Ghibliotheque - A Podcast About Studio Ghibli

This week, Nick Park's career takes off with the very first Wallace and Gromit adventure, A Grand Day Out.

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This week, Michael, Jake and Steph are back with a new miniseries charting the career of animation legend Nick Park and his work at the peerless plasticine-powered studio, Aardman Animations. To start, we look at his Oscar-winning first film, the chatty zoo-themed mockumentary Creature Comforts (1989), which was his first directorial credit for Aardman after contributing to projects such as the era-defining music video for Peter Gabriel's 'Sledgehammer', and while slowly working in the background on his long-gestating student project, A Grand Day Out (more on that next week!).

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To close out the Shinkaideology we've taken the chance to reshare the interview we had with Makoto Shinkai almost two years ago. Some may have already have heard this, but we've had lots of new listeners join the show, so wanted to take the chance to get his voice on the feed for the end of the mini-series.

As his new blockbuster anime Suzume is released in UK cinemas, director Makoto Shinkai (Your Name, Weathering With You) speaks with Michael and Jake about turning a romantic lead into a three-legged chair, falling in love with Whisper of the Heart, being touted as 'the next Miyazaki', and his filmmaking career to date.

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@MichaelJLeader – Michael

@jakehcunningham – Jake

@_stephwatts - Steph

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This week, Michael and Jake bring the Shinkai-deology up to date with Makoto Shinkai's latest release, and the third film in his loose trilogy of high-concept, disaster-themed features: Suzume. However, this time, Shinkai makes the connection with the 2011 Tōhoku earthquake more overt than ever, with a young girl and her chair boyfriend travelling the full length of Japan to close a series of mystical doors, and heal the long-standing trauma of a nation.

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How do you follow one of the biggest anime hits of all time? This week, Makoto Shinkai continues his run of high concept, big-feels blockbusters with the climate-crisis romance, Weathering With You.

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This week, Michael speaks with director Chris Sanders (Lilo & Stitch, How to Train Your Dragon) about his new film, The Wild Robot, as well as the films that inspired him to get into animation, his formative years at CalArts, and how he was 'tricked' into being a storyboard artist.

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It's the big one! After several films as a rising star, Makoto Shinkai finally takes up the mantle of 'the Next Miyazaki' (at the box office at least) with the blockbuster body-swap drama, YOUR NAME.

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The Shinkai-deology continues with Makoto Shinkai returning to shortform storytelling with the gorgeously-photographed, Tokyo-set drama, The Garden of Words. Michael and Jake also touch on Shinkai's commercial work, including the futuristic family sketch, Someone's Gaze, which was initially commissioned by the Nomura Real Estate Group, before premiering alongside The Garden of Words in Japanese cinemas in 2013.

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Our miniseries on the work of Makoto Shinkai takes an unexpected turn this week, as the director dives head-first into Miyazaki-influenced fantasy-adventure territory with 2011's Children Who Chase Lost Voices.

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This week, our journey through the career of Makoto Shinkai comes to 5 Centimeters Per Second. Now a firm fan-favourite, this 60-odd minute anthology of three interconnected coming-of-age shorts was, for many, their first introduction to Shinkai's work, and it represents an important step in the director's growth as a filmmaker and storyteller.

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This week, our journey through the films of Makoto Shinkai reaches his first feature-length film, and his first full-scale production, 2004's alt-history sci-fi drama The Place Promised in Our Early Days.

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It's the start of a new miniseries! Michael and Jake are back to chart the rise of one of Japanese animation's blockbuster filmmakers, Makoto Shinkai, from his homemade beginnings with his very early works, She and Her Cat and Voices of a Distant Star.

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Comic book artist, animator and film director Dash Shaw joins Michael to speak about his new graphic novel, Blurry, and his two animated features, My Entire High School Sinking into the Sea (2016) and Cryptozoo (2021), as well as his salad days as a young anime fan, his love of independent and European animation, and looking to Miyazaki as an 'old man' mentor.

Blurry is available now from the very best book and comics shops as is Cosplayers; Cryptozoo is streaming on Mubi and My Entire High School Sinking into the Sea is available on DVD and Blu-ray.

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Screenwriter, author and Children's Laureate Frank Cottrell-Boyce joins Michael to speak about adapting Michael Morpurgo's novel Kensuke's Kingdom, as well as the art of adaptation, when adaptations go wrong, and his career as a writer of books for children.

Kensuke's Kingdom is in UK cinemas now. Find a screening near you: https://www.kensukeskingdom.com/.

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With Coraline celebrating its 15th anniversary and returning to cinemas, Henry Selick joins us to talk about his life and career, from his days at Cal Arts to his work at the forefront of stop-motion feature animation. He talks about the process of developing Coraline, those early days during the formation of Laika Studios, and how technology has changed since his debut feature, The Nightmare Before Christmas. He also tells us about his formative influences and favourite filmmakers within the world of animation.

Scroll back through our archive for our in-depth miniseries all about the films of Henry Selick and Laika, the Selick-tionary and the Laika-nography.

Coraline returns to cinemas from 15th August, and the BFI's Stop Motion season runs through August and into September. For more information about the BFI's Stop Motion season, click here.

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Author and poet A.F. Harrold joins Michael to speak about the experience of having his novel, The Imaginary, adapted into a feature film by Studio Ponoc, as well as his memories of writing the book, his love of libraries, and his approach to writing stories for children.

You can find out more about A.F. and his work at his website, http://www.afharroldkids.com/

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Studio Ponoc founder Yoshiaki Nishimura (Mary and the Witch's Flower, Modest Heroes) speaks with Michael about Ponoc's new film, The Imaginary, as well as his love of children's fiction and live-action cinema, and his time at Studio Ghibli producing The Tale of the Princess Kaguya and When Marnie Was There.

Thank you to Eyre Kurasawa for translating our conversation. If you want to hear the full conversation with all of Mr Nishimura's Japanese responses intact, skip to around 31 minutes.

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This special episode of the podcast dives into the stage adaptation of Spirited Away, which is currently running at the Coliseum theatre in London's West End. With Jake on parental leave, Michael enlists the help of co-host Steph Watts and friends of the show Adam Woodward (Little White Lies, TCOLondon) and Sam Clements (90 Minutes Or Less Film Fest) to tackle this epic production that brings Hayao Miyazaki's magical masterpiece to the stage.

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Michael is joined this week by Shannon Tindle and John Aoshima to talk about their new film, Ultraman Rising, as well as their approach to animation, running a smooth ship through production, their experiences studying at The California Institute of the Arts (CalArts), and their first exposures to the world of Studio Ghibli.

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This week, our Richard Linklectures miniseries comes to an end with a trip to the 1960s for Linklater's rich, textured, gorgeously animated portrait of an era, Apollo 10 1/2: A Space Age Childhood.

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This week, Michael and Jake take a trip into the mind of Philip K Dick with Richard Linklater's second animated film in the rotoscoped style, the psychedelic, sci-fi-tinged thriller, A Scanner Darkly.

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Michael and Jake return with a new miniseries diving into three animated films from independent cinema icon Richard Linklater (Boyhood, Before Sunrise, Dazed and Confused), starting with his 2001 rotoscoped feature Waking Life: a heady exploration of dreaming, philosophy, existentialism, the frontiers of theoretical science and everything in between.

Watch Richard Linklater talk Waking Life on Tech TV circa 2001 here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HHNjigGtUZI

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Michael speaks with Spanish director Pablo Berger about his critically-acclaimed and award-winning feature animation Robot Dreams, which is in UK cinemas from 22nd March.

