Manga Mondays: Spotlight #1 ~ Hayao Miyazaki

"OMG SHE'S BACK"
Yes. Yes I am. BUWAHAHAH!
Hey, is it bad to wear a scarf in 90+ degree weather, even if I'm cold?
It is? OH WELL!

 

 

Hey everyone! Welcome back to Manga Mondays at BNR! I'm so excited to be back and writing to you all. I hope everyone still loves me even though I left for a while...
HOWEVER, I will return to you all starting today. /LOVINGASIANHUGS

So, I'm gonna try out this new idea I came up with while I was laying on the beach in Florida:

Spotlights!

Yay!... Like a sir...

So, I thought I'd kick off the entire new mini-series (That will either be the first or last Monday of every month) within the feature to spotlight my all-time favorite Director and Animator:

Hayao Miyazaki!

For those of you who have NO IDEA who this is and call yourself an anime/manga-fan needs to be slapped! (jk)

Lemme just list the few movies he's done:

 

 And one more, an all-time favorite full of awesome adventure...

Okay, so by now you should know who Hayao Miyazaki is. Ha! If you don't, go watch ANY of these movies and see his genius at work. There are all beautifully created animated films. I recommend all of his films really...

Hayao Miyazaki is simply superb at what he does, both animating and directing. He crafts stories full of magic, wonder, and just life in general. Through his stories, I'm inspired to create more than I've ever wanted to.

Sosuke (Left) and Ponyo (Right)  in Ponyo

I wanted Miyazaki-san to be the first I spotlight because he has made such an enormous impact on my life in both art and in general. He isn't your average animator to create movies to just entertain; he creates stories to make an impression, to make you think, and to make use of your creativity. The characters created in the stories are always so unique and eventful. I can't help to cry when they cry and to laugh when they laugh. It really places you in the atmosphere, whether it is the playful world within Ponyo or the mystical world of contraptions and magics within Howl's Moving Castle. Miyazaki-san creates an imaginative world for one person to another and bases the movies on others, creating a sense of connection with the characters, such as with Chihiro in Spirited Away.

Haku (left) and Chihiro (Right) from Spirited Away...Confession: This is my iPhone wallpaper.
I REGRET NOTHING.

What makes Miyazaki-san great as well is his ability to capture the audience into his story.

Sophie (Left) & Howl (Right) from Howl's Moving Castle

When I first watched Howl's Moving Castle, my curiosity first drove me to watch it. I thought, "Hm. This looks interesting." Hearing the interactions between the characters, the personalities of each one, and the story progression led to me to fall in love with HMC. Watching Sophie (the main female protagonist in HMC) throughout the film, I had a real connection with her because she was so much like me: Insecure, lonely, caring, as well as short-tempered. I loved her throughout the film, and her interactions with Howl are interesting as well! I could never get enough of Howl.
But even through the laughs and excitement in HMC, there is also melancholy and loneliness in the characters, Howl especially. Watch the movie and you'll know what I mean.
Miyazaki was able to make me feel happy, sad, angry, and even more emotions through his film, and what made it better was that it fit with the story. There weren't just random cases of jokes or trouble; it was purposeful. It flowed. It worked. Stories can bring out many emotions, but Miyazaki really takes the cake when it comes to conveying emotions within his stories as well as just depth within the characters and plot.

But it just doesn't single out with HMC; it's nearly every Miyazaki film.

Throughout Ponyo, I felt distress for our two child main characters, Sosuke and Ponyo. Would they be able to play together? Will Ponyo be taken away by her father? Will Sosuke be with his family again?

Throughout Spirited Away, I wondered if Chihiro will ever see Haku if she rescues her parents. I wondered if Chihiro will ever recover her name back.

The list just goes on for his movies. 

All in all, Hayao Miyazaki's movies are an inspiration to any artist, writer, animator, and/or director. Simply put, he's pretty freaking awesome, and anyone who hasn't seen his movies should go watch any of them created by him. If you don't like one, try another; his film genres are vast and creative. There is always something by Miyazaki that you will love.

Look at this guy! Full of awesome!
Above: Hayao Miyazaki

So, I hope this mini-series will be successful, and I open people to new artists and writers!

Hope to see you all in the coming Mondays and as well as when I do a review!
 

Sayonara!

-Sara