Fans of iconic anime made by Studio Ghibli will soon have a chance to enjoy their films on the big screen.
Zane Trow, the Creative Arts Manager at the Redland Performing Arts Centre explains how he fell in love with Studio Ghibli films. “I discovered them through my kids some years ago. I think one of their cousins had the DVD of 'Totoro' (which we screened last year) and I was just struck with how beautiful they are,” explains Zane. “This is the second screening of Studio Ghibli films for us because last year went so well, people really liked it. I was just struck by how well made they are and just how they offer a real alternative to what I would call real 'Disney schmaltz'. They're not as Hollywood by any means, they're much more human, even though they're dealing with fairy stories.”
All the films screening at the festival are directed by award winning filmmaker Hayao Miyazaki. “He's regarded internationally as one of the greatest directors and designers of animation that we've seen so far. Late last year he retired, he's not going to make any more films,” states Zane. “There are some films that are designed for a children's audience but have this massive impact on adults as well. I think some of his films are going to be around for a very, very long time. There's been Academy Awards for Best Foreign Film and a lot of recognition that what he was doing was taking the best of Japanese animation and turning it into something very special.”{youtube}Vp2nb9Vq0yY{/youtube}
'Arrietty' is inspired by a children's book 'The Borrowers' and tells the tale of a family of tiny people who live inside people's houses, unbeknownst to the owners. “Arrietty is learning how to survive in the big people's world and is getting mentored by her father in how to move around the house without getting caught, without being seen.”
'Ponyo' is about the story of a young and overeager goldfish princess that seeks to become human, developing a friendship with a young boy along the way. “It's kind of a twist on 'The Little Mermaid' story, but it's very much about water and human being's relationship to water in all different kinds of ways,” elaborates Zane.
{youtube}CsR3KVgBzSM{/youtube}
'Porco Rosso' which is Zane's favourite film out of the selection for the Studio Ghibli festival, is the story of an aviator who just happens to be a pig. “It's a straight adventure movie, really on one level for kids and it's very funny,” says Zane. “He's also looking at that strange period between the two World Wars and he's looking at the rise of fascism in Italy and the whole politics of the Mediterranean area between those World Wars as well.”
{youtube}awEC-aLDzjs{/youtube}
'Howl's Moving Castle' is the most recent of the Studio Ghibli films. “Again, a growing up story, a changing story, the story of a young woman. She has a spell put on her and she suddenly turns into an old woman,” explains Zane. The young woman then seeks out the help of a wizard who has a fantastic moving castle that propels itself along with it's own set of legs. “Again, complete fantasy, beautiful imagination, but impeccably told and impeccably drawn.”
{youtube}iwROgK94zcM{/youtube}
Zane sums up by saying: “fans of Ghibli will get an opportunity to see this on the big screen. They may have only seen the DVD and we do the best we can to get really good resolution and good sound in the auditorium here. It's also a social occasion because it goes on all day and you can buy a cup of coffee and have a feed and come back to the next movie, keeping that kind of festival feel.”
Young fans of Studio Ghibli films, Tori Donaldson (9) and Rosa Donaldson (7) recently travelled to Japan over Christmas and visited the Studio Ghibli Museum. Proudly showing off their memorabilia from the museum (which they said was “fantastic”), the little ones have seen most of the films but excited to see 'Porco Rosso' at the festival. Their favourite's include 'Ponyo' especially the part in this “fishy” film where Ponyo decided to break free and see the ocean, the “beautiful” 'Arrietty', and the “crazy” and “amazing” 'Howl’s Moving Castle'.The Studio Ghibli Film Festival will play the Redland Performing Arts Centre, 14 March.