Read Michael's review of the film here, and his feature on the animation process behind the film here.

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Directors Chiara Malta and Sebastien Laudenbach speak with Michael about their astounding new film, Chicken for Linda, which was a hit on the festival and awards circuit in 2023, and is screening around the UK in March, April and May.

Watch a trailer for Chicken for Linda here.

Chicken for Linda screens as part of the Made in Italy Festival at the Ciné Lumière on 23rd March. Tickets are available here.

You can also catch the film at the Cardiff Animation Festival, the Barbican Centre Family Film Club and Flatpack Film Festival.

Thanks to Matt Dinsdale for coordinating this interview, and to Stefania Bochicchio for translating the conversation.

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Michael speaks with director Jim Capobianco about his new film, The Inventor, and working in stop-motion for the first time after years working in hand-drawn and CG animation. They also speak about the film's themes of patronage, inspiration and creativity, as well as Jim's amazing work at Disney and Pixar (including his Oscar-nominated work on Ratatouille), and his longstanding relationship with Cartoon Saloon.

The Inventor is in UK cinemas now, screening exclusively at Vue Cinemas: https://www.theinventorfilm.com/

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Michael speaks with director Yuzuru Tachikawa about his new film, the coming-of-age jazz anime Blue Giant, which has just been released in the UK.

To hear the full interview with all the Japanese exchanges intact, fast forward to around the 30min mark,

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Recorded at the British Film Institute, as part of the London Short Film Festival and the BFI's 'Cartoon Saloon at 25' season, studio founders Nora Twomey, Tomm Moore and Paul Young reflect on the history of the studio after watching 20+ years of Cartoon Saloon's short film work.

This event was curated and hosted by our own Michael Leader. Find out more about the London Short Film Festival here and about the BFI's Cartoon Saloon season here.

For their help with this event, thank you to Charlotte Ashcroft at the LSFF, Susan Brophy and the team at Cartoon Saloon, and Justin Johnson, Kimberly Sheehan, Josh Glenn and Richard Pickard at the BFI.

Scroll back through our archive for a whole miniseries on the work of Cartoon Saloon - the Cartoon Salooniverse! As well as extra interviews with Tomm Moore & Ross Stewart, Nora Twomey, Paul Young and Will Collins.

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It's the end of the year and you know what that means: Lists! We're rounding up our favourite things of 2023. In this first part of a two-part Listmas special, it's a countdown of all the things specifically Japan that didn't get covered in the previous Japan episodes - think bars, food, and any other experiences, Ghibli-related or otherwise.

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@MichaelJLeader – Michael

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Spoiler warning!

After our spoiler-light episode on The Boy and the Heron last week, we just had to go deeper. So Michael, Jake and Steph reconvened for more of a play-by-play run-through of Hayao Miyazaki's highly anticipated, dense, complicated, wonderful new film.

We'd love to hear what you make of the Boy and the Heron for an upcoming 'mailbag' special! Send us your thoughts and theories at ghibliotheque@gmail.com.

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@MichaelJLeader – Michael

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Miyazaki is back! Michael, Jake and Steph return to the Ghibliotheque to discuss Hayao Miyazaki's first film in a decade, The Boy and the Heron - a beguiling and captivating film that has been described as a "semi-autobiographical fantasy about life, death, and creation, in tribute to friendship".

This is a dense film, so we're doing things a little differently here. This episode is in our standard Ghibliotheque format - context, followed by review. It's also standard length, and offers a 'spoiler light' commentary that doesn't delve too deep into its many surprises and stylistic left-turns. Tune into our next episode for a longer-form deep-dive into the film and its many layers and potential meanings.

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@MichaelJLeader – Michael

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In this episode of our Japan 2023 miniseries, Michael, Jake and Steph open their shopping bags and chat all things merch, from the Ghibli Grand Warehouse shop to notebooks, records and Gacha machines.

Thank you to the Japan National Tourism Organization for their support in planning our research trip to Japan: https://www.japan.travel/en/uk/

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In this episode of our Japan 2023 miniseries, it's the big one. The reason we travelled close to 6000 miles across the globe, from London to Japan: Ghibli Park. Tune in to hear what Michael, Jake and Steph thought about this shrine to all things Ghibli, situated right in the middle of the Expo 2005 Aichi Commemorative Park, just outside of Nagoya.

https://ghibli-park.jp/en/

Thanks to the Japan National Tourism Organization for their support in planning our research trip to Japan, and to the Nagoya Marriott Associa Hotel, where we stayed before visiting the park, and to the Shiba Park Hotel in Tokyo, where this episode was recorded.

https://www.japan.travel/en/uk/

https://www.associa.com/nma/multi-lingual/?wovn=en

https://www.shibaparkhotel.com/en/

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We made it back to Japan! In this first episode of the Ghibliotheque in Japan 2023 miniseries, Michael, Jake and Steph talk through their jam-packed day at Universal Studios Japan, focusing on their top 10 rides including Super Nintendo World, Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey, and all the spooky delights of Universal Horror Nights. We also hear from friends of the show, Ossian and Finnian Collin, who send in their own top 10 USJ rides.

Thanks to the Japan National Tourism Organization for their support in planning our research trip to Japan, and to the Hotel Higashiyama in Kyoto, where this episode was recorded.

https://www.japan.travel/en/uk/

https://www.tokyuhotels.co.jp/higashiyama-h/room/index.html

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Jake and Michael are here with another book launch episode, and then afterwards they're both going to sleep for a long time, and not even thinkabout writing another book for a long, long time. This one's quite different than any of the previous ones though, Film Korea is a journey into 30 key films from one of the most exciting cinematic nations on earth. With only one film to choose from per director, in this live conversation recorded at the book's launch at the Korean Cultural Centre, Jake and Michael talk through the choices they made when putting together the contents of their latest work.

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After years of delays, Joe Hisaishi finally made it to Wembley Arena to conduct his music from Hayao Miyazaki's films with the help of the BBC Concert Orchestra and Crouch End Festival Chorus. And the Ghibliotheque gang were there to experience the magic! Here, Michael, Jake and Steph reunite to talk through one spellbinding night.

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@MichaelJLeader – Michael

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Michael and Jake have emerged from their respective attics and basements where they've been beavering away at a new book. The World of Studio Ghibli is for younger readers (7-10) and is a guide through the studio we love so much. In this short episode we talk about the process of writing it and about what readers can discover inside!

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We take a return journey to the Cartoon Salooniverse for Cartoon Saloon's new feature, based on their popular pre-school TV series, Puffin Rock.

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This week, Michael and Jake return to the Cartoon Salooniverse to interview producer and studio co-founder Paul Young about the company's history to date, as well as his directorial debut, Screecher's Reach - a distinctively Cartoon Saloon-style entry in the Disney+ series Star Wars Visions.

If you missed it at the time, head back through our archives for the full Cartoon Salooniverse miniseries, in which we followed the studio through their feature films from The Secret of Kells to Wolfwalkers. We have also over the years spoken with key players at Cartoon Saloon including directors Tomm Moore, Nora Twomey and Ross Stewart, and writer Will Collins.

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The magical, award-winning Royal Shakespeare Company production of My Neighbour Totoro is returning to the Barbican Centre from November! To mark the occasion, Michael speaks with Tom Morton-Smith, the writer tasked with adapting Hayao Miyazaki's beloved film for the stage.

