Film: Primer: A guide to Japan’s Studio Ghibli, home of Totoro and Spirited ...

Film: Primer: A guide to Japan’s Studio Ghibli, home of Totoro and Spirited Away

via A.V. Club by Sam Adams on 5/17/12

Ghibli 101
The greatest animation studio in the world, bar none—and yes, that includes Pixar—Japan’s Studio Ghibli is largely dedicated to the work of two brilliant directors, Hayao Miyazaki and Isao Takahata, who co-founded the animation house in 1985 with producer Toshio Suzuki. Thanks to movies like My Neighbor Totoro and Princess Mononoke, as well as a sustained publicity campaign by Ghibli’s U.S. distributor, Disney, Miyazaki’s name is well-known to animation buffs, as well as the parents of many a delighted preteen. Takahata’s work isn’t as well known, in no small part because he hasn’t directed a feature in 13 years. But in the studio’s first decade and a half, the two traded masterworks on a regular basis, working in disparate but complementary styles.

For those who have fallen under Ghibli’s spell, it’s difficult to choose a favorite ...

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