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Mar 26 – Anime - Posted By Adam
How Miyazaki and Studio Ghibli Reacted to the Earthquake
During today's North American premiere of Hayao Miyazaki's two short films, “House Hunting” and “Water Spider”, Steve Alpert, VP of Studio Ghibli's International Division, discussed the studio's reaction to the Japanese earthquake. The Tokyo-based studio wasn't hit too hard physically, but emotionally, they were devastated by the TV footage and news headlines.
Following a week-long power outage at their headquarters, Miyazaki called an all-hands-on-deck meeting, where he told staff that during tragic times everyone should keep their heads down and continue on their daily lives. For them, as filmmakers, those words meant simply continuing to produce the best movies they could. Miyazaki also said that despite ever-worsening news, they must always try to keep positive.
Since the meeting, Studio Ghibli sponsored clothing drives for those affected by the earthquake and screened Ghibli films in Northern Japan, hoping to keep the displaced children's spirits high and provide a little bit of Ghibli-style entertainment.