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@MichaelJLeader – Michael

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As his new blockbuster anime Suzume is released in UK cinemas, director Makoto Shinkai (Your Name, Weathering With You) speaks with Michael and Jake about turning a romantic lead into a three-legged chair, falling in love with Whisper of the Heart, being touted as 'the next Miyazaki', and his filmmaking career to date.

Join us on Patreon for ad-free and bonus episodes, Discord access and show footnotes and more: Patreon.com/ghibliotheque

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@MichaelJLeader – Michael

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As another year of Ghibliotheque draws to a close, it's time for our yearly Christmas special. This time, as well as looking back at the last 12 months of podcasting, and getting excited about what 2023 might bring, we offer up our retelling of some classic festive tales, all with their own Ghibli twist - and of course, producer Harold returns with his yearly dose of charoling, and this year's collection of songs is especially fab!

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Recorded live at the Manchester Animation Festival. Following the UK premiere of the documentary Satoshi Kon: The Illusionist, Michael and Jake discuss the film, as well as Satoshi Kon's life and work, with contributions and questions from the audience.

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@MichaelJLeader – Michael

@jakehcunningham – Jake

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Michael Leader sits down with director Naoko Yamada to talk about her new short film Garden of Remembrance, what influences her wider work, and some surprising live-action obsessions.

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@MichaelJLeader – Michael

@jakehcunningham – Jake

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This week, Cartoon Saloon's Nora Twomey joins us to talk about her new film, My Father's Dragon, available to watch on Netflix from today.

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@MichaelJLeader – Michael

@jakehcunningham – Jake

@_stephwatts - Steph

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This week, friend of the show Alex Dudok de Wit joins Michael and Jake to talk about his new translation of Hayao Miyazaki's graphic novel, Shuna's Journey. Originally released in Japan in 1983, Shuna's Journey has never been translated into English, and so provides a new perspective on Miyazaki's work and worldview in the years before the success of Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind and the subsequent founding of Studio Ghibli.

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@MichaelJLeader – Michael

@jakehcunningham – Jake

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Michael and Jake talk with Basil Twist, the puppetry designer for the stage production of My Neighbour Totoro, which recently premiered at the Barbican Centre in London.

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@MichaelJLeader – Michael

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With Masaaki Yuasa's musical odyssey Inu-Oh being released in UK cinemas this week, Michael talks to the prolific director about his work, influences, and recommendations on anime we should dive into next...

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@MichaelJLeader – Michael

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@_stephwatts - Steph

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Michael, Jake and Steph round off the miniseries with a special episode looking back at Henry Selick's short films Moon Girl, Slow Bob in the Lower Dimensions and Seepage, looking ahead to the films made (and not made!) by Henry Selick and Laika since we last heard from them, and looking inside the mailbag at some listener correspondence.

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@MichaelJLeader – Michael

@jakehcunningham – Jake

@_stephwatts - Steph

Produced by Michael Leader, Jake Cunningham, Harold McShiel and Steph Watts. Music by Anthony Ing.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

From the archive, here is Michael talking with Missing Link director and Laika veteran Chris Butler, originally recorded for Truth & Movies, a Little White Lies podcast, back in March 2019.

Join us on Patreon for ad-free and bonus episodes, Discord access and show footnotes and more: Patreon.com/ghibliotheque

Email us: ghibliotheque@gmail.com or follow us on Twitter @ghibliotheque and Instagram @ghibliotheque.pod.

@MichaelJLeader – Michael

@jakehcunningham – Jake

@_stephwatts - Steph

Produced by Michael Leader, Jake Cunningham, Harold McShiel and Steph Watts. Music by Anthony Ing.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

We're off on an adventure this week for the final Laika film in our mini-series: Chris Butler's Missing Link.

Join us on Patreon for ad-free and bonus episodes, Discord access and show footnotes and more: Patreon.com/ghibliotheque

Email us: ghibliotheque@gmail.com or follow us on Twitter @ghibliotheque and Instagram @ghibliotheque.pod.

@MichaelJLeader – Michael

@jakehcunningham – Jake

@_stephwatts - Steph

Produced by Michael Leader, Jake Cunningham, Harold McShiel and Steph Watts. Music by Anthony Ing.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

If you must blink... Do it now! This week, Michael, Jake and Steph clash swords with Travis Knight's directorial debut, the stop-motion samurai epic Kubo and the Two Strings.

Join us on Patreon for ad-free and bonus episodes, Discord access and show footnotes and more: Patreon.com/ghibliotheque

Email us: ghibliotheque@gmail.com or follow us on Twitter @ghibliotheque and Instagram @ghibliotheque.pod.

@MichaelJLeader – Michael

@jakehcunningham – Jake

@_stephwatts - Steph

Produced by Michael Leader, Jake Cunningham, Harold McShiel and Steph Watts. Music by Anthony Ing.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Michael, Jake and Steph head into the depths of Cheesebridge for The Boxtrolls, Laika's very loose adaptation of Alan Snow's children's novel, Here Be Monsters.

Join us on Patreon for ad-free and bonus episodes, Discord access and show footnotes and more: Patreon.com/ghibliotheque

Email us: ghibliotheque@gmail.com or follow us on Twitter @ghibliotheque and Instagram @ghibliotheque.pod.

@MichaelJLeader – Michael

@jakehcunningham – Jake

@_stephwatts - Steph

Produced by Michael Leader, Jake Cunningham, Harold McShiel and Steph Watts. Music by Anthony Ing.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

We've officially left the Selick-tionary behind and are delving into Laika's independent forays into stop motion in the second half of our series, The Laika-nography. This week, Chris Butler and Sam Fell's creepy delight, Paranorman.

Join us on Patreon for ad-free and bonus episodes, Discord access and show footnotes and more: Patreon.com/ghibliotheque

Email us: ghibliotheque@gmail.com or follow us on Twitter @ghibliotheque and Instagram @ghibliotheque.pod.

@MichaelJLeader – Michael

@jakehcunningham – Jake

@_stephwatts - Steph

Produced by Michael Leader, Jake Cunningham, Harold McShiel and Steph Watts. Music by Anthony Ing.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week, our miniseries collide with this crossover between the Selick-tionary and the Laika-nography, as Henry Selick teams up with the fledgling studio to create the stop-motion adaptation of Neil Gaiman's creepy kids' novella, Coraline.

Join us on Patreon for ad-free and bonus episodes, Discord access and show footnotes and more: Patreon.com/ghibliotheque

Email us: ghibliotheque@gmail.com or follow us on Twitter @ghibliotheque and Instagram @ghibliotheque.pod.

@MichaelJLeader – Michael

@jakehcunningham – Jake

@_stephwatts - Steph

Produced by Michael Leader, Jake Cunningham, Harold McShiel and Steph Watts. Music by Anthony Ing.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

A nightmare world. An incredibly rude cartoon monkey. Brendan Fraser in leather trousers singing Brick House. That's right, in this episode of our Selick-tionary mini series, we're talking about Henry Selick's foray into live action, Monkeybone!

Join us on Patreon for ad-free and bonus episodes, Discord access and show footnotes and more: Patreon.com/ghibliotheque

Email us: ghibliotheque@gmail.com or follow us on Twitter @ghibliotheque and Instagram @ghibliotheque.pod.

