Once again, congrats to Studio Ghibli on another successful film, The Boy and the Heron. After forty years of creating groundbreaking movies, Studio Ghibli still proves that they can create masterful storytelling that resonates with audiences of any age and background.
It’s safe to say that as a result of their hard work and dedication, Studio Ghibli is one of the greatest animation companies worldwide. Since Anime isn’t bound to one particular art style, Studio Ghibli wields more creative freedom with their work by placing more emphasis on characterization and worldbuilding to tell innovative stories. To showcase their commitment to storytelling, they use camera effects and angle shots to fully capture their characters and settings to drive their stories.
Who is Studio Ghibli
Studio Ghibli was founded by directors, Hayao Miyazaki and Isao Takahata, and producer Toshio Suzuki on June 15, 1985, producing twenty-two films in total, amassing numerous awards and accolades for over forty years. Compared to Disney’s animation studio, Studio Ghibli produces their content for younger audiences, with its focus on fantasy stories.
Children’s Content and Adult Themes
However, what sets Studio Ghibli apart from other animation companies is their fearlessness to include adult themes in their films to attract adult audiences. One such film to show this contrast is Princess Mononoke, released in 1997. The conflict of environmentalism and the fragile relationship humans share with nature hooked in adults to follow the tale like a fish.
Also, the film’s shady characters and its theme around the loss of innocence only add to the story, making Princell Monokoke, a Blockbuster hit in Japan. Another powerful film that showcases Studio Ghibli’s trend of children’s movies with adult themes can be found in their film, Grave of the Fireflies.
The story of two siblings trying to survive alone during World War 2 may seem like a children’s story with its animation, but the film’s anti-war theme and heartbreaking narrative will appeal to adults all over the world. Just make sure you bring lots and lots of tissues for this one if you get the chance to see it.
It’s All in the Details
While every animation studio has average-to-great animation, Studio Ghibli makes every detail in every scene mean something. You can tell Ghibli Studio puts effort into their characters and setting design as everything the camera lingers on, no matter how long, is incredibly detailed.
The extra focus on details enhances the worldbuilding that is known throughout Studio Ghibli’s filmography, making every landscape visualized feel like a real place that you can touch through the screen.
Add Fantasy with a Little Realism
Lastly, Studio Ghibli’s films attract adult audiences by sprinkling realism throughout their fantasy films. For example, by taking field trips to forests in Japan, Miyazaki and his team were able to world build for their film, My Neighbor Totoro.
Additionally, the mining town presented in the film, Castle in the Sky, was captured after Miyazaki’s trip to Wales during the miners’ strike throughout Britain in the 1980s. By adding elements of realism, audiences connect more with the characters on screen. This element added to the film’s context allows these characters and worlds to be more real among audiences.
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