Gorō Miyazaki, prodigal son

PostED ON OCTOBER 11 AT 2:50 PM

“Above all, you shouldn't draw from a photo.” Such was the advice given to Gorō, the son of animation genius and founder of the Japanese Studio Ghibli, Hayao Miyazaki, when Gorō belatedly became an animation filmmaker.

Draw not from a photo, but from your imagination, in order to create the lyrical, poetic and flamboyant films that have made Studio Ghibli famous worldwide. Yet the style of Gorō Miyazaki differs from that of his father - it appears more realistic. Gorō’s foray into filmmaking was unexpected, since Gorō, born in 1967, believed to be pursuing a mundane profession. A graduate in agriculture and forest sciences, he was an urban planning consultant, when, in 2001, he was offered the helm of the Ghibli Museum, then in 2005, entrusted with directing a first feature film, Tales from Earthsea (Gedo Senki), with the adapted screenplay by his father, Hayao. Upon seeing the film, Hayao pushed his son to go further, to seek more. Six years later, From Up on Poppy Hill (Kokuriko-zaka kara), would make Hayao Miyazaki cry, before summoning his son to… discuss the film. Today, Gorō is adapting Earwig and the Witch (Aya to majo), Studio Ghibli's first 3D animated film, a fantastic tale told through the eyes of an amazing little girl, surrounded by adults who are wonderful, in the crazy sense of the word. By visually innovating with 3D, while embracing his father's imaginary quest, with a story full of imagination, Gorō might have found one of those magical combinations that have built Ghibli's reputation.

Virginie Apiou

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