@MichaelJLeader – Michael

@jakehcunningham – Jake

@_stephwatts - Steph

Produced by Michael Leader, Jake Cunningham, Harold McShiel and Steph Watts. Music by Anthony Ing.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

For the second episode of our Selick-tionary miniseries, we dive into the world of Roald Dahl for Henry Selick's stop-motion adaptation of a children's classic, James and the Giant Peach.

Join us on Patreon for ad-free and bonus episodes, Discord access and show footnotes and more: Patreon.com/ghibliotheque

Email us: ghibliotheque@gmail.com or follow us on Twitter @ghibliotheque and Instagram @ghibliotheque.pod.

@MichaelJLeader – Michael

@jakehcunningham – Jake

@_stephwatts - Steph

Produced by Michael Leader, Jake Cunningham, Harold McShiel and Steph Watts. Music by Anthony Ing.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

It's a new Ghibliotheque miniseries! And this one's a two-parter; first up, we're entering the nightmare worlds of stop-motion animator Henry Selick in the Selick-tionary up to his time at Laika Studios. Then we're continuing on to follow Laika's advancement in stop-motion features in the Laika-nography. As always, expect historical context, reviews and film rankings, plus some extra discussions of other films of note over on our Patreon.

For the first episode of our Selick-tionary miniseries, we're heading to Halloweentown for the Selick, Burton and Elfman collaboration that defined a generation of emo teenagers, The Nightmare Before Christmas.

Join us on Patreon for ad-free and bonus episodes, Discord access and show footnotes and more: Patreon.com/ghibliotheque

Email us: ghibliotheque@gmail.com or follow us on Twitter @ghibliotheque and Instagram @ghibliotheque.pod.

@MichaelJLeader – Michael

@jakehcunningham – Jake

@_stephwatts - Steph

Produced by Michael Leader, Jake Cunningham, Harold McShiel and Steph Watts. Music by Anthony Ing.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

All aboard the Chatbus for the final stop on our route - to comedian, presenter and writer Bec Hill for tales of her first Ghibli watches, going to Tokyo alone on an unplanned trip, and why Totoro reminds her of a kiwifruit.

More information on Bec's book, Horror Heights: https://www.hachette.co.uk/titles/bec-hill-2/horror-heights-now-livescreaming/9781444962345/

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Email us: ghibliotheque@gmail.com or follow us on Twitter:

@ghibliotheque

@MichaelJLeader – Michael

@jakehcunningham – Jake

@_stephwatts - Steph

Produced by Michael Leader, Jake Cunningham, Harold McShiel and Steph Watts. Music by Anthony Ing.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

All aboard the Chatbus once more! Maisie Williams of Game of Thrones, The New Mutants, and host of the Frank Film Club podcast, talks about seeing Ponyo for the first time, her journey through the Ghibli catalogue, and her experiences of voice acting for animation.

Join us on Patreon for bonus episodes, Discord access and more: Patreon.com/ghibliotheque

Email us: ghibli@littledotstudios.com or follow us on Twitter:

@ghibliotheque

@MichaelJLeader – Michael

@jakehcunningham – Jake

@_stephwatts - Steph

Produced by Michael Leader, Jake Cunningham, Harold McShiel and Steph Watts. Music by Anthony Ing.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week on our Chatbus miniseries, playwright and screenwriter Julia Cho joins us to talk about writing Turning Red with director (and former Ghibliotheque guest!) Domee Shi, plus how she got into Studio Ghibli movies, and visiting the Ghibli Museum.

Join us on Patreon for bonus episodes, Discord access and more: Patreon.com/ghibliotheque

Email us: ghibli@littledotstudios.com or follow us on Twitter:

@ghibliotheque

@MichaelJLeader – Michael

@jakehcunningham – Jake

@_stephwatts - Steph

Produced by Michael Leader, Jake Cunningham, Harold McShiel and Steph Watts. Music by Anthony Ing.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week on our Chatbus interview miniseries, we talk to two people who worked on the Oscar nominated documentary, Flee: Background artist Jess Nicholls and Animation Director Kenneth Ladekjær.

Join us on Patreon for bonus episodes, Discord access and more: Patreon.com/ghibliotheque

Email us: ghibli@littledotstudios.com or follow us on Twitter:

@ghibliotheque

@MichaelJLeader – Michael

@jakehcunningham – Jake

@_stephwatts - Steph

Produced by Michael Leader, Jake Cunningham, Harold McShiel and Steph Watts. Music by Anthony Ing.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

All aboard the Chatbus! For the first episode of our new interview miniseries, we talk to the designer of the incredible open world game Sable, Gregorious Kythreotis, and musician Michelle Zauner, aka Japanese Breakfast, who composed the score, about their favourite Ghibli films and their influences on the game.

Sable is nominated for Best British Game at this year's BAFTA Game Awards. Japanese Breakfast's latest album, Jubilee, is nominated for Best Alternative Album at this year's Grammy Awards.

Join us on Patreon for bonus episodes, Discord access and more: Patreon.com/ghibliotheque

Email us: ghibli@littledotstudios.com or follow us on Twitter:

@ghibliotheque

@MichaelJLeader – Michael

@jakehcunningham – Jake

@_stephwatts - Steph

Produced by Michael Leader, Jake Cunningham, Harold McShiel and Steph Watts. Music by Anthony Ing.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The final episode in our Hosodathon mini series is a bumper special, as Michael, Jake and Steph explore Mamoru Hosoda's early works, and read letters from listeners on their thoughts on Hosoda's films.

Check out Hosoda's early works:

Digimon: Our War Game

One Piece: Baron Omatsuri and the Secret Island

Ojamajo Doremi - Doremi and the Witch That Stopped Being a Witch

Superflat Monogram

Samurai Champloo - opening credits sequence

Thank you for listening along to the Hosodathon with us! Email us with suggestions of what to cover next - ghibli@littledotstudios.com

Follow us on Twitter:

@ghibliotheque

@MichaelJLeader – Michael

@jakehcunningham – Jake

@_stephwatts - Steph

Produced by Michael Leader, Jake Cunningham, Harold McShiel and Steph Watts. Music by Anthony Ing.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this special episode of our Hosodathon mini series, Michael and Jake talk to the director himself, Mamoru Hosoda, all about the making of Belle.

The interview has been edited in a style that lets you hear only the English translation, but if you want to hear the full conversation with Mamoru Hosoda's answers in Japanese, skip forward 25 minutes.

Let us know what you think of Hosoda's works via email: ghibli@littledotstudios.com or follow us on Twitter:

@ghibliotheque

@MichaelJLeader – Michael

@jakehcunningham – Jake

@_stephwatts - Steph

Produced by Michael Leader, Jake Cunningham, Harold McShiel and Steph Watts. Edited by Steph Watts. Music by Anthony Ing.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week on our Hosodathon miniseries, Michael, Jake and Steph put on their headsets and dive into the magical world of U to discuss Mamoru Hosoda's latest film, Belle, a modern reworking of Disney's Beauty and the Beast told via the director's unique point of view and storytelling methods.

Belle is out now in UK cinemas. Let us know what you thought of the film, or any of Hosoda's works, via email: ghibli@littledotstudios.com or follow us on Twitter:

@ghibliotheque

@MichaelJLeader – Michael

@jakehcunningham – Jake

@_stephwatts - Steph

Produced by Michael Leader, Jake Cunningham, Harold McShiel and Steph Watts. Edited by James Payne. Music by Anthony Ing.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Our Hosodathon miniseries continues this week with a time-bending tale of a boy whose life is turned upside down by the arrival of a newborn sister. Mirai found director Mamoru Hosoda once again drawing inspiration from his family life, and remains a landmark entry in his filmography for, among other things, premiering at the Cannes Film Festival and becoming the first Japanese animation not made by Studio Ghibli to receive an Oscar nomination for Best Animated Feature.

