Hayao Miyazaki

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Biography

Recent Role:
on Nadia of the Mysterious Seas
Gender:
Male
Born:
1-5-1941
Birthplace:
Tokyo, Japan
AKA:
Tsutomu Teruki, Miyazaki Hayao
Born January 5, 1941 in Tokyo, Japan, Hayao Miyazaki is one of the most famous and well-respected creators of anime. He has three brothers, he being the second oldest. His older brother, Arata Miyazaki, was born in July 1939. His first younger brother is Shirou Miyazaki. His youngest is brother is named Yutaka Miyazaki and was born in January 1944.

In 1947, Miyazaki enrolled at a school in Utsunomiya, the capital city of Tochigi, Japan. He stayed there until the third grade, when his family moved back to Eifuku in the Suginami District, Tokyo, Japan. He then attended Omiya

… More Suginami Elementary School. Then again in fifth grade, Hayao was transferred to the newly built Eifuku Elementary.

Miyazaki first gained recognition while working for the Toei Animation production of Garibā no Uchuu Ryokou (Gulliver's Travels Beyond the Moon) in 1965. He felt that the original ending in the script was lacking and thus pitched his own idea. Toei decides to go with his idea instead of the original one.

A few years later Miyazaki became the chief animator and concept artist for Horus: Prince of the Sun, an animated film directed by his good friend Isao Takahata.

Throughout the 1970s, Miyazaki worked on a number of TV series. He left Toei and went to Nippon Animation where he worked as an animator on the World Masterpiece Theater TV animation series from 1974 to 1979 under Isao Takahata. He first became a director under the TV version of Lupin IIIin 1971 (he was a co-director with Takahata). His first film as a director wasn't until 1979 with The Castle of Cagliostro, a film based off of Lupin III.

In 1978, Miyazaki worked on Future Boy Conan, an adaptation of the children's novel The Incredible Tide by Alexander Key. He later directed six episodes of Sherlock Hound in 1981/1982.

Miyazaki's next film as director, however, was Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind (Kaze no Tani no Nausicaa) in 1984. Nausicaä was an adaptation from the manga by the same name, and featured many themes in which Miyazaki enjoys, such as environmental concerns, aircrafts, and the absence of a traditional villain. Following the success of Nausicaä, Miyazaki and Isao Takahata founded the animation film company, Studio Ghibli.

Miyazaki continued to gain recognition with his first three films made through Studio Ghibli. In 1986 he created Castle in the Sky (Laputa: Castle in the Sky), the infamous My Neighbor Totoro in 1988 (Tonari no Totoro), and Kiki's Delivery Service in 1989. Throughout this time, other directors, including Takahata began directing poplar films under Studio Ghibli.

In 1992, Miyazaki put his fascination of aircrafts into overload with the creation of Porco Rosso (adopted from the original manga by Hikoutei Jidai). For the first time, the main character was an adult male (who was actually transformed into a pig). The film is a light-hearted adventure set in a fictional world based on Italy in the 1920s. It features many airtcrafts and sky battled. Miyazaki first came by his love for flying and airplanes when he was a child. He would watched airplanes fly and get repaired at a factory where his father worked

In 1997, Princess Mononoke (Mononoke Hime) was released. The film won Best Picture at the Japanese Academy Awards. Miyazaki retired after making Princess Mononoke, intending it to be his last film as a director.

He came out of retirement (not for the last time) after spending a holiday with the daughters of a friend. She actually became the inspiration for his next film, Spirited Away (Sen to Chihiro no Kamikakushi) in July of 2001. It features the story of a girl who is forced to survive in a strange world full of spirits. She is enlisted to work in a bathhouse for spirits and gods after her parents are turned into pigs. The film did immensely well in Japan, braking the box office records previously set by Titanic with ¥30.4 billion. It has received numerous film awards, including Best Picture at the 2001 Japanese Academy Awards, Golden Bear (First Prize) at the 2002 Berlin Film Festival, and the 2002 Academy Award for Best Animated Feature (the first Oscar awarded to an anime production).

Although intending Spirited Away to now be his final film, in July 2004, Miyazaki finished production on Howl's Moving Castle. Howl's is an adaptation of Diana Wynne Jones' fantasy novel of the same name. Miyazaki had to come out of retirement this time, due to the sudden departure of the film's original director Mamoru Hosoda. The film premiered at the 2004 Venice International Film Festival and won the Golden Osella award for animation technology. On November 20, 2004, Howl's Moving Castle opened to general audiences in Japan and earned ¥1.4 billion in its first two days, continuing the record-setting trend of Miyazaki films at the box office. The English dubbed version was released in the U.S., through Disney, on June 11, 2005.

