The movie “Miyazaki, Spirit of Nature” connects the world view of 11 classic animated films. It is the first documentary focusing on the life, works and natural environment of Japanese animation master Miyazaki, and is also the work of French documentary director Rio Favier pays tribute to the Oscar Lifetime Achievement Award winner. Last year, the film was selected as the best documentary “Venice Classic” official unit of the 81st Venice Film Festival, and many Ghibli fans are looking forward to it.
When the film quotes Gong 﨑jun’s lifelong achievements as the “Chairman Award” was awarded 11 years ago, he once said: “My wife said I am very lucky because I caught up with the last era of hand-painted. For 50 years, my movies can still be made with only paper and pen.” Gong 﨑jun has not forgotten his original intention and has been lingering for his life to persist in hand-painted animation. Compared with the recent prevalence of “AI imitation art style”, it is particularly meaningful to launch this documentary at this time.
“The Fantasy World of Gong 﨑jun” Return to Gong 﨑jun's youth
In the film “The Fantasy World of Gong Jun”, it leads the audience back to the enlightenment moment when Gong Jun was young. In 1958, Japan's first color animated feature film “The Legend of the White Snake” completely changed his life direction. At that time, 17-year-old and third-year high school, Gong Jun, originally walked into the cinema to escape the pressure of the college entrance examination, but was deeply shocked by the snake that could transform into a human, the young woman who pursued love, in front of the screen. This work made him realize that animation is not just entertainment, but also a magical art that can depict violent natural wonders and dispel despair in his heart. He began to transform his passion for comics into his determination to enter the animation world.
The documentary uses a large number of precious images and interviews to trace the journey of Miya Jun Jun since joining Toei animation in the 1960s. His revolutionary friendship with his future important partner, Isao Takahata, also sprouted from this period, and gave birth to works such as “The Panda Family” that countless children yearn for. However, what really made Gong Jun a cartoon director was the 1979 “Lupin III: City of Cariostro”. This film shows his imaginative narrative rhythm and unique thrilling action scene arrangement. Although it was later hailed as a classic, it suffered a box office Waterloo that year, which once hit a low point. Under such a setback, Miya Jun returned to the TV industry and went to the United States to participate in the Hollywood animation project “Little Nemo”, which was jointly produced by the United States and Japan, but returned to Japan sadly despite the limitation of creative freedom.