Get in touch with Ghibliotheque at ghibli@littledotstudios.com or follow us on Twitter:

@ghibliotheque

@MichaelJLeader – Michael

@jakehcunningham – Jake

@_stephwatts - Steph

Produced by Michael Leader, Jake Cunningham, Harold McShiel and Steph Watts. Music by Anthony Ing.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week in our Hosodathon miniseries, Mamoru Hosoda's biggest hit to date: The Boy and the Beast. Inspired by Hosoda becoming a dad, this is an ambitious story of a boy estranged from his family in real-life Tokyo, who finds an unlikely father-figure in the fantasy world filled with beasts and gods.

Get in touch with Ghibliotheque at ghibli@littledotstudios.com or follow us on Twitter: @ghibliotheque

@MichaelJLeader – Michael

@jakehcunningham – Jake

@_stephwatts - Steph

Produced by Michael Leader, Jake Cunningham, Harold McShiel and Steph Watts. Edited by James Payne. Music by Anthony Ing.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this third episode of our Hosodathon miniseries, Michael, Jake and Steph discuss Mamoru Hosoda's Wolf Children, the first feature produced by his independent production company Studio Chizu.

Once again mixing personal themes and high-concept storytelling, Hosoda turns his awestruck feelings upon seeing his friends become parents into a sweeping fable about a single mother tasked with bringing up a pair of half-human, half-wolf kids.

Get in touch with Ghibliotheque at ghibli@littledotstudios.com or follow us on Twitter:

@ghibliotheque

@MichaelJLeader – Michael

@jakehcunningham – Jake

@_stephwatts - Steph

Produced by Michael Leader, Jake Cunningham, Harold McShiel and Steph Watts. Edited by James Payne. Music by Anthony Ing.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this second episode of our Hosodathon miniseries, Michael, Jake and Steph team up to tackle Mamoru Hosoda's Summer Wars, an epic tale of an everyday, dysfunctional family banding together to face a world-threatening threat in a virtual world - bringing together two of the director's recurring themes: family dynamics and the impact that the internet has on our lives.

Get in touch with Ghibliotheque at ghibli@littledotstudios.com or follow us on Twitter:

@ghibliotheque

@MichaelJLeader – Michael

@jakehcunningham – Jake

@_stephwatts - Steph

Produced by Michael Leader, Jake Cunningham, Harold McShiel and Steph Watts. Edited by James Payne. Music by Anthony Ing.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Michael, Jake and Steph return with an all-new Ghibliotheque spin-off miniseries, leaping into the filmography of one of today's leading anime filmmakers, Mamoru Hosoda, whose latest film Belle is a hotly anticipated new release in early 2022.

We start our Hosodathon journey with 2006's The Girl Who Leapt Through Time, the fan-favourite anime gem that first introduced many viewers to Hosoda and his work. Coming off the back of years working on long-running anime series at Toei Animation, including Digimon and One Piece, as well as an ill-fated stint at Studio Ghibli as the initial director of Howl's Moving Castle (before Hayao Miyazaki came back out of retirement and took the reins), Mamoru Hosoda sets in motion much of his unique style and many of his recurring themes in this collision of slice-of-life high school comedy and high-concept sci-fi storytelling.

Get in touch with Ghibliotheque at ghibli@littledotstudios.comor follow us on Twitter:

@ghibliotheque

@MichaelJLeader – Michael

@jakehcunningham – Jake

@_stephwatts - Steph

Produced by Michael Leader, Jake Cunningham, Harold McShiel and Steph Watts. Edited by James Payne. Music by Anthony Ing.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

It's the annual Ghibliotheque Christmas episode! At the virtual Christmas party, Michael, Jake, Steph and Harold look back at 2021, declare their favourite books, films, games and music of the year, read out some superb casting choices for a Ghibli Nativity play, and of course it wouldn't be a Ghibliotheque Christmas episode without Harold singing some Ghibli remixes of some festive favourites.

Follow Ghibliotheque on Twitter:

@ghibliotheque

@MichaelJLeader – Michael

@jakehcunningham – Jake

@_stephwatts - Steph

And get in touch via email at ghibli@littledotstudios.com

Produced by Michael Leader, Jake Cunningham, Steph Watts & Harold McShiel.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Since we're now on hiatus we thought we'd give a nod to a new podcast from some friends and colleagues of the pod, that also digs into the wonderful world of Anime! Anime To Z features comedian Bec Hill and rapper Che Lingo digging through the intricate worlds of some massive anime franchises, starting with the Evangelion rebuild film series.

Have a listen, and if you like it, please subscribe over here - https://podfollow.com/anime-to-z.

Get in touch with Ghibliotheque at ghibli@littledotstudios.com or follow us on Twitter at @ghibliotheque or Instagram at ghibliotheque.pod.

@MichaelJLeader - Michael

@jakehcunningham - Jake

@_stephwatts - Steph

Produced by Michael Leader, Jake Cunningham, Harold McShiel and Steph Watts. Music by Anthony Ing.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

As the Ghibliotheque book is now available in shops and from online retailers in the UK, Michael and Jake have a short chat to mark the occasion. Listeners - thank you for all your support of the podcast to date, and if you do pick up the book, we hope you enjoy it!

If you haven't picked up a copy yet, you can do so from your local bookshop in the UK, or you can order online from various online stores, such as Amazon or Bookshop.org.

Get in touch with Ghibliotheque at ghibli@littledotstudios.com or follow us on Twitter at @ghibliotheque or Instagram at ghibliotheque.pod.

@MichaelJLeader - Michael

@jakehcunningham - Jake

@_stephwatts - Steph

Produced by Michael Leader, Jake Cunningham, Harold McShiel and Steph Watts. Music by Anthony Ing.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this final episode of The Chat Returns, we're very excited to welcome Siobhan Reddy into the walls of the Ghibliotheque, to talk about how the works of Ghibli have inspired and crossed over with her hugely successful, ambitious and creative works. Studio Director at Media Molecule, the video game developers behind LittleBigPlanet, Tearaway and last year's acclaimed Dreams, we spoke to Siobhan about the nature of storytelling in her works, her approach to a creative a workplace and a lot more.

Our book, Ghibliotheque - The Unofficial Guide to Studio Ghibli, will be on sale from all good bookshops in the UK from 2nd September, and is available for preorder now.

Pre-order today: Amazon UK: https://amzn.to/3usAw0h

Or for free international shipping: https://bit.ly/3oRQr7c

Get in touch with Ghibliotheque at ghibli@littledotstudios.com or follow us on Twitter:

@ghibliotheque

@MichaelJLeader - Michael

@jakehcunningham - Jake

@_stephwatts - Steph

Produced by Michael Leader, Jake Cunningham, Harold McShiel and Steph Watts. Music by Anthony Ing.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

We are very excited to welcome comic artist and big Ghibli fan Erica Henderson into the Ghibliotheque for this episode. Erica's stunning work can be found in the revolutionary Marvel comic Squirrel Girl, the Archie comics standout Jughead and much more, she joins us for a conversation about the Cantonese language Ghibli films that got her into the studio, the Chinatown basement that housed some huge anime discoveries and the mouth-watering food moments in Ghibli's work. 

