Kiki’s Delivery service is 30 years old. Rewatching it now, though, it couldn’t feel younger or fresher – or more relevant in our ever more turbulent world. In my newest talk, I explore why that is. With Kiki’s Delivery Service, writer-director Hayao Miyazaki took a close look at the modern and peculiarly Japanese genre, the […]
How Kiki’s Delivery Service grounded the Magical Girl genre
The personal mythology behind My Neighbour Totoro
When I tell someone that my main area of film research is Studio Ghibli films, there is a fifty percent chance that the next question I get will be: “So did you hear about the theory that Totoro is actually a vicious death god?” Siiiiiiiiiiiiiiigh. I don’t blame anyone who thinks that — the long-standing attempt at simplifying […]
The secret link between Grave of the Fireflies and My Neighbour Totoro
You see, Grave of the Fireflies is already routinely called “the greatest anti-war film of all time” and “the saddest film of all time” (both of which I agree with). But there’s an extra layer to this Studio Ghibli classic if you know the context in which it was made. And because of how these […]
My Neighbour Totoro Talk
Part of Picturehouse’s Ghibli season 8th August, 2018 | 18:30, Duke of York’s, Brighton All aboard the Catbus! Dive into the unexplored depths of the world of Ghibli wit our resident film analyst and Ghibli geek Adam Dobay. A short intro at the start of each film will reveal new ways to immerse yourself in […]
Princess Mononoke-talk
Part of Picturehouse’s Ghibli season 13th August, 2018 | 18:00, Duke of York’s, Brighton All aboard the Catbus! Dive into the unexplored depths of the world of Ghibli wit our resident film analyst and Ghibli geek Adam Dobay. A short intro at the start of each film will reveal new ways to immerse yourself in […]
Howl’s Moving Castle Talk
Part of the Picturehouse Miyazaki series 8th April, 12:00, Duke of York’s, Brighton All aboard the Catbus! Dive into the unexplored depths of the world of Ghibli wit our resident film analyst and Ghibli geek Adam Dobay. A short intro at the start of each film will reveal new ways to immerse yourself in these […]