Apparently, someone is unhappy at Studio Ghibli these days with one of the posters that are lining the studio’s walls. And who might that be? It’s none other than the studio’s co-founder, Hayao Miyazaki, and the poster he’s upset about happens to be the one for Ghibli’s upcoming release, When Marnie Was There. But what doesn’t Miyazaki like about this seemingly beautifully illustrated poster?
The poster in question features a colored sketch by Hiromasa Yonebayashi, who will be directing the new movie, which is based on the children’s book of the same title by British author Joan G. Robinson. Now, to us, the picture in the poster seems perfectly lovely, but according to Ghibli producer Yoshiaki Nishimura’s comments in a recent press conference, Miyazaki has been voicing his opinion that using the image of a pretty little blond girl to get people’s attention is “just plain outdated and cheesy“. Nishimura also added that it has never been their intention to catch people’s attention that way with the poster, and we tend to agree with him, seeing as the illustration just seems to be a depiction of one of the principal characters in the movie.
With 2013 having been a big year for Ghibli, with the release of two films as well as Miyazaki’s retirement announcement, you can expect that all eyes will be on how the new movie does, especially as it will be the first ever feature-length film by Ghibli to be created without direct involvement by either Miyazaki or Isao Takahata, director of last year’s The Tale of Princess Kaguya and other Ghibli works such as Grave of the Fireflies and Only Yesterday.
That means the pressure definitely will be on for Yonebayashi to create a masterpiece, but based on what people have been saying on the Internet, he does seem to have the material going for him — in this case, a story that involves an interesting young female lead who goes through a significant growing experience, combined with a dash of the supernatural, which should be right up Studio Ghibli’s alley.
Regardless of Miyazaki’s opinion on the poster for the movie, the film is bound to receive plenty of attention when it hits theaters on July 19. We’ll certainly be looking forward to seeing what the “new” Ghibli has in store for us!
Source: cinemacafe.net (Japanese)
Photo: Studio Ghibli