Keep an eye out for weekly episodes in our Chat Returns miniseries - featuring conversations with filmmakers, writers, and animators who have either worked directly with Ghibli, or have been heavily inspired by them - over the next couple of months.

Our book, Ghibliotheque - The Unofficial Guide to Studio Ghibli, will be on sale from all good bookshops in the UK from 2nd September, and is available for preorder now.

Pre-order today: Amazon UK: https://amzn.to/3usAw0h

Or for free international shipping: https://bit.ly/3oRQr7c

Get in touch with Ghibliotheque at ghibli@littledotstudios.com or follow us on Twitter:

@ghibliotheque

@MichaelJLeader - Michael

@jakehcunningham - Jake

@_stephwatts - Steph

Produced by Michael Leader, Jake Cunningham, Harold McShiel and Steph Watts. Music by Anthony Ing.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

For this episode of The Chat Returns, we're joined by the incredible, BRIT award winning, artist Arlo Parks. Whilst recording her acclaimed debut album 'Collapsed in Sunbeams', Arlo and her producer would watch a different Ghibli film each day, so we get into how much Ghibli crossed over into the record, the first time she discovered Ghibli and her fairly controversial choice for a Ghibli hidden gem... 

Keep an eye out for weekly episodes in our Chat Returns miniseries - featuring conversations with filmmakers, writers, and animators who have either worked directly with Ghibli, or have been heavily inspired by them - over the next couple of months.

Our book, Ghibliotheque - The Unofficial Guide to Studio Ghibli, will be on sale from all good bookshops in the UK from 2nd September, and is available for preorder now.

Pre-order today: Amazon UK: https://amzn.to/3usAw0h

Or for free international shipping: https://bit.ly/3oRQr7c

Get in touch with Ghibliotheque at ghibli@littledotstudios.com or follow us on Twitter:

@ghibliotheque

@MichaelJLeader - Michael

@jakehcunningham - Jake

@_stephwatts - Steph

Produced by Michael Leader, Jake Cunningham, Harold McShiel and Steph Watts. Music by Anthony Ing.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode we get an early glimpse of an event that Ghibli fans the world over will be clamouring to see, the Hayao Miyazaki exhibition at the Academy Museum in Los Angeles. Sadly we can't visit the museum and the exhibition, which opens on 30 September, so for this episode we spoke to Jessica Niebel and J. Raul Guzman, the curating team behind it. Featuring more than 300 objects, including original imageboards, character designs, storyboards, layouts, backgrounds, posters, and cels from Studio Ghibli’s archives - including pieces on public view outside of Japan for the first time - Jessica and Raul give us an audio tour through an incredible exhibition. 

Keep an eye out for weekly episodes in our Chat Returns miniseries - featuring conversations with filmmakers, writers, and animators who have either worked directly with Ghibli, or have been heavily inspired by them - over the next couple of months.

Our book, Ghibliotheque - The Unofficial Guide to Studio Ghibli, will be on sale from all good bookshops in the UK from 2nd September, and is available for preorder now.

Pre-order today: Amazon UK: https://amzn.to/3usAw0h

Or for free international shipping: https://bit.ly/3oRQr7c

Get in touch with Ghibliotheque at ghibli@littledotstudios.com or follow us on Twitter:

@ghibliotheque

@MichaelJLeader - Michael

@jakehcunningham - Jake

@_stephwatts - Steph

Produced by Michael Leader, Jake Cunningham, Harold McShiel and Steph Watts. Music by Anthony Ing.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

We're so excited to welcome Emily VanDerWerff, one of the finest film and TV critics working today, on to the podcast, to celebrate the 20th anniversary of Spirited Away, her favourite film of all time. Together we explore the deep depths of Miyazaki's Oscar winner, Emily's thoughts on the wider Ghibli catalogue and how Hayao Miyazaki's work compares to David Lynch's. 

Keep an eye out for weekly episodes in our Chat Returns miniseries - featuring conversations with filmmakers, writers, and animators who have either worked directly with Ghibli, or have been heavily inspired by them - over the next couple of months.

Our book, Ghibliotheque - The Unofficial Guide to Studio Ghibli, will be on sale from all good bookshops in the UK from 2nd September, and is available for preorder now.

Pre-order today: Amazon UK: https://amzn.to/3usAw0h

Or for free international shipping: https://bit.ly/3oRQr7c

Get in touch with Ghibliotheque at ghibli@littledotstudios.com or follow us on Twitter:

@ghibliotheque

@MichaelJLeader - Michael

@jakehcunningham - Jake

@_stephwatts - Steph

Produced by Michael Leader, Jake Cunningham, Harold McShiel and Steph Watts. Music by Anthony Ing.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The Ghibliotheque dysfunctional family welcomes Mike Rianda - director of 'The Mitchells vs The Machines, one of our favourite films of the year - on to the podcast to talk about his love of Ghibli, the lessons in animation he took from watching documentaries about the studio, and how he wanted to create a unique art style for 'The Mitchells vs The Machines'

Keep an eye out for weekly episodes in our Chat Returns miniseries - featuring conversations with filmmakers, writers, and animators who have either worked directly with Ghibli, or have been heavily inspired by them - over the next couple of months.

Our book, Ghibliotheque - The Unofficial Guide to Studio Ghibli, will be on sale from all good bookshops in the UK from 2nd September, and is available for preorder now.

Pre-order today: Amazon UK: https://amzn.to/3usAw0h

Or for free international shipping: https://bit.ly/3oRQr7c

Get in touch with Ghibliotheque at ghibli@littledotstudios.com or follow us on Twitter:

@ghibliotheque

@MichaelJLeader - Michael

@jakehcunningham - Jake

@_stephwatts - Steph

Produced by Michael Leader, Jake Cunningham, Harold McShiel and Steph Watts. Music by Anthony Ing.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

We're very proud to welcome Peter Lord, one of the co-founders of legendary animation studio Aardman, on to the podcast this week to talk about Aardman's relationship to Studio Ghibli, Hayao Miyazaki's influence on an Aardman exhibition at the Ghibli Museum and a lot more.

Keep an eye out for weekly episodes in our Chat Returns miniseries - featuring conversations with filmmakers, writers, and animators who have either worked directly with Ghibli, or have been heavily inspired by them - over the next couple of months.

Our book, Ghibliotheque - The Unofficial Guide to Studio Ghibli, will be on sale from all good bookshops in the UK from 2nd September, and is available for preorder now.

Pre-order today: Amazon UK: https://amzn.to/3usAw0h

Or for free international shipping: https://bit.ly/3oRQr7c

Get in touch with Ghibliotheque at ghibli@littledotstudios.com or follow us on Twitter:

@ghibliotheque

@MichaelJLeader - Michael

@jakehcunningham - Jake

@_stephwatts - Steph

Produced by Michael Leader, Jake Cunningham, Harold McShiel and Steph Watts. Music by Anthony Ing.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The Chat Returns, or should we say 🇮🇹 Torna la Chat 🇮🇹 this week with Luca director Enrico Casarosa, on his love of early Miyazaki and how the Studio Ghibli philosophy informed his style of storytelling. From watching Future Boy Conan on TV as a kid in Italy, to screening his Pixar short La Luna at Studio Ghibli, it turns out that Enrico's connection to Miyazaki and the Studio runs deep.

