CG Arts and Animation

Unit 5: Animation Essay

26/4/2012 Anastasios-Odyssefs Ntinopoulos

Introduction: This essay will explore Hayao Miyazakis career and work as an animator. Also his effect on contemporary animation and in the industry of animation will be explored and analyzed. His early career and his achievements in the animation industry will be discussed. A variety of sources will be used. Main Essay Hayao Miyazaki is a Japanese manga artist, film director and an animator of many popular anime films. Hayao Miyazaki is one of the best animation directors of all times. He has been characterized as the Walt Disney of Japan and his movies have won many awards globally. Miyazaki was influenced from Osamu Tezuka. Tezuka was a manga artist. Miyazaki from his young age loved Tezukas manga. Tezukas manga were a great inspiration for Miyazaki even the fact that it was really hard for him to write his own manga. Yuri Norstein was an influence for Miyazaki, Yuri was a Russian animator who directed Tale of Tales (1979). Hayao Miyazaki was also influenced and inspired by many novelists and writers. Also the early short films of Disney influenced him even the fact that Miyazaki doesnt like Disney in terms of storytelling.

Figure 1: Hayao Miyazakis picture.

His work has pioneered and inspired many animators. He was born in Tokyo on January 5 in 1941. He started his career as an animator at the Toei Douga studio. By this time he was involved in many early classic Japanese animations. Hayao Miyazaki in 1958 before being involved in the animation industry became interested in animated movies, his imagination was stirred by Hakujaden (Legend of the White Snake), a motion picture that was produced by Toei Animation and was Japan's first color feature-length anime. In 1963 Hayao became an animator for Toei Animation. In 1968 there was the year in which Hayao played his first major role in an animation called Prince of the Sun which was released in 1968.

Figure 2: Prince of the Sun (1968) animation.

His collaboration was with the chief animator Yasuo Otsuka and the director Isao Takahata. Takahata would later serve as the producer for some of Miyazaki's movies. By his early involvement in the industry of animation films he drew attention with his great drawing skills and with the endless ideas of movies he had. In 1973 he was involved in World Masterpiece Theater TV animation. In 1978 he directed his first TV series, "Future Boy Conan" (1978).

Figure 3: The main characters from Future Boy Conan (1978).

The Future Boy Conan (1978) which was directed by Hayao Miyazaki is set in the future after World War 3 where adventures happen between the people who have survived. The characters and the storyboard of the anime shows the creativity and the inspirational ideas of Hayao Miyazaki in terms of direction. A fantasy anime with many sci-fi places and adventures where everything is made up adequately to make a good example of how animes should be. The production values, while dated, are superb, and succeed in showcasing the series in all its glory. Its also coincidentally the prototype for all of Miyazakis later work, and elements of every single movie hes worked on since can be found here, wonderfully utilized to move this wonderful adventure along. (THEM Anime Reviews, 2003-2004). In 1979 he moved to Tky Movie Shinsha animation studios where he directed his first movie The Castle of Cagliostro (1979). By then he had established himself as an outstanding background-scene artist for both motion pictures and television animation. In the early 1980s he began one of his most popular manga series, based on the character Nausica, a princess living in a future where humanity is in peril of extinction. In 1984 he released Nausica of the Valley of the Wind which was based on the manga he had started it two years earlier. Miyazaki wrote the screenplay and painted the scenes and the characters that would be used by the animators team. Nausica of the Valley of the Wind (1984) was a success which led to the establishment of an animation studio, studio Ghibli. In the animation studio Ghibli Hayao Miyazaki directed and animated many films which were very successful and won many awards. Hayao Miyazaki in the studio Ghibli worked together with his friend and colleague Takahata. In 1988 Miyazaki in studio Ghibli released the movie My Neighbor Totoro. It has been rated as one of the greatest children's motion pictures ever made.

Figure 4: Picture from the movie: My Neighbor Totoro (1988).

The movie tells the story of two young girls who find a magic forest with magic Totoro creatures. The movie has a deep ecological theme. Hayao Miyazaki always express his concerns about nature and life in his films. ''My Neighbor Totoro'' is based on experience, situation and exploration--not on conflict and threat. (Ebert, 2001) Because of the bad pairing of the movie with Takahata's Grave of the Fireflies Japanese audience stayed away from both films. Even the fact that the movie when it came to the public wasnt a great success the film has remained one of the best family animations. The movie gives you a warm experience about family and takes you into the magical adventures of the two girls. Hayao Miyazakis work is amazing. In his animation film ''My Neighbor Totoro'' he uses the old traditional way of frame by frame for animating the characters of the animation. Miyazaki is the ''Japanese Disney,'' it's said, although that is a little unfair, since Walt Disney was more producer and visionary than animator, and Miyazaki rolls up his sleeves and draws his films himself. (Ebert, 2001) His drawing and painting skills are amazing. Hayao Miyazaki used to work in this traditional way until his very recent films. Characters from the movie served as Studio Ghiblis logo.

Figure 5: Studio Ghiblis logo from the animation ''My Neighbor Totoro'' (1988).

In 1997 Hayao Miyazaki directed and wrote the screenplay of the animation movie Princess Mononoke. Although he was criticized in the Japanese press Miyazaki with this animation movie became widely popular. This movie differs from others Miyazakis movie. Its more darker and more intense than his other classic movies for children. It was a very big success in Japan and set a record of grossing over 150$. The movie out grossed Titanic (1999) in Japan. With Princess Mononoke (1997) Miyazaki achieved to attract a large amount of the American audience. One of Miyazakis favorite motif that has been used in Princess of Mononoke (1997) is to involve the human protagonist in entering strange places and forbidden lands, which he uses with Princess of Mononoke (1997) with the forbidden forests.

Figure 6: Picture of the forest from the movie Princess of Mononoke (1997).

The main story of the animation is that a young warrior is trying to save his life by a deadly curse while protecting his village. He goes into a magic journey full of adventures and battles to achieve it. All the action is set in lush Japanese landscapes whose bright blue skies and gorgeous sunsets evoke a paradisiacal garden of earthly delights. (Holden, 1993) Miyazaki often uses in his animation young characters and especially children to express his thoughts. Miyazakis great painted backgrounds in combination with Pauls McCarthys great illustrations create a great setting. In Hayao Miyazakis Princess of Mononoke he express his

environmental concerns about nature as he does in every film he produces. The movie is greatly illustrated and animated. The film features a superb blend of hand-drawn cells and fluid computer-generated motion, but its look is also gratifyingly understated. (Maslin, 1999) Miyazakis Princes of Mononoke used computer-generated motion to achieve its results. This was one of the movies Miyazaki used computers. Barry Cook and Tony Bancroft, whose ''Mulan'' shows strong evidence of Mr. Miyazaki's influence, are on the record with ''Miyazaki is like a god to us.'' (Maslin, 1999) Miyazakis work has influenced many animators and many of his motifs on his movies has been elaborated and inspired by other artists in their movies. In 2001 Hayao Miyazaki directed and produced Spirited Away. The movie broke all Japanese box-office records and was a popular success around the globe.

Figure 7: Chihiro with Haku from the movie Spirited Away 2001

The movie features Miyazakis love for children and nature. Spirited Away has been characterized the greatest animated motion picture ever made and widely deemed one of the best motion pictures of any kind. The story is about a magic world where a little girl enters with her parents. Never remotely didactic, the film is ultimately a self-fulfillment drama that touches on religious, ethical, ecological and psychological issues. (Adams, 2006) Miyazakis motifs in his movies remains the same but still his movies are exceptional. The great production and the storyboard has made the film one of the best animations ever. Hayao Miyazaki with his work and with his inspiring ideas for his films has inspired many artists. Mark Osborn, director of DreamWorks Kung Fu Panda, has credited Miyazakis influence on him (D. Greydanus, 2010) Miyazakis style and art has as I said before inspired many artists. James Camerons Avatar has elicited various comparisons to Miyazaki, and Cameron has acknowledged that he is a big fan of Miyazaki as well as of anime in general. (D. Greydanus, 2010) Avatars story has taken many influences from Miyazakis work. Also Walt Disneys animations have many influences from Miyazakis work. Another animator of Disney Glen Keane who has worked in many popular Disneys films such as Aladdin (1992), Beauty and the Beast (1991), The Little Mermaid (1989) has stated that Miyazakis influence plays a very big role on his work and on Disney. Conclusion: Hayaos Miyazakis is one notable animator who has inspired many other animators. His work and his movies have been great and have received many awards. His stories are really pioneering in the animation industry along with his animation style. As I said before he has been characterized as the Walt Disney of Japan. His movies have out grossed many popular American movies and many of his movies have been voted as the best of their genre. He has been widely known in Europe and his work is very important in the animation movies industry.

Illustration List: Figure 1: Hayao Miyazakis picture. [online image] http://ia.mediaimdb.com/images/M/MV5BMjcyNjk2OTkwNF5BMl5BanBnXkFtZTcwOTk0MTQ3Mg@@._V1._S Y314_CR17,0,214,314_.jpg (Accessed: 26/4/2012) Figure 2: Prince of the Sun (1968) animation. [online image] http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_EXgDI8DeN_E/SnX26yALyVI/AAAAAAAAEqk/_Lvb3p5tiso/s400/horu s.jpg (Accessed: 26/4/2012) Figure 3: The main characters from Future Boy Conan (1978). [online image] http://www.highharbor.net/~daffy/conanpix/fbcb.gif (Accessed: 26/4/2012) Figure 4: Figure 4: Picture from the movie: My Neighbor Totoro (1988). [online image] http://www.anonlineuniverse.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/04/totoro-image-5.jpg (Accessed: 26/4/2012) Figure 5: Studio Ghiblis logo from the animation ''My Neighbor Totoro'' (1988). [online image] http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/el/7/75/Studioghibli.gif (Accessed: 26/4/2012) Figure 6: : Picture of the forest from the movie Princess of Mononoke (1997). [online image] http://www.susancohangardens.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2009/06/033_forest_leaves300x184.jpg (Accessed: 26/4/2012) Figure 7: Chihiro with Haku from the movie Spirited Away 2001 [online image] http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_zAoyoHwC5IQ/S91xCg27VRI/AAAAAAAAIa4/UKnnYxxWbsk/s1600/ Spirited+Away+(2001)+2.jpg (Accessed: 26/4/2012) Bibliography: ThemAnime.org (2003-2004), Film Review http://www.themanime.org/viewreview.php?id=810 (Accessed: 26/4/2012) Stephen, Holden (1993) Film Review http://movies.nytimes.com/movie/review?res=9F0CE7DC1430F937A25756C0A965958260&par tner=Rotten%20Tomatoes (Accessed: 26/4/2012) Janet, Maslin (1999) Film Review http://movies.nytimes.com/movie/review?res=9C01E2DF1E3FF934A1575AC0A96F958260 (Accessed: 26/4/2012) Derek, Adams (2006) Film Review 6

http://www.timeout.com/film/reviews/75161/spirited_away.html (Accessed: 26/4/2012) Roger, Ebert (2001) Film Review http://rogerebert.suntimes.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20011223/REVIEWS08/112230301/1 023 (Accessed: 26/4/2012)