Apparently, you can’t keep a good animator down. Or retired.
Hayao Miyazaki, the Japanese behind such classics as Spirited Away and Princess Mononoke, has announced that he is working on a new film. This after he announced his retirement shortly after the release of his 2013 film The Wind Rises.
Japanese network HNK (via Anime News Network) broke the news Sunday in a special titled Owaranai Hito Miyazaki Hayao (The Man Who Is Not Done: Hayao Miyazaki). In the special the seventy-six-year old Miyazaki revealed that he has been working on a 12-minute CG animated short titled Kemushi no Boro (Boro the Caterpillar). He also stated that he is currently planning another feature film that he hopes to have finished by the 2020 Olympics to be held in Tokyo.
When finished Boro The Catepillar will screen next year at the museum run by Studio Ghibli, the animation outlet that Miyazaki helped found and which is virtually synonymous with his name. The animator still retains part ownership. He has also stated that he has pitched his new feature project to studio producer Toshio Suzuki in August. While Ghibli has not yet officially given a greenlight to Miyazaki’s feature project, it is hard to believe that they would say no to the man whose work built the studio.
While The Wind Rises was a perfectly good capstone to Miyazaki’s amazing career, it is hard to say “no” to the prospect of a new film from the animation master. Here’s hoping that Ghibli feels the same way.
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