Keep an eye out for weekly episodes in our Chat Returns miniseries - featuring conversations with filmmakers, writers, and animators who have either worked directly with Ghibli, or have been heavily inspired by them - over the next couple of months.

Our book, Ghibliotheque - The Unofficial Guide to Studio Ghibli, will be on sale from all good bookshops in the UK from 2nd September, and is available for preorder now.

Pre-order today: Amazon UK: https://amzn.to/3usAw0h

Or for free international shipping: https://bit.ly/3oRQr7c

Get in touch with Ghibliotheque at ghibli@littledotstudios.com or follow us on Twitter:

@ghibliotheque

@MichaelJLeader - Michael

@jakehcunningham - Jake

@_stephwatts - Steph

Produced by Michael Leader, Jake Cunningham, Harold McShiel and Steph Watts. Music by Anthony Ing.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week in our Chat Returns miniseries, friend of the show Alex Dudok de Wit returns to tell us all about his new book on Isao Takahata's Grave of the Fireflies - which is available now from all good booksellers.

Keep an eye out for weekly episodes in our Chat Returns miniseries - featuring conversations with filmmakers, writers, and animators who have either worked directly with Ghibli, or have been heavily inspired by them - over the next couple of months.

Our book, Ghibliotheque - The Unofficial Guide to Studio Ghibli, will be on sale from all good bookshops in the UK from 2nd September, and is available for preorder now.

Pre-order today: Amazon UK: https://amzn.to/3usAw0h

Or for free international shipping: https://bit.ly/3oRQr7c

Get in touch with Ghibliotheque at ghibli@littledotstudios.com or follow us on Twitter:

@ghibliotheque

@MichaelJLeader - Michael

@jakehcunningham - Jake

@_stephwatts - Steph

Produced by Michael Leader, Jake Cunningham, Harold McShiel and Steph Watts. Music by Anthony Ing.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week in our Chat Returns miniseries, we are joined by Elizabeth Ito, creator of the delightful Netflix animated series City of Ghosts, which chronicles the adventures of the Ghost Club as they discover the histories of various vibrant Los Angeles neighbourhoods.

Keep an eye out for weekly episodes in our Chat Returns miniseries - featuring conversations with filmmakers, writers, and animators who have either worked directly with Ghibli, or have been heavily inspired by them - over the next couple of months.

Our book, Ghibliotheque - The Unofficial Guide to Studio Ghibli, will be on sale from all good bookshops in the UK from 2nd September, and is available for preorder now.

Pre-order today: Amazon UK: https://amzn.to/3usAw0h

Or for free international shipping: https://bit.ly/3oRQr7c

Get in touch with Ghibliotheque at ghibli@littledotstudios.com or follow us on Twitter:

@ghibliotheque

@MichaelJLeader - Michael

@jakehcunningham - Jake

@_stephwatts - Steph

Produced by Michael Leader, Jake Cunningham, Harold McShiel and Steph Watts. Music by Anthony Ing.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week, the Chat Returns and so does the Cartoon Salooniverse, as Michael and Jake speak with Will Collins, co-writer of both Song of the Sea and Wolfwalkers. Down the line from Ireland, Will tells Michael and Jake about his relationship with the films of Studio Ghibli and his ongoing collaboration with Cartoon Saloon filmmakers Tomm Moore and Ross Stewart.

Keep an eye out for weekly episodes in our Chat Returns miniseries - featuring conversations with filmmakers, writers, and animators who have either worked directly with Ghibli, or have been heavily inspired by them - over the next couple of months.

Our book, Ghibliotheque - The Unofficial Guide to Studio Ghibli, will be on sale from all good bookshops in the UK from 2nd September, and is available for preorder now.

Pre-order today: Amazon UK: https://amzn.to/3usAw0h

Or for free international shipping: https://bit.ly/3oRQr7c

Get in touch with Ghibliotheque at ghibli@littledotstudios.com or follow us on Twitter:

@ghibliotheque

@MichaelJLeader - Michael

@jakehcunningham - Jake

@_stephwatts - Steph

Produced by Michael Leader, Jake Cunningham, Harold McShiel and Steph Watts. Music by Anthony Ing.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week in our Chat Returns miniseries, we are thrilled to speak with one of the leading characters of the Ghibliotheque story so far... Studio Ghibli's long-serving producer, enabler, genius-herder and former President, Toshio Suzuki. Suzuki has played a key role in every Studio Ghibli film to date, and has had significant influence on the careers of all Ghibli's filmmakers, not least Goro Miyazaki, who was tapped to direct Tales From Earthsea by Suzuki. As discussed on our previous episode, Goro Miyazaki describes Suzuki as the 'dark wizard' behind Ghibli, and his mark is still seen even today, on the new release Earwig and the Witch - which is screening in UK cinemas now.

Keep an eye out for weekly episodes in our Chat Returns miniseries - featuring conversations with filmmakers, writers, and animators who have either worked directly with Ghibli, or have been heavily inspired by them - over the next couple of months.

Our book, Ghibliotheque - The Unofficial Guide to Studio Ghibli, will be on sale from all good bookshops in the UK from 2nd September, and is available for preorder now.

Pre-order today: Amazon UK: https://amzn.to/3usAw0h

Or for free international shipping: https://bit.ly/3oRQr7c

Get in touch with Ghibliotheque at ghibli@littledotstudios.com or follow us on Twitter:

@ghibliotheque

@MichaelJLeader - Michael

@jakehcunningham - Jake

@_stephwatts - Steph

Produced by Michael Leader, Jake Cunningham, Harold McShiel and Steph Watts. Music by Anthony Ing.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Kicking off our new interview miniseries, Michael talks with director, museum project manager and all-round Ghibli veteran Goro Miyazaki about his career, his relationship with the Studio, and his new film, Earwig and the Witch - which is now screening in cinemas across the UK.

Keep an eye out for weekly episodes in our Chat Returns miniseries - featuring conversations with filmmakers, writers, and animators who have either worked directly with Ghibli, or have been heavily inspired by them - over the next couple of months.

Our book, Ghibliotheque - The Unofficial Guide to Studio Ghibli, will be on sale from all good bookshops in the UK from 2nd September, and is available for preorder now.

Pre-order today: Amazon UK: https://amzn.to/3usAw0h

Or for free international shipping: https://bit.ly/3oRQr7c

Get in touch with Ghibliotheque at ghibli@littledotstudios.com or follow us on Twitter:

@ghibliotheque

@MichaelJLeader - Michael

@jakehcunningham - Jake

@_stephwatts - Steph

Produced by Michael Leader, Jake Cunningham, Harold McShiel and Steph Watts. Music by Anthony Ing.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Before we close the swing doors of the Cartoon Salooniverse, Michael, Jake and Steph cast the new wide to discuss everything the studio does that isn't feature length, from the Oscar-nominated short film Late Afternoon, to the delightful children's series Puffin Rock, and everything in between, including a conversation about Cartoon Saloon's pitch for a Winnie the Pooh series, and a tantalising look at what's next for the studio. And, of course, we must rank the Cartoon Saloon films - with a little help from our listeners.

Get in touch with Ghibliotheque at ghibli@littledotstudios.com or follow us on Twitter:

@ghibliotheque

@MichaelJLeader - Michael

@jakehcunningham - Jake

@_stephwatts - Steph

Produced by Michael Leader, Jake Cunningham, Harold McShiel and Steph Watts. Music by Anthony Ing.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week's episode of our Cartoon Salooniverse miniseries brings us up to date, as Michael, Jake and Steph talk about Cartoon Saloon's latest, Oscar-nominated feature, Wolfwalkers, which sees Tomm Moore completing his Irish folklore trilogy of stories, this time working in collaboration with co-director Ross Stewart.

Get in touch with Ghibliotheque at ghibli@littledotstudios.com or follow us on Twitter:

@ghibliotheque

@MichaelJLeader - Michael

@jakehcunningham - Jake

@_stephwatts - Steph

Produced by Michael Leader, Jake Cunningham, Harold McShiel and Steph Watts. Music by Anthony Ing.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week in our Cartoon Salooniverse miniseries, Michael, Jake and Steph leave behind the folklore-filled landscape of Tomm Moore's Ireland for The Breadwinner, the animated drama about a young girl growing up in Afghanistan in the dying days of Taliban rule, directed by Cartoon Saloon co-founder Nora Twomey. What happens when such a distinctively Irish studio looks abroad?

Read the article 'The Breadwinner, or the Cinema as Secular Hegemony' by Jalil Kochai here: https://www.milestonesjournal.net/reviews/2018/7/2/the-breadwinner-or-the-cinema-as-secular-hegemony

Get in touch with Ghibliotheque at ghibli@littledotstudios.com or follow us on Twitter:

@ghibliotheque

@MichaelJLeader – Michael

@jakehcunningham – Jake

@_stephwatts - Steph

Produced by Michael Leader, Jake Cunningham, Harold McShiel and Steph Watts. Music by Anthony Ing.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

How do you follow a widely-renowned, Oscar-nominated debut feature? In this episode in our miniseries about the Irish animation studio Cartoon Saloon, Michael, Jake and Steph discuss their second feature, Tomm Moore's coastal fantasy Song of the Sea - a film about a young boy, his little sister (who also happens to be a magical selkie creature), and the rich folklore that rises out of the very landscape of Ireland itself.

Get in touch with Ghibliotheque at ghibli@littledotstudios.com or follow us on Twitter:

@ghibliotheque

@MichaelJLeader – Michael

@jakehcunningham – Jake

@_stephwatts - Steph

Produced by Michael Leader, Jake Cunningham, Harold McShiel and Steph Watts. Music by Anthony Ing.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Michael, Jake and Steph return with a new Ghibliotheque spin-off miniseries, dedicated to the wonderful work of Irish animation studio Cartoon Saloon, who are often referred to as the Ghibli of Kilkenny. Listeners may remember our interview with Cartoon Saloon directors Tomm Moore and Ross Stewart about their latest film WolfWalkers and the enduring influence of Studio Ghibli, but in this episode we're going right back to the beginning for The Secret of Kells, the company's distinctive, Oscar-nominated debut feature film.

Get in touch with Ghibliotheque at ghibli@littledotstudios.com or follow us on Twitter:

@ghibliotheque

@MichaelJLeader – Michael

@jakehcunningham – Jake

@_stephwatts - Steph

Produced by Michael Leader, Jake Cunningham, Harold McShiel and Steph Watts. Music by Anthony Ing.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week, Michael and Jake are thrilled to tackle something new for the Ghibliotheque podcast... a brand-new Studio Ghibli film! The latest from Goro Miyazaki, Earwig and the Witch may come from a familiar source, as it's adapted from a novel by Howl's Moving Castle author Diana Wynne Jones, but it showcases a radical new direction for Ghibli as the Studio's first 3D, CG-animated feature. But how has the experiment turned out?

Follow Ghibliotheque on Twitter:

@ghibliotheque

@MichaelJLeader – Michael

@jakehcunningham – Jake

@_stephwatts - Steph

Produced by Michael Leader, Jake Cunningham, Harold McShiel and Steph Watts.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

It's the annual Ghibliotheque Christmas episode! At the virtual Christmas party, Michael, Jake, Steph and Harold look back on the strange year that was 2020, read some excellent letters from listeners and their Ghibli plus ones, and even do a bit of Ghibli-themed karaoke. So grab a drink and a buffet plate, and join in the fun.

Follow Ghibliotheque on Twitter:

@ghibliotheque

@MichaelJLeader – Michael

@jakehcunningham – Jake

@_stephwatts - Steph

And get in touch via email at ghibli@littledotstudios.com

Produced by Michael Leader, Jake Cunningham, Steph Watts & Harold McShiel.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This special interview miniseries comes to a close with Pixar writing veteran Mike Jones (Soul, Luca), who talks with Michael and Jake about his experiences adapting the screenplays for The Wind Rises and The Tale of the Princess Kaguya for English-speaking audiences, as well as the similarities and differences in Studio Ghibli and Pixar's approaches to storytelling.

Follow Ghibliotheque on Twitter:

@ghibliotheque

@MichaelJLeader – Michael

@jakehcunningham – Jake

@_stephwatts - Steph

And get in touch via email at ghibli@littledotstudios.com

Produced by Michael Leader, Jake Cunningham, Steph Watts & Harold McShiel.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Our series of conversations with writers, animators and filmmakers about their relationship with Studio Ghibli continues with Rebecca Sugar, creator of the Cartoon Network series Steven Universe, talking with Steph and Jake about her lifelong love of anime, and how the work of Miyazaki and Takahata influenced her approach to animation.

Follow Ghibliotheque on Twitter:

@ghibliotheque

@MichaelJLeader – Michael

@jakehcunningham – Jake

@_stephwatts - Steph

And get in touch via email at ghibli@littledotstudios.com

Produced by Michael Leader, Jake Cunningham, Steph Watts & Harold McShiel.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Steve Alpert, the one-time "resident foreigner" at Studio Ghibli and author of the memoir Sharing a House With the Never-Ending Man, joins Michael, Jake and Steph to talk about his 15-year tenure at the Studio, including working on the international distribution of Princess Mononoke and Spirited Away.

Follow Ghibliotheque on Twitter:

@ghibliotheque

@MichaelJLeader – Michael

@jakehcunningham – Jake

@_stephwatts - Steph

And get in touch via email at ghibli@littledotstudios.com

Produced by Michael Leader, Jake Cunningham, Steph Watts & Harold McShiel.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this new miniseries, Michael, Jake and Steph are joined by filmmakers, animators and writers to talk about their relationships with Studio Ghibli. This week, director Domee Shi talks with the gang about the influence Ghibli had on her as a young animator, and how the work of Isao Takahata informed her Oscar-winning Pixar short, Bao.

Follow Ghibliotheque on Twitter:

@ghibliotheque

@MichaelJLeader – Michael

@jakehcunningham – Jake

@_stephwatts - Steph

And get in touch via email at ghibli@littledotstudios.com

Produced by Michael Leader, Jake Cunningham, Steph Watts & Harold McShiel.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this new miniseries, Michael, Jake and Steph are joined by filmmakers, animators and writers to talk about their relationships with Studio Ghibli and the enduring influence of Hayao Miyazaki and Isao Takahata. To start, Tomm Moore and Ross Stewart join the gang to talk about their new film, WolfWalkers, and how the work of their studio, Cartoon Saloon (Song of the Sea, Secret of Kells, The Breadwinner), draws inspiration from Ghibli.

Follow Ghibliotheque on Twitter:

@ghibliotheque

@MichaelJLeader – Michael

@jakehcunningham – Jake

@_stephwatts - Steph

And get in touch via email at ghibli@littledotstudios.com

Produced by Michael Leader, Jake Cunningham, Steph Watts & Harold McShiel.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.