Feb 9, 2024

Ghibli Co-Founder Toshio Suzuki Says Director Miyazaki "Was All Smiles" During Production of "The Boy and the Hare

GKIDS, the distributor of "The Boy and the Hare," has released a new video interview with Toshio Suzuki, co-founder of Studio Ghibli and longtime producer of Hayao Miyazaki's films, explaining how his approach to filmmaking has changed in the decade since "The Wind Rises" ...

In the short video, Suzuki explains:

Usually, [Director Miyazaki] was at his desk from morning to night, drawing all the time. He was a very high-strung guy. But this time, he was making it while communicating a lot with the staff. He never stopped smiling.

"The Boy and the Hare" is Miyazaki's most autobiographical work to date. In other words, Suzuki has been involved in Miyazaki's life and work for many years, so it was likely that he would appear somewhere in the film. Nevertheless, the producer was surprised to see him appear as a giant bird man, and in such a prominent role

. I was impressed by his powers of observation. Even though I knew him, I could really tell that the blue heron was him.

Suzuki says that the relationship between Mahito and the blue heron mirrored his partnership with Miyazaki in many ways, including the way they interacted:

It reflected the kind of conversations he and Miyazaki usually had. He had the timing and everything just right. It was like he was looking at himself from the outside and it was very interesting to watch.

Later, when asked about the current state of hand-drawn animation, Suzuki argued that there is room for traditional as well as more modern digital techniques, and that it is the creativity of the artists involved that determines the quality of an animated work:

After all I don't think it is possible to make a good product without artistic talent, whether it is made by hand or on a computer. That's how I see it. Still, there are things that only CG can do, and the same can be said for hand-drawing.