In 2005, Miyazaki was awarded the lifetime achievement award at the Venice Film Festival.
Miyazaki may have been was well known in Japan since 1984 with the debut of Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind., but he was largely unknown in the West until Miramax released his film 1997 film Princess Mononoke in 1999. Since then, Walt Disney has purchased many of his films as part of the Disney-Tokuma Deal. The deal grants worldwide distribution rights for certain Studio Ghibli films to the Walt Disney Corporation. Disney has released and is still releasing these films uncut.

Miyazaki is considered to be the "Walt Disney of Japanese animation". Although he dislikes this title, it may prove to be true, as his films have grossed enough to put him in league with Disney's work. However, Miyazaki doesn't see himself as a person building an animation empire - only an animator lucky enough to have been allowed to make films with his own personal touch.

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  •  
    10 Perfect
    empty hide show

    Insainly great actor! He is a genius for all the japanese anime films he makes such as Spirited Away, Princress Mononoke, Howl's Moving Castle, Castle in the Sky, and Kiki's Delivery Service. You should see his movies

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    Jedi_Jettson_21 Added Feb 22, 2009 All my reviews
  •  
    10 Perfect
    empty hide show

    There is one word to describe myazaki. genius! he is the greatest anime film maker of all times.

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    Samuralivy13 Added May 28, 2007 All my reviews
  •  
    10 Perfect
    Hayao Miyazaki is regarded as one of the greatest creators of animated films, and his work certainly stands as some of the best the genre has to offer. Miyazaki began as a low-level animator for children's cartoons. hide show

    Hayao Miyazaki is regarded as one of the greatest creators of animated films, and his work certainly stands as some of the best the genre has to offer. Miyazaki began as a low-level animator for children's cartoons such as Gulliver's Space Travels, eventually becoming director and key animator on many films and series, including Future Boy Conan and The Castle of Cagliostro. He frequently collaborated with Isao Takahata, director of Grave of the Fireflies. Miyazaki and Takahata co-founded Ghibli Films, a name that would become synonymous with quality. Miyazaki's works with Ghibli contained more of his own personal vision. Beginning with Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind, his films took on a softer touch and often included the adventures of young girls. Nausicaa, and others including Kiki's Delivery Service, The Crimson Pig, and My Neighbor Totoro, contain elements of fantasy and often reveal humanist, ecological themes.Because of the high quality of his animation and his positive messages, Miyazaki's films were among eight from the Ghibli studio that were acquired for U.S. distribution by Disney; this includes Nausicaa, as well as Kiki's Delivery Service, Princess Mononoke, and others. Disney's agreement includes theatrical and video distribution, as well as voice dubbing using major American actors. Miyazaki once again stunned audiences worldwide with the release of Spirited Away in 2001. Acquired by Disney and released in the U.S. the following year, stateside audiences who had been enraptured by the adventures of Princess Mononoke once again found Miyazaki in top form with this tale of a young girl looking for a way back to reality after entering a mysterious parallel universe while visiting an abandoned amusement park. Winning the Oscar for Best Animated Feature at the 75th annual Academy Awards, despite recieving only a half-hearted stateside release by Disney, Spirited Away was quickly rushed back into theaters in the week following the Oscars to capitalize on its newfound status.

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    SweetMoonRose Added Mar 13, 2007 All my reviews
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    10 Perfect
    He makes the best anime films i love this guy. hide show

    He made such good films such as Spirited away,princess monoke,castle in the sky this guy is the best plus he directs lots of good anime like naruto this guy is the legend of anime I love this guy he is the best the god of anime directing and anime making i love this guy.

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    gaara257 Added Jan 17, 2007 All my reviews
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    10 Perfect
    Hayao Miyazaki is a fantastic anime writer/director. Every one of his movies has been phenomenal. The Japanese flute music by Joe Hisaishi is sensational. These two elements together help make his movies unforgettable. hide show

    Even though I haven't seen all of his movies--although I have seen most--, I can say that from what I have seen, Hayao Miyazaki is a fantastic anime writer/director. I always look forward to watching his movies, for every one of his movies has been phenomenal. The Japanese flute music by Joe Hisaishi is sensational. These two elements together help make his movies unforgettable. My two most favorite movies of his so far are Spirited Away and Castle in the Sky. These two are the quintessence of what makes his movies out-of-this-world. Anime is becoming more and more popular in America and this is why. Their graphics, flute music, and themes blow us away. Shows like Naruto, Sailor Moon, and Yu-Gi-Oh! have become increasingly popular. I can't wait until Miyazaki's new movie comes out in 2008 or 2009. Even though we don't know a thing about it, if he is involved in it, then it will have to be exceptional. Therefore, Anime rocks and Hayao Miyazaki has no equal!!

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    YamiNarutoBrief Added Oct 22, 2006 All my reviews
 

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