[Studio Ghibli: A Japanese animation film studio established in Tokyo in 1985 by Hayao Miyazaki, Toshio Suzuki, Isao Takahata & Yasuyoshi Tokuma]
There are days when I wake up realising how the demands of the real world often become a tireless effort for me. There are times when I wish to escape it all, when I wish to sit on a swing with pigtails with a candy in my hand. Living within a fantasy has always captured my attention; wearing a sundress while running through a lush green field, sunflowers entangling my body and the air smelling of a new unknown adventure.
Traversing through this monotonous life I happened to land upon the creations of Studio Ghibli.
Ghibli films take you through a beautiful journey of love, life and war. The films are based on a concept that is widely known today as, “A Slice Of Life”. The films may be animated and belong to a fantasy universe, but the journey which the protagonists set on, their travels through forks and uneven bridges make the films so relatable to how a part of our lives might look like.
The first ever Studio Ghibli film which I came across was Spirited Away. And there is a rather adorable story of why this movie remains so close to my heart. I remember being a young girl of the age 7 or 8, going to a friend’s place, her father then showed us a movie. Unfortunately, we could not complete the movie, for it was late in the evening and we had to head back home. After that evening, due to certain circumstances I could not visit that friend anymore and eventually, she moved to a different city.
That movie never came to an end for me and neither did I know it’s name. All I remembered were a few instances of the film. It was in the later half of 2019 that I was introduced to Studio Ghibli by another friend. The first movie he suggested to me was Spirited away. The minute I hit play, my heart remembered the twelve year old film and found the end I had missed that day.
Spirited away took me through a journey I never knew I needed. I came across these films when I was going through a difficult phase in my life. Spirited Away was my small escape from the real world whenever I felt like I couldn’t take it anymore. This film is where you look at the world through the eyes of a girl named Chihiro (protagonist) who is shifting with her parents to a different town and she feels rather blue about the whole situation (frankly, who wouldn’t?). The film takes us through a dramatic turn of Chihiro’s life, leaving her all alone in a place unknown. Chihiro walks along the roads of life making new friends and enemies alike, but at the end of the day her quest in that unknown land finds completion and she is reunited with the lost normality. She takes some lessons forward with her and leaves some behind. This rather simple film tells us how life can turn out - looking like a road filled with pebbles, but nevertheless, having a shore nearby that is full of beauty and affection. One just needs to put the feet down and carefully tumble through these routes till one finally reaches the destination.
The aspect I find the most interesting about Studio Ghibli is how their animation is so beautifully presented, that a person cannot help but imagine themselves living in the land of Studio Ghibli. I am no different; I have always wanted to be a part of these films and be the mysterious character who lives in one beautifully animated street of Japan. This simple, delicate animation somehow makes the food stand out as one of the most picturesque elements. This may sound gluttonous but, every time I watch one of these movies I feel the urge to gorge on that delicious food that is on my screen. Who knew animations could make you hungry? I did not. I believe some things are better left unsaid, for the satisfaction of these beautifully drawn films can only be experienced by one after watching them.
Studio Ghibli films have made me laugh & made me cry, almost simultaneously. They have made me feel as though love can come in forms I have yet not discovered. They have shown me that age is only a societal bar and it is the heart that makes your soul diverse. It has made me believe that I am not alone in a world which I know nearly nothing about.
Nitisha Chopra
Editor
Redstockings Chronicle
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