know every detail I could about these incredible worlds that I was being teleported into.

I learned about a Studio Ghibli museum coming to the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures in Los Angeles and had to go. Before going I watched every movie and even wrote about them.

Along this journey, I came across a couple of documentaries called the kingdom of dreams and madness. It shows the creation of Studio Ghibli and a behind-the-scenes look at the people who created it all. The other documentary is called Never ending man Hayao Miyazaki, which looks at the famous Japanese animator Hayao Miyazaki following his retirement in 2013. I highly recommend watching it both of them.

Storyline: Follows the routines of those employed at Studio Ghibli, including filmmakers Hayao Miyazaki, Isao Takahata, and Toshio Suzuki as they work to release two films simultaneously, The Wind Rises and The Tale of the Princess Kaguya.

Storyline: A handheld camera follows Miyazaki Hayao, the powerhouse behind the famous Ghibli Studio, and his colleagues immediately before and after his retirement and captures his transition from full-time and full-length features to other projects and how the man envisions the transition from sketching by hand to CGI animation. In the process, the camera captures the man's fastidious attitude, work ethic, and thoughts on work and immortality.

My appreciation for each film went through the roof after watching this. Just a heads up this movie is only subbed. The creative process of Hayao Miyazaki seems extremely stressful for his team. He had no idea where the story was going, he would just draw panels with notes all over them and his team had to figure out what scene he was trying to bring out of his brain without knowing the full story. I cannot imagine how creative you had to be working with him.

I love the fact he keeps retiring and then coming back to create just one more movie. I believe when you have truly found your purpose it is impossible to stop. Hayao Miyazaki found his purpose by creating wonderful worlds for us to enjoy. He is currently coming out of retirement again to turn his childhood book "How do you live?" into a movie, said to be released in 2026.

Studio Ghibli museum

I had no idea what to expect when walking through the doors. We aren't allowed to take pictures so I couldn't find anything about it online. If you love the feeling Studio Ghibli has when you get teleported into another world through the screen this is bringing those worlds to life. It was a beautiful museum and I highly recommend it to anyone wanting a deeper appreciation for the films and their creation.

When I went to the museum they had rows of these panels lined up so you could see his creative process come to life. For example in the first Studio Ghibli film Nausicaä valley of the wind, I found out about the main character Nausicaä. She started as a typical princess, in a pretty pink dress and a big dog by her side. slowly she transformed into a warrior with her fox-like companion. It brought more appreciation to the character to see her slowly transform.

I learned a lot more about the creation of the film the wind rises. The fascination Hayao Miyazaki has with planes and flight is evident from the subject matter in The Wind Rises, his first-ever film inspired by real people. However what becomes apparent from watching the film is Miyazaki’s respect for Jiro Horikoshi, the real-life chief engineer at Mitsubishi Internal Combustion Engine Company Limited, on whom the central character Jiro is loosely based. Horikoshi has long since passed, however, Miyazaki’s tribute to him, however loosely based, will live on for future Ghibli-loving generations.

Deeper meanings behind the stories

The one comment I hear most about non-Studio Ghibli fans is "They are just too weird for me" There are some films that are more bizarre than others, but I feel as if the movies with the magically bizarre stories and characters have the deepest meanings.

Howls Moving Castle

Howls Moving Castle This incredibly beautiful movie portrays the insecurities we struggle with when we look in the mirror, and how the people in our lives only look at us with love. A movie with many layers and a large cast of characters who develop throughout the movie. The more times you watch this movie the more you find all the little messages hidden within. I love the romance between Howl and Sophie, they both had to learn to love themselves first before they could love each other. One of the most beautifully romantic scenes is when Howl takes Sophie to his favorite place to escape when he was growing up. Howl giving her a glimpse of his childhood gave me the chills. We also see that Howl has been looking for Sophie since he saw a glimpse of her in his childhood and when he says "I've been looking for you" At the beginning of the movie he meant he has been looking for her his whole life.

Princess Mononoke

I am going to try not to write a novel about this movie. This is one of Studio Ghibli's more adult films because of gore and violence. That being said it is also one of the most recognizable and popular films. This is a story with a lot of layers. The forest and humans fighting for their space in the world. But one of the deeper meanings of the main character Ashitaka is he is neither man nor creature. He starts his story as a human warrior for his village but in that fight gets cursed by a demon. The elders reluctantly force him to leave, and he is now journeying on his own with no place to call home. On his journey, he met both a kind-hearted village and a forest filled with wonder. He is the middle ground for both worlds. It is such a fascinating story about humankind and our naturally greedy nature, but also how terrifying nature can be. This film shows the devastation when our two worlds collide and the peace that comes when we work together to find peace and balance with the nature surrounding us.

The Forest Spirit, also called Shishigami and Night-Walker, is a creation out of Hayao Miyazaki's wonderfully created mind. Most of the spirits you find in spirited away and princess Mononoke can be traced back to Japanese folk tales. The fact that this amazing creature was completely made up brought a lot more respect to the creation of the creature known as a god of life and death.

The Tales of Earthsea

Hayo's son created this movie. It has such a deep and impactful meaning. As humans, we naturally fear death and try everything we can to stop it. But in reality, I think a lot more of us fear living. But think about it there is no value to life without death. Let that thought sink in. If we didn't die we would have no reason to live, why do anything when we have all the time in the world? It's the fact we don't have all the time in the world and once we choose to spend our time it is gone forever, so we must choose to spend our time wisely. That message hits deep for me.

Thank you, Hayao Miyazaki and Studio Ghibli

I'd like to thank Hayao Miyazaki and Studio Ghibli. They brought worlds to life that have filled me and countless others with joy. You have inspired me to chase after my passions and never let anything stop me. When I find my true purpose it will be impossible for me to stop, just like Hayao can't seem to stay in retirement. From the bottom of my heart, I appreciate the work that went into each film and I am looking forward to more films to come.

I hope in reading this you also find a deeper appreciation and curiosity for Studio Ghibli. I'd love to hear your favorite film and why in the comments below.

Thanks for Reading!!

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Studio Ghibli Annoucement

Did you grow up with movies like Spirited Away or Howls moving castle? or maybe you grew up with Star Wars or Indiana Jones? What would you say if I told you they are going to be working together??? After being bought by Disney Studio Ghibli Production hasn't come out with a movie in almost 10 years. Huge Studio Ghibli bombshell coming out of retirement to work on a new project with LucasFilm!! Check out Studio Ghibli and LucasFilm news!!

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