STACK Magazine December Issue 122

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EXTRAS
DECEMBER 2014 JB Hi-Fi
Kiki’s Delivery Service
Over the last few years, Madman have
treated us to all of Studio Ghibli’s feature
films, and more recently, we’ve seen
a slew of beautiful Blu-ray releases. This month
sees Madman kick it up a notch with not only
a handful of glorious HD titles, but also some
extremely collectable Limited Edition packs which
are sure to hold pride of place in the collection of
any Ghibli devotee.
Kiki’s Delivery Service celebrates its 25th
anniversary with a limited edition set including the
film on DVD and Blu-ray, a hardcover art book, art
cards and a commemorative coin.
Howl’s Moving Castle celebrates its 10th
anniversary also with a limited edition set
including the film on DVD and Blu-ray, a hardcover
art book, art cards, commemorative coin and a
figurine.
TheWind Rises , however, gets a limited
edition release including the film on Blu-ray and
Howl’s Moving Castle
What is it about Studio Ghibli
which has proven to be so
enduring?
Our films engage viewers
with a distinctive combination of
beautiful hand-drawn animation
and background art, and daring,
surprising and honest stories.
Even our most fanciful stories are
expressed with genuine, believable
characters in thrilling situations.
Viewers are always treated to a
visually stunning experience and
compelling stories, time after time.
Our films are never dated or marked
by the language or look of current
trends and fashion; they remain
timeless and thus are ultimately re-
watchable. The films are intelligent
and treat our viewers – old and
young alike – as intelligent and
worthy of the challenge of stories
that do not always have easy
explanations, perfect heroes and
wholly-evil villains.
Probably for ease of comparison,
Studio Ghibli is sometimes
referred to as “Disney of the East”.
Is this a fair comparison?
Thinking about the commitment
of both studios to high quality
animated film entertainment, yes, I
think it is a fair comparison.
However, Studio Ghibli is a very
small studio with limited film output
compared to Disney; we are tiny,
actually, in humble surroundings
with a single ambition – to create
compelling and beautiful films for
Japanese viewers. Our founders
and younger directors make the
films that tell the stories that they
want to tell, not the stories that
they think will necessarily sell to a
particular market or demographic.
Our films are not created with
sequels, TV spin-offs, merchandising
and theme parks in mind – all
things that Disney is excellent at
doing. Disney designs, creates and
grows tremendously large, broad
experiences – very high quality
experiences! – with its characters
and stories. We create single “one-
off” films that are really almost at
the whim of our directors, with no
regard for market demographics and
current trends, or future franchise
expansion. Thankfully, there certainly
is plenty of room for the films of
both studios – indeed, there are
many Disney fans at Studio Ghibli,
and we have a treasured and warm
relationship with Pixar in particular.
Is there one particular Ghibli film
which best encapsulates the
studios spirit?
Tough question! It’s like when I
am asked “Which is your favourite
Studio Ghibli film?” and my honest
answer always is, “The one I most
recently watched.” But you asked
me a specific question so I’ll try to
answer it… hmmm. My colleagues
will of course have different
answers, and I think Miyazaki-san
would disagree with me (especially
having heard what he said in The
Kingdom of Dreams and Madness),
but how about Porco Rosso? It has
it all – charming and memorable
characters forging their own paths
(like our founders), a clever story
with plenty of unexpected moments
and twists (like our history),
innovative animation and art
(what we aim to make), important
messages delivered without
bombast (how we aim to speak),
sweeping music and breathtaking
vistas (beauty we love), and, of
course, airplanes and food (soaring
high [metaphorically] and eating
[actually].
What is it about Studio Ghibli that has drawn such a devoted following? For the answer to this question
I spoke to JeffWexler, Studio Ghibli International Division Chief and producer of TheWind Rises.
ANIME ROUND-UP
DVD, hardcover art book, collectable coin and a
look behind-the-scenes at Ghibli inThe Kingdom
of Dreams and Madness on DVD.
These films are also available individually on
both Blu-ray and DVD, except for The Kingdom
of Dreams and Madness, which will be DVD
only. The tearjerking Grave of the Fireflies,
and the not-Ghibli-but-still-Miyazaki Castle of
Cagliostro are also both being released in
stunning High-Def on Blu-ray.
TheWind Rises