Studio Ghibli

Founding a studio

After the success of Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind (1984), director Hayao Miyazaki, director Isao Takahata and producer Toshio Suzuki set up Studio Ghibli in 1985, backed by the publisher Tokuma Shoten. The name Ghibli comes from an Italian word for a hot Saharan wind, also used for an Italian aircraft; the founders liked the idea of blowing a new wind through Japanese animation.

Two directors, two styles

Miyazaki's films, such as Castle in the Sky (1986), My Neighbor Totoro (1988) and Spirited Away (2001), are full of flight, fantasy and adventure. Takahata preferred realistic, emotional stories and bold visual experiments, such as Only Yesterday (1991), Pom Poko (1994), My Neighbors the Yamadas (1999) and the watercolour-style The Tale of the Princess Kaguya (2013).

A different way of working

Unlike many studios, Ghibli began hiring its animators as full-time salaried staff around 1991 and trained them in-house, aiming for consistent quality. It focused on feature films rather than TV series. Younger directors also made Ghibli films, including Whisper of the Heart (1995) by Yoshifumi Kondo and The Secret World of Arrietty (2010) by Hiromasa Yonebayashi.

Museum and park

The Ghibli Museum in Mitaka, Tokyo, opened in 2001, designed by Miyazaki himself, and shows original short films found nowhere else. Tickets must be booked in advance. Ghibli Park opened in 2022 in the Expo 2005 Aichi Commemorative Park near Nagoya, with recreated buildings and areas inspired by the films.

Ghibli today

In 2023 the broadcaster Nippon TV became Ghibli's majority shareholder, and the same year The Boy and the Heron was released and later won the Oscar for Best Animated Feature. Ghibli's films are available worldwide and remain hugely popular with families. Read our Hayao Miyazaki page for the director's story.

Visiting tips

Ghibli Museum tickets are sold for timed entry and usually sell out, so plan well ahead through the official channels, and remember that photography is not allowed inside. The museum is a short walk through Inokashira Park from Kichijoji Station, or a community bus from Mitaka Station. Ghibli Park in Aichi also requires advance tickets for its different areas.

Did you know? Studio Ghibli's films were not widely seen outside Japan until the late 1990s, when a distribution deal brought English-language versions to theaters and home video.

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