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Studio Ghibli proves they are still the masters of animation even without the esteemed Hayao Miyazaki at the helm.

Ever since Hayao Miyazaki officially went into retirement – it seems for real this time – fans of Studio Ghibli have been wondering what will become of the animation production house. Would its quality drop? Would it shut down entirely?

But then late last year, we got word of Studio Ghibli’s first film that would be released following Miyazaki’s retirement: The Red Turtle. It’s a French-Japanese production, with the French side handling the directing/script-writing, and the Japanese side handling the art.

The thought of this production being only “half-Ghibli” may be worrying for some, but after having watched the recently-released trailer for The Red Turtle, I think it’s say to say that we can put those fears to rest.

Here are some highlights, or scroll down to watch the gorgeous trailer in full:

▼ A man gets washed ashore on a deserted island after a storm…

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▼ …where it seems he spends his days making friends with the local crabs.

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▼ But he builds a raft to try to go home…

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▼ …until trouble shows up! Uh oh.

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▼ Boom! The turtle does not like the man or his raft,
and it’s back to the island-life for him.

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▼ We don’t want to spoil the whole thing,
so watch the rest of the trailer for The Red Turtle here!

I don’t know about you, but I actually got a little choked up towards the end there. What happens to the man/woman’s son? Does the tsunami get them? Does the turtle save them? Do former enemies become friends?!

I have a feeling many tears will be shed during the viewing of this film.

The Red Turtle is set for French release on June 29, and the Japanese release after that in September. There’s no word yet on release dates for other countries, but seeing as the film has almost no dialogue in it, we can only imagine that the localization process should be pretty simple.

What do you think? Are you looking forward to The Red Turtle, or are you a hardcore Miyazaki-or-nothing fan? Let us know in the comments!

Source: YouTube/BlogStudioGhibli via Design Taxi
Images: YouTube/BlogStudioGhibli