Miyazaki Retires!

Big news in the Japanese film industry today, as Hayao Miyazaki, Japan’s most famous animator announced that he will retire from directing animated feature films.

Miyazaki, who is now 72 years old, is most famous for his work with Studio Ghibli, Japan’s top-tier animation studio responsible for such films as: Spirited Away, Princess Mononoke and Ponyo. In case you can not bear to hear the news, be aware that while today’s announcement should be taken seriously, Miyazaki has intended to retire multiple times in the past.

Articles regarding his retirement can be found here (in Japanese) and from an anime fan website here (in English).

In honor of Miyazaki, we will show you a variety of his works, many of which our readers will be familiar with.

The films of Studio Ghibli
A retrospective of all of Studio Ghibli’s movies until 2011.

The Wind Rises
Miyazaki’s most recent film, which is in theaters in Japan now!

The music of Studio Ghibli
Ghibli’s resident composer, Joe Hisaishi, performs a 25-year retrospective with various Japanese musicians.

The history of Studio Ghibli
Joe Turner presents the history of Studio Ghibli.

Do you have a singer, TV show or movie that you think belongs here? Tell us about them at goodmorningaomori@gmail.com!