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Hollywood Animal: the glitz, sleaze and glamour of Tinseltown
by Kim Muntinga
Studio Ghibli turns 40 – a flashback to their iconic movies
15.6.2025
Translation: Elicia Payne
From breathing trees, to walking castles – in movies such as My Neighbor Totoro and Spirited Away, Studio Ghibli creates unforgettable worlds with unique characters and difficult themes at their core. Let’s take a look back at some of its movies.
On 15 June 1985, Studio Ghibli was born. Two directors Hayao Miyazaki and Isao Takahata and producer Toshio Suzuki laid the foundations for a moving story. Together, they turned the style of Japanese cartoons on its head and simultaneously shaped cinema worldwide.
Thanks to Hayao Miyazaki’s strong personality and vision, profound stories were created, wrapped in unique worlds and memorable characters. Scenes like the parents turned into pigs from Spirited Away are still with me today. This was just one outcome of Miyazaki’s personal story which is characterised by war experiences, family challenges and an early decision to take up a career in the art of animated film.
Source: Studio Ghibli
If you want to find out more about his influences and background, I can recommend a documentary about him by Arte (movie in German). This is still freely available until 1 July 2025. In my article, I look at individual movies by Ghibli and their deeper messages. Nostalgia mixed with thought-provoking points – and a call to (once again) watch one of these wonderful movies.
In harmony with nature
Even in the studio’s early works, nature takes centre stage. In 1984, Nausicaä - of the Valley of the Wind made its debut. The story takes place in a post-apocalyptic world threatened by a poisonous forest with gigantic insects. The young warrior Nausicaä loves nature and wants to find the middle ground between this destructive forest and the humans fighting against it. She understands that the forest and nature are important. And that humanity must learn to live in harmony with this instead of fighting it. The message in Princess Mononoke from 1997 is very similar. There, too, people should live in harmony with nature.
The approach to My Neighbor Totoro from 1988 is somewhat more childlike and magical. Here, sisters Satsuki and Mei move to the countryside with their dad to be with their sick mum. The children find a magical world full of forest spirits – and of course the cuddly bear Totoro. Together they experience magical adventures in a wonderful natural setting. Perhaps this is a call from Miyazaki to look out for our own neighbour Totoro, who can show us the magic of nature?
Source: Studio Ghibli
Courage to be a strong female
Although the three founders of Studio Ghibli are all men, their movies often focus on fearless, rebellious girls. That’s a powerful message, in my opinion. This was also the case in Kiki’s Delivery Service from 1989. At the tender age of 13, witch Kiki has to leave her parents’ house and move to a foreign city. There she founds a delivery service on her broom. She experiences highs and lows and even loses her magical abilities in the process. Kiki’s portrayed as a courageous and independent personality as she navigates the challenges of growing up. Heartwarming!
Source: Studio Ghibli
I’ve already mentioned my favourite Studio Ghibli movie: Spirited Away (2001). Little Chihiro and her parents end up in a mysterious world. But her parents are turned into pigs and the girl’s completely on her own. The protagonist’s a role model because she asserts herself in a strange world, finds her way to independence and discovers her strengths. As a child, I admired Chihiro, but still had a queasy stomach at the odd scene. As an adult, I have a greater understanding of what’s at the heart of the movie, which makes the story even more enjoyable!
War, pacifism and reconciliation
The Second World War didn’t leave Hayao Miyazaki unscathed. In several movies, he deals with armed conflicts – but also with subsequent reconciliations. Howl’s Moving Castle " from 2004 is a very successful example of this. The main character Sophie is a hat maker and is transformed into an old woman when she’s cursed. From then on, she lives with other inhabitants in the four-legged, wandering castle of the young wizard Howl. But a great war is raging and the inhabitants of the castle must stand up to a war machine together with Sophie – but how? And why are they even at war? Is a magician really Sophie’s only hope? So many questions that I could also ask myself today...
Source: Studio Ghibli
War’s addressed even more intensely in the biographically inspired movie The Wind Rises from 2013. This is about Jirō Horikoshi, a real life engineer. He designed the famous Japanese Zero fighter aircraft Mitsubishi A6M during the Second World War. The movie’s about Jirō’s passion for flying, but also about the dilemma of his ideas being misused for war.
Between dream, fantasy and reality
Studio Ghibli is known for wrapping real themes in fantastic stories full of magic. In addition to Spirited Away and Howl’s Moving Castle, the studio has many more movies that take you into a world of dreams and fantasies.
The latest work from Studio Ghibli is The Boy and the Heron from 2023. War and death also feature throughout this movie. The protagonist Mahito has lost his mother in the war and moves to the countryside with his father and his wife. There he discovers an abandoned tower and a heron lures him into a magical parallel world. The movie is emotionally very complex and mixes the world of fantasy, dreams and an often painful reality to create an impressive overall picture.
Source: Studio Ghibli
Leave lasting impressions
The numerous stories that Studio Ghibli has brought to life so lovingly and by hand have a few things in common. In addition to the unmistakable drawing style, the unique characters and worlds, the movies also impress with their depth. A cat-and-mouse game of dream and reality, war and reconciliation.
In the 40 years since the company was founded, we’ve been richly blessed with these movies, and they’ve proven to be topical to this day. Respect for nature and questioning the purpose of war have never been so important. Not to mention that many more children and female characters get to play the lead role in order to save humanity from itself.
It’s hard to tell what the future holds for Studio Ghibli. There’s no doubt about it that Hayao Miyazaki is the driving force. At the age of 84, however, it’s uncertain how much longer he will carry on. It remains unknown who the successor will be. But what we do know is that it’s left a legacy and an impact on the global cinema industry that even Miyazaki, Takahata and Suzuki would never have dreamed of. Or maybe they did?
Feel free to share your nostalgia, kind words and your recommendations from the Studio Ghibli movie world in the comments section.
Header image: Michelle Brändle
In my world, Super Mario chases Stormtroopers with a unicorn and Harley Quinn mixes cocktails for Eddie and Peter at the beach bar. Wherever I can live out my creativity, my fingers tingle. Or maybe it's because nothing flows through my veins but chocolate, glitter and coffee.
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