Ponyo: Hayao Miyazaki's new gift

 

After animation masterpieces such as“Howl's Moving Castle”, “Spirited Away” etc, Ponyo is the new animated feature from master film maker Hayao Miyazaki.  Some time there are things that may be related to race and I sense it as some things are can be done only by particular race (don’t take it wrong). The movies created by Hayao Miyazaki are so fresh, so Japanese and completes with distinctively unique in style, and at the same time is universal. The creation of “Ponyo” can be only done by a Japanese.

Although creations of Moebius , Walt Disney etc. other master creator stands in different arena and  also different in style and tradition.

This old man is symbol of purity.  Beauty and treatments in his films are seems like visuals and resonance of some Haiku words. Of course also results of extreme hard work, focus and integrity.

Ponyo is a story about a goldfish named Ponyo who becomes friends with a young boy and decides to live among the humans. However, once Ponyo makes the decision it creates a crack in an ancient magic spell that puts the world order in danger.

That enormous pile of paper actually is even bigger and radiates with the devotion of Studio Ghibli's animators. About 320,000 pictures were drawn till the completion of the film and even though Ponyo's length is only 1 hour and 40 minutes, it used by far the most pictures a Ghibli movie ever needed.

Ponyo (100 min 54 sec): 170,653 pictures used

John Lasseter: Can you talk a little bit about how you develop your stories?

Hayao Miyazaki: My process is thinking, thinking, thinking. Thinking about my stories for a long time. If you have a better way, please let me know. (Comic-Con)

I do all my work by storyboard. As I draw the storyboards, the world gets more and more complex. As a result, my north, south, east, west kind of shift and go offbase, but it seems like my staff, as well as the audience, doesn't quite realize this has happened. (Press conference)

HAYAO MIYAZAKI TALKS PONYO!


Here is an conversation with Hayao Miyazaki about animation

Kelts wondered why in films like Nausicaä and even in Ponyo there's a great tsunami that threatens to destroy the setting?

Miyazaki responded that people tend to think they are separate from nature; but, he doesn't believe people are separate from nature. Nature is included within people. The nature that's inside Ponyo becomes the tsunami, which is the way she reaches the town where the boy Sosuke lives. The tsunami doesn't destroy the town or hurt the people there; it's more a magical tsunami that cleanses the town and the people who live there. Miyazaki finds hope in the power of nature.

Kelts asked Miyazaki to lay out for audiences accustomed to CGI animation what the value is of hand-drawn animation?

Miyazaki responded that-since drawing by hand can be sheer drudgery-they considered the option that it might be easier to use computer graphics. They hired a young person to explore computer drawing; but, soon realized they could draw faster by hand than by computer. For Miyazaki, it's a matter of thinking that animators should be more casual about drawing animation. He thinks an animator is more free, drawing by hand. When a character is feeling downtrodden, an animator can draw the character thin and small, and when a character is feeling full of confidence, they can draw his head bigger and show his feelings. It's difficult for computers to intuit human feelings.