rewind: studio ghibli museum!

Before leaving for Japan, I made a to do list: eat sushi, try miso ramen, stuff my face with mochi... Yea, a lot of it was, unsurprisingly, food-related. But one item that was not, and was actually underlined, written in bold caps, and surrounded by stars & exclamation points, was visiting the Studio Ghibli Museum!

Studio Ghibli is a delightful & innovative animation studio, founded by Hayao Miyazaki, Isao Takahata & Toshio Suzuki in 1985. With strong backgrounds in the animation industry, and after the success of the AWESOME film Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind, the three men collaborated to create THE GREATEST STUDIO OF ALL TIME, unaware of how it would shape & heavily influence the industry in Japan, as well as animation abroad in the future. Ghibli has a more than impressive resume of films, wowing audiences of children & adults alike with such titles as Castle in the Sky, My Neighbor Totoro, Princess Mononoke, Ponyo, & most popularly Spirited Away. The later film was the western world's first real introduction to Studio Ghibli thanks to Walt Disney Studios (I really think that John Lasseter has a crush on Miyazaki, btw), & it also won the 2002 Oscar for Best Animated Feature. BAM.

In addition to their unique approach to design & animation, the studio has also become well known for their stories. They "often incorporate recurrent themes, such as humanity's relationship to nature and technology, and the difficulty of maintaining a pacifist ethic. Reflecting Miyazaki's feminism, the protagonists of his films are often strong, independent girls or young women. While two of his films, The Castle of Cagliostro and Castle in the Sky, involve traditional villains, his other films such as Nausicaä or Princess Mononoke present morally ambiguous antagonists with redeeming qualities" (Wikipedia). (Yea, I thought they put it best.)

& fun fact re: the name: "Ghibli is based on the Arabic name for the sirocco, or Mediterranean wind, which the Italians used for their Saharan scouting planes in World War II, the idea being that the studio would blow a new wind through the Japanese anime industry" (Wikipedia). (Have you noticed that I LOVE Wikipedia?)

They opened up a museum in 2001 in Mitaka Inokashira Park, and I was DETERMINED to go. And I did! Unfortunately, photography of any kind was not allowed in the museum, so I can't share photos. But, in the end, I liked it better that way for my personal experience. As their website says, "The Ghibli Museum is a portal to a storybook world. As the main character in a story, we ask that you experience the Museum space with your own eyes and senses, instead of through a camera's viewfinder. We ask that you make what you experienced in the Museum the special memory that you take home with you." Have I mentioned that I LOVE THEM?

The museum was beyond excellent! Near the main entrance was a ginormous Totoro sitting behind a ticket booth window! & approaching it, I could hear little voices swooning & excitedly exclaiming “Kawaii!” ("Cute!”). Most of the visitors were kids, & I counted myself among them, feeling like a child at heart as I all but frolicked into the museum. It looked almost colonial with wood paneling, metal-gated staircases & diamond-paned windows. The lively & colorful exhibit pieces stood out wonderfully against this historic propriety (such as the brilliant stained glass window on the ceiling, which was a detailed mosaic of Studio Ghibli characters!). The exhibits encouraged visitor interaction & imagination- it wasn’t about looking & observing, but it was about experiencing & being a part of the studio and the animation process. They had intricate contraptions of whirling wheels & gears that showed how 35 mm film became a movie; replicas of animator desks covered with whittled down pencils, watercolor drafts & sketches; walls covered with design concepts, postcards, magazine cut outs and various odds & ends (like a mounted moose head, model airplanes, & empty ornate picture frames) used for inspiration; giant hand-crank flip books; etc. There was so much to see & do! I wandered from room to room, overwhelmed with delight & increasing love for the studio.

I really believe that everyone should experience the museum! That said, I don’t want to spoil it by writing too much. It really was such a magical place, where youth & child-like awe is restored, even for the grumpiest & most brittle person.

P.s. I saw Charlotte Gainsbourg there with her kids! Celebrity sighting in Japan. In the Studio Ghibli Museum. DOUBLE